Detroit mayor election: Nine candidates file to run for city's top seat

DETROIT (FOX 2) - Detroit's mayoral race is still months away, but the list of candidates in the nonpartisan election won't be growing any longer after Tuesday.

That's because the deadline to return a petition signaling an intention to run was at 4 p.m. With that time now gone, the picture of who could be Detroit's newest mayor in more than a decade is starting to become more clear. 

Big picture view:

From current and former city council members to a former police chief, an attorney, and a local faith leader, the race for mayor of Detroit will be one of the most competitive in years.

With outgoing Mayor Mike Duggan leaving office after his third term is up, the nonpartisan race will be hotly contested among several well-known officials within the city.

That includes Fred Durhal III, Mary Sheffield, and Saunteel Jenkins from the city council, James Craig who once led the Detroit Police Department, and Rev. Solomon Kinloch Jr.

There's also attorney Todd Perkins, businessman Joel Haashiim, self-described entrepreneur Jonathan Barlow, and Dean Evans. 

Dig deeper:

According to the city clerk, it's not unusual to see so many people officially run for the office. But mayor is only one piece of the Detroit election puzzle

It's an entirely different beast at the city council level: 

• 8 people have filed to run for an at-large seat in the Detroit City Council
• Approximately 25 people are running for one of the seven district seats on city council

These may seem like large numbers, but not to Janice Winfrey.

"I think it was in 09 where we had like 90 people on the ballot running for council," the clerk said.

Anyone who decides against running can withdraw by Friday.