Michigan House Speaker Joe Tate eyes run for Detroit mayor

Michigan’s first Black House Speaker Joe Tate, D-Detroit, has created a campaign committee to run for mayor of Detroit.

Tate, 43, filed paperwork on Nov. 21 that allows him to begin collecting campaign donations for the 2025 election. He has yet to formally announce his intention to run for mayor, but his inclusion in the race sets up a potential contest for the nonpartisan seat against City Council President Mary Sheffield, Council Member Fred Durhal III, nonprofit CEO Saunteel Jenkins and businessman Joel Haashiim.

Tate, Durhal and Sheffield attended a Monday press conference on Detroit’s eastside celebrating reductions in crime in areas served by ShotStoppers, the city’s community violence intervention program. Tate told BridgeDetroit that he’s focused on finishing this year’s legislative agenda, which includes a bill that would create permanent funding for the crime reduction program, and will discuss his ambitions for mayor at a later date.

Mayor Mike Duggan announced last month that he would not seek re-election after his term ends in 2025. Tate said the opportunity to serve Detroiters is what has him interested in running to replace Duggan.

“At the end of the day, it’s service, that’s what’s most important for me,” Tate said Monday.

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Tate’s committee was formed by Gabrielle Merditaj, who works as deputy finance director for the Michigan House Democrats and was previously a scheduler for Tate and a fundraiser for Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

Tate will start his fourth term in the state House next year and would need to leave office early to serve as mayor at the start of 2026 if elected.

Last month, he was reelected in 2024 to represent the new 9th House District, which covers much of downtown and midtown Detroit, all of Hamtramck and portions of the northeast side of Detroit. Tate earned 93% of the vote, collecting 35,781 total votes, and previously defeated a Democratic primary challenger.

Tate is currently representing Michigan’s 10th House District, which extends from downtown across Detroit’s lower eastside, into Grosse Pointe Park, Grosse Pointe, Grosse Pointe Farms, Grosse Pointe Woods and parts of Harper Woods and Grosse Pointe Shores.

He was born in Grosse Pointe and grew up in Detroit and Southfield. His parents were a teacher at Detroit Public Schools and a firefighter who died when Tate was young. He graduated from Michigan State University and received a master’s degree from the University of Michigan.

Tate played football at MSU and later signed with professional teams in the National Football League. He served four years in the U.S. Marine Corps and was deployed twice to Afghanistan.

Tate was first elected in 2018. He’s been endorsed by various labor groups like the AFL-CIO, American Federation of Teachers and Service Employees International Union.

Tate raised $317,000 during his 2024 campaign. He drew thousands of dollars in donations from political organizations representing the Michigan Laborers Political League, UnitedHealth Group, Automobile Club of Michigan, Detroit Regional Chamber, Small Business Association of Michigan, Insurance Alliance of Michigan and others.