'We can now put Detroit back on the right path,' Bing says

BY JOHN WISELY, SUZETTE HACKNEY and CECIL ANGEL

As results poured in Tuesday evening giving Mayor Dave Bing a full 4-year term, the basketball Hall of Famer sat on a couch with his wife watching the HBO documentary about President Barack Obama's ascension to the White House.

The two sat close and whispered, with their two daughters and some close friends nearby. The quiet time was a respite for Bing after a campaign that covered four elections in eight months. He defeated his challenger 58% to 42%.

He now moves on to try to steer the city through its most difficult financial crisis since the Great Depression.

"Together we can now put Detroit back on the right path," Bing said Tuesday night in his victory speech at the Fort Shelby Doubletree Hotel downtown. "Thank you for your confidence. I see progress and I know we are headed in the right direction."

Bing's victory was widely predicted before Tuesday but still brought hope and support from leaders across the state.

"He's taken a job that ain't gonna be easy," House Speaker Andy Dillon, D-Redford Township, told the crowd. "The change is coming and residents of the city are going to benefit."

Former Mayor Dennis Archer touted Bing's relationship with elected officials in Washington, D.C. Archer said those alliances are key to helping Detroit rebuild.

"We've got some real challenges out there," Archer said, "But they can be met."

The Rev. Wendell Anthony, president of the Detroit Branch NAACP, just proclaimed that Detroit's best days are now in front of it with Bing as the captain.

"We can be fixed, we can be nourished and we can be transformed, and we have the right man at the right time to move it," Anthony said of Bing.

Bing supporters took turns speaking as election results rolled in.

"It's been a long haul, and as the mayor has stated this is the fourth quarter," said Emmett Moten, an owner of the Doubletree Hotel where Bing's party was held. "As of 8 o'clock tonight the ball crossed the goal line, and it's in for the next four years."

Moten said the Bing administration is business friendly because Bing, a longtime Detroit business owner himself, understands the needs of those willing to invest in the city.

At a party in a loft in Corktown, challenger Tom Barrow entered with his family shortly after 11 p.m. He shook hands with supporters as he made his way through the building to the stage. As he neared the stage, he paused and cheers broke out. He continued shaking hands, then began his concession speech.

"We're going to fall short and I'm happy though, that we fought the good fight," Barrow said.

As his supporters applauded, he pulled out notes.

"I didn't write a prepared speech," he said. "I'm going to talk from the heart."

He thanked God for the election and told his supporters he knelt down to pray this morning.

"Now is the time we can leave our mark on this city in a positive way," Barrow said.

He said: "We offered Detroit hope. We said there's a difference between despair and hope. People said, 'Are you sad, Tom?' I'm not. I'm only sad we're not able to make the changes."

He later went on to say that he'd accepted the will of the people of Detroit.

"I said it was wrong to have someone who's never lived in Detroit to be our mayor. The people of Detroit said that's OK," Barrow said.

He told his supporters he didn't want them to second-guess anything they'd done.

"We had an opportunity to change and we decided not to, and I accept that," Barrow said.

He addressed part of his speech to Bing, urging him to be sensitive to the residents.

"This is not a business. It's not a steel business. It's a municipality," he said.

Barrow ended his speech by saying: "For those in Detroit who didn't vote for me, I accept your will." Then, he went on to say, "I thank all 50,000 of you who left a good name for my son."