Written by Tanya Terry
A Special Primary Election was held in Flint on Tuesday, May 6, in order to fill a vacancy for the Office of Council Member-Third (3rd) Ward. Voters casts their votes at Berston Field House, Avery Aldridge Activity Center and St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church, depending on their precinct.
According to the unofficial results posted on the official Genesee County Michigan website, the election resulted in a tie. Beverly Biggs-Leavy and A.C. Dumas each received 165 votes, or 32.16% of the votes.
Dumas is former president of the Flint branch of the NAACP and is known as a long time active community member, politically.
On February 11, Biggs-Leavy filed a motion to intervene in a lawsuit. The motion alleged Biggs-Leavy was twice elected to the Third Ward seat, first in the November 5, 2024 special election and again in the February 5, 2025 Flint City Council meeting, but that she was illegally deprived of the seat on both occasions.
Then, on March 17, Biggs-Leavy filed a complaint for declaratory and injunctive relief against members of the Flint City Council, as well as Flint’s Ethics and Accountability Board, in connection with the February 5, 2025 Flint City Council meeting. The complaint states Councilperson El-Alamin changed his vote that was previously in favor of Biggs-Leavy filling the vacant Third Ward seat, causing her to not be appointed to the seat.
LaShawn Johnson, who was appointed by Mayor Sheldon Neeley in January as a 3rd Ward ambassador, received 162 votes, 31.58% of them. Johnson, along with the other 3rd Ward ambassador, Linda Boose, were appointed to be in the community finding out what concerns residents have and bringing them back to Flint City Hall.
Longtime Flint Activist Rich Jones also received 21 votes, 4.09% of them.
Sadly, only 513 3rd Ward residents voted in the special election.
Biggs-Leavy and Dumas are expected to compete in a special general election on Aug. 6 – unless there is a recount challenge.
The 3rd Ward city council seat has been vacant since September 29, 2024, when Councilman Quincy Murphy died at age 50. The Flint City Council had held votes at several meetings since then, but did not ultimately fill the seat due to council division, despite the fact a city charter required it be done within 30 days of the office having been vacated.
The vacancy is for a partial term ending on November 11, 2026.
