2002 Flint mayoral special election

2002 Flint mayoral special election
August 6, 2002
 
Candidate James W. Rutherford A.J. Pointer
(write-in)
Party Nonpartisan Nonpartisan
Popular vote 11,239 4,712
Percentage 70.42% 29.52%
Mayor before election

Darnell Earley (temporary)
Nonpartisan

Elected mayor

James W. Rutherford
Nonpartisan

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The 2002 Flint mayoral special election took place on August 6, 2002. On March 5, 2002, voters recalled Mayor Woodrow Stanley, and city administrator Darnell Earley became temporary mayor. A special election was originally scheduled for May 7, 2002, but the state legislature cancelled the election to allow Governor John Engler to appoint a financial review team to evaluate the city's finances. The election was ultimately rescheduled for August 6, 2002.[1] On May 22, 2002, Engler declared a financial emergency in the city,[2] and appointed Ed Kurtz, the President of Baker College, as emergency financial manager on July 8.[3] As a result, following the state takeover, the winner of the special election would have fewer powers.[4]

While several candidates planned on running, former Mayor James W. Rutherford ended up being the only candidate to appear on the ballot.[4] After the Reverend A.J. Pointer failed to qualify from the ballot, he announced that he would run as a write-in candidate.[5] Though Pointer attracted a significant level of support for a write-in candidate,[6] Rutherford ultimately won handily, receiving 70 percent of the vote to Pointer's 30 percent, becoming the oldest person to be elected as Mayor.[7]

Candidates

Results

2002 Flint mayoral special election results[8]
Party Candidate Votes %
Nonpartisan James W. Rutherford 11,239 70.42%
Nonpartisan A.J. Pointer (write-in) 4,712 29.52%
Write-in 10 0.06%
Total votes 15,961 100.00%

References

  1. ^ Machniak, Christofer (May 2, 2002). "New election date will set petition clock running". The Flint Journal. Flint, Michigan. p. 3A. Retrieved July 1, 2025.
  2. ^ Machniak, Christofer (May 23, 2002). "Engler backs Flint takeover: Reforms fail to halt takeover". The Flint Journal. Flint, Michigan. p. 1A. Retrieved July 1, 2025.
  3. ^ Machniak, Christofer (May 2, 2002). "Engler approves takeover". The Flint Journal. Flint, Michigan. p. 1A. Retrieved July 1, 2025.
  4. ^ a b Machniak, Christofer (May 31, 2002). "Rutherford - the once and future mayor". The Flint Journal. Flint, Michigan. p. 1A. Retrieved July 1, 2025.
  5. ^ a b Machniak, Christofer (June 19, 2002). "Pastor to challenge Rutherford as write-in candidate for mayor". The Flint Journal. Flint, Michigan. p. 4A. Retrieved July 1, 2025.
  6. ^ Machniak, Christofer (July 28, 2002). "Mayoral write-in puts faith in voters". The Flint Journal. Flint, Michigan. p. 3A. Retrieved July 1, 2025.
  7. ^ Machniak, Christofer (August 14, 2002). "Rutherford is proud to be Flint's oldest mayor". The Flint Journal. Flint, Michigan. p. 2A. Retrieved July 1, 2025.
  8. ^ "Primary Election - Genesee County, Michigan - Tuesday, August 06, 2002". August 7, 2002. Archived from the original on February 25, 2004. Retrieved July 1, 2025.
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