Brenda Jones (politician)

Brenda B. Jones (born October 24, 1959) is an American politician from Michigan. She is the President of the Detroit City Council, to which she was first elected in 2005. Jones briefly served as a member of the United States House of Representatives for Michigan's 13th congressional district. She succeeded John Conyers, after winning the 2018 special election to fill the remainder of his term after he resigned in December 2017 following allegations of sexual harassment.

Brenda Jones
President of the Detroit City Council
Assumed office
January 1, 2014
Preceded bySaunteel Jenkins
Member of the Detroit City Council
At-Large
Assumed office
January 1, 2014
Preceded byKenneth Cockrel Jr.
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Michigan's 13th district
In office
November 6, 2018 – January 3, 2019
Preceded byJohn Conyers
Succeeded byRashida Tlaib
Member of the Detroit City Council
In office
January 3, 2006 – January 1, 2014
Personal details
Born (1959-10-24) October 24, 1959
Birmingham, Alabama, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
EducationWayne State University (BA, Graduate certificate)
Signature
WebsiteGovernment website

Jones' term began November 6, 2018, and ended at the conclusion of the 115th United States Congress on January 3, 2019. She ran for Congress again in 2020 but lost the Democratic primary to incumbent Rashida Tlaib.

Early life

Brenda B. Jones was born on October 24, 1959, in Birmingham, Alabama, and her family moved to Detroit, Michigan, during the Great Migration. She attended public schools in Detroit, where she graduated from Cass Technical High School and later received a Bachelor of Arts in psychology from Wayne State University.[1] She also earned a Graduate certificate from Wayne State University.[2] Jones worked for Michigan Bell and was later elected as a union president of the Communications Workers of America Local 4004 in Detroit. She was appointed as an executive on the boards of the Detroit Economic Growth Corporation and the Detroit Transportation Commission.[3]

Politics

Detroit City Council

In 2005, Jones was elected to the Detroit City Council after placing ninth in the general election where nine seats were available and was reelected in 2009, 2013, and 2017.[4] In 2015, the council voted for her to serve as the President of the Detroit City Council with five voting in favor of her and four voting in favor of incumbent President Saunteel Jenkins.[5]

Jones has said that will not be seeking reelection in 2021.[6]

2018–2019

On December 5, 2017, Representative John Conyers resigned after sexual harassment allegations were made against him and that he had secretly used taxpayer money to settle a harassment claim. A special election was called to replace Conyers and Jones narrowly won the Democratic primary for the special election–the real contest in this heavily Democratic, black-majority district. No Republican qualified to run, though any Republican challenger would have faced nearly impossible odds. Conyers had held the seat since 1965 (it had been numbered as the 1st from 1965 to 1993 and as the 14th from 1993 to 2013), and his lowest winning percentage was 77 percent.

However, in the Democratic primary for the general election, Jones was defeated by former state representative Rashida Tlaib. Prior to the general election, Jones filed to run as a independent write-in candidate, prompting criticism.[7][8]

During the course of the election campaign, questions arose as to whether Jones could serve in her Detroit City Council post concurrently with serving in Congress, an unprecedented situation up to that point.[9][10] An opinion by the Detroit Corporation Counsel, written in August 2018, stated that it was likely possible for Jones to legally serve in both capacities based on state law. The Counsel advised that the United States House Committee on Ethics be consulted to clarify federal and House rules.[11]

In the November 6 special election, Jones won with 86.8 percent of the vote, facing only a Taxpayers Party candidate as opposition. On the same day, she received 633 votes in the regular election for a full two-year term.

Speaker Paul Ryan delayed swearing Jones in until November 29, after receiving guidance from the House Ethics Committee on how Jones could minimize conflicts of interest.[12] She introduced two bills and cast 77 votes during her five-week tenure in the House of Representatives.[13]

2020

On March 25, 2020, Jones filed to run again in the Democratic primary for Michigan's 13th congressional district against Tlaib.[14] Tlaib was considered possibly vulnerable to a primary challenge, due to her status as a democratic socialist and perceived divisiveness, however, Jones’ campaign was wracked by allegations of financial misconduct.[15][16] On April 2, Jones announced that she had tested positive for coronavirus.[17] Jones decisively lost the primary election to Tlaib 66%-34% on August 4. The margin of Jones's loss was considered to be large.[18][16]

Electoral history
Brenda Jones electoral history
2005 Detroit City Council primary[19]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Nonpartisan Kenneth Cockrel Jr. (incumbent) 56,107 6.08%
Nonpartisan Maryann Mahaffey (incumbent) 51,180 5.55%
Nonpartisan JoAnn Watson (incumbent) 46,449 5.04%
Nonpartisan Sheila Cockrel (incumbent) 42,123 4.57%
Nonpartisan Barbara-Rose Collins (incumbent) 39,450 4.28%
Nonpartisan Alberta Tinsley-Talabi (incumbent) 39,369 4.27%
Nonpartisan Kwame Kenyatta 36,563 3.96%
Nonpartisan Monica Conyers 28,495 3.09%
Nonpartisan Martha Reeves 27,313 2.96%
Nonpartisan Ortheia Barnes 23,114 2.51%
Nonpartisan Jai-Lee Dearing 22,485 2.44%
Nonpartisan Brenda Jones 20,015 2.17%
Nonpartisan Hilmer Kenty 19,270 2.09%
Nonpartisan Keith B. Butler 18,578 2.01%
Nonpartisan Thomas Stallworth III (incumbent) 16,260 1.76%
Nonpartisan Alonzo W. Bates (incumbent) 15,137 1.64%
Nonpartisan Tia Tia Davis 13,790 1.50%
Nonpartisan Bettie Cook Scott 13,693 1.48%
Nonpartisan Roy McCalister, Jr. 11,931 1.29%
Nonpartisan Joan Gist 11,907 1.29%
Nonpartisan James Edwards 10,529 1.14%
Nonpartisan Ralph Simpson 10,318 1.12%
Nonpartisan Maureen Taylor 9,340 1.01%
Nonpartisan LaMar Lemmons III 9,268 1.01%
Nonpartisan Devon Jackson 8,840 0.96%
Nonpartisan Beverly Kindle-Walker 8,763 0.95%
Nonpartisan Marquita Reese 8,529 0.92%
Nonpartisan Joe Young 8,067 0.87%
Nonpartisan Vanessa Jones 7,805 0.85%
Nonpartisan Kevin White 7,682 0.83%
Nonpartisan Keith Hollowell 7,362 0.80%
Nonpartisan Kerwin Wimberley 7,283 0.79%
Nonpartisan Terry Davis 6,723 0.73%
Nonpartisan Richard Shelby 6,647 0.72%
Nonpartisan Otis Knapp Lee 6,590 0.71%
Nonpartisan Frank Archer 6,490 0.70%
Nonpartisan Ernest Flagg 6,381 0.69%
Nonpartisan Barry Blackwell 6,291 0.68%
Nonpartisan Orlando Maddox 6,224 0.68%
Nonpartisan James Wadsworth III 5,969 0.65%
Nonpartisan Sigmunt J. Szczepkowski 5,801 0.63%
Nonpartisan Sarah Snow 5,715 0.62%
Nonpartisan Karinda Washington 5,680 0.62%
Nonpartisan Karen Wahls 5,599 0.61%
Nonpartisan Palencia Mobley 5,227 0.57%
Nonpartisan Lee Yancy 5,071 0.55%
Nonpartisan Claud Dent 5,015 0.54%
Nonpartisan Randolph Williams 4,995 0.54%
Nonpartisan Dennis Vaughn 4,599 0.50%
Nonpartisan Gwendolyn Mingo 4,186 0.45%
Nonpartisan Joseph Vaughn 4,164 0.45%
Nonpartisan Harry Lewis 4,088 0.44%
Nonpartisan Earl Smith 4,064 0.44%
Nonpartisan D. Etta Wilcoxon 4,020 0.44%
Nonpartisan Craig Davis 3,889 0.42%
Nonpartisan Cheryl Hughley Clark 3,864 0.42%
Nonpartisan William Miller 3,630 0.39%
Nonpartisan Kyra Joy Hope 3,606 0.39%
Nonpartisan Delbert Jennings 3,530 0.38%
Nonpartisan Joanne Wormley-Corley 3,464 0.38%
Nonpartisan Barbara Herard 3,359 0.36%
Nonpartisan Cheryl Myhand 3,299 0.36%
Nonpartisan Loren Monroe 3,195 0.35%
Nonpartisan Keith Lee 3,087 0.34%
Nonpartisan Dana Cleveland 2,932 0.32%
Nonpartisan Anthony Marshall 2,911 0.32%
Nonpartisan Kenneth Gray 2,907 0.32%
Nonpartisan Maxine Mickens 2,907 0.32%
Nonpartisan Rick Scott 2,824 0.31%
Nonpartisan Rogelio Landin 2,712 0.29%
Nonpartisan Nathanial Smith Jr. 2,610 0.28%
Nonpartisan Carol Edwards 2,580 0.28%
Nonpartisan Patric Smith 2,578 0.28%
Nonpartisan Curtis Harris 2,489 0.27%
Nonpartisan Sandra Hall-Harmon 2,411 0.26%
Nonpartisan Louis Anderson 2,372 0.26%
Nonpartisan Lisa Milewski-Randles 2,367 0.26%
Nonpartisan Walter Hart Jr. 2,342 0.25%
Nonpartisan Kelvin Davis 2,298 0.25%
Nonpartisan Chevis Spratt Jr. 2,297 0.25%
Nonpartisan Ebony Godwin 2,290 0.25%
Nonpartisan Jeff Lewis 2,275 0.25%
Nonpartisan Marino Taylor 2,269 0.25%
Nonpartisan Evelyn Louis 2,212 0.24%
Nonpartisan Ricky Spann 2,183 0.24%
Nonpartisan Angel D. Mason 2,151 0.23%
Nonpartisan Angela Daniels 2,121 0.23%
Nonpartisan Elizabeth Osorio-Luna 2,115 0.23%
Nonpartisan Angles Hunt 2,111 0.23%
Nonpartisan Boyd Morson 2,081 0.23%
Nonpartisan Mattie Jones 2,053 0.22%
Nonpartisan Vera Kidd 2,052 0.22%
Nonpartisan Rubin Mann III 2,040 0.22%
Nonpartisan John Mackay 2,006 0.22%
Nonpartisan Joseph W. Holt 1,941 0.21%
Nonpartisan Brian Ellison 1,923 0.21%
Nonpartisan Rujeania Vance 1,911 0.21%
Nonpartisan Adrienne Kennedy 1,910 0.21%
Nonpartisan Marie Gunter 1,909 0.21%
Nonpartisan S. Denise Ratliff 1,842 0.20%
Nonpartisan Verdinna Jenkins 1,729 0.19%
Nonpartisan Charles Stedman 1,705 0.19%
Nonpartisan Larry Allen 1,702 0.18%
Nonpartisan Flora McDougal 1,676 0.18%
Nonpartisan Stanley Shelby 1,638 0.18%
Nonpartisan B. Thrasher Whisenhunt 1,539 0.17%
Nonpartisan Irma Jaxon 1,497 0.16%
Nonpartisan Irin Montgomery 1,483 0.16%
Nonpartisan Nathan Henry 1,472 0.16%
Nonpartisan Earnesteen Tyler 1,309 0.14%
Nonpartisan Al Allison 1,306 0.14%
Nonpartisan Damian Mitchell 1,286 0.14%
Nonpartisan DeLonda A. Browner 1,277 0.14%
Nonpartisan Nacio Thomas 1,239 0.13%
Nonpartisan Forest Holman 1,216 0.13%
Nonpartisan Renelius Bell 1,185 0.13%
Nonpartisan Albert Burden 1,143 0.12%
Nonpartisan Joe Yelder 1,117 0.12%
Nonpartisan Dobey Gavin 1,027 0.11%
Nonpartisan Write-ins 923 0.10%
Nonpartisan Caleb Coan III 716 0.08%
Total votes 922,594 100.00%
2005 Detroit City Council election[20]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Nonpartisan Kenneth Cockrel Jr. (incumbent) 152,318 9.31%
Nonpartisan Monica Conyers 123,264 7.54%
Nonpartisan JoAnn Watson (incumbent) 122,060 7.46%
Nonpartisan Sheila Cockrel (incumbent) 119,183 7.29%
Nonpartisan Barbara-Rose Collins (incumbent) 116,329 7.11%
Nonpartisan Kwame Kenyatta 113,063 6.91%
Nonpartisan Alberta Tinsley-Talabi (incumbent) 108,664 6.64%
Nonpartisan Martha Reeves 92,421 5.65%
Nonpartisan Brenda Jones 90,669 5.54%
Nonpartisan Jai-Lee Dearing 87,299 5.34%
Nonpartisan Ortheia Barnes 75,299 4.60%
Nonpartisan Hilmer Kenty 72,874 4.46%
Nonpartisan Keith B. Butler 69,384 4.24%
Nonpartisan Tia Tia Davis 67,877 4.15%
Nonpartisan Thomas Stallworth III (incumbent) 67,216 4.11%
Nonpartisan Bettie Cook Scott 65,209 3.99%
Nonpartisan Alonzo W. Bates (incumbent) 57,473 3.51%
Nonpartisan Maryann Mahaffey (incumbent) 34,853 2.13%
Total votes 1,635,455 100.00%
2013 Detroit City Council at-large primary[21]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Nonpartisan Saunteel Jenkins (incumbent) 51,917 34.23%
Nonpartisan Brenda Jones (incumbent) 45,524 30.02%
Nonpartisan David Bullock 15,734 10.38%
Nonpartisan Roy McCalister Jr. 13,397 8.83%
Nonpartisan Monica Lewis-Patrick 9,751 6.43%
Nonpartisan Angles Hunt 5,513 3.64%
Nonpartisan Cedric Banks 5,317 3.51%
Nonpartisan Jessica M. Rayford-Clark 4,507 2.97%
Total votes 151,660 100.00%
2013 Detroit City Council at-large election[22]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Nonpartisan Brenda Jones (incumbent) 76,978 34.55%
Nonpartisan Saunteel Jenkins (incumbent) 76,941 34.54%
Nonpartisan David Bullock 39,000 17.51%
Nonpartisan Roy McCalister Jr. 29,855 13.40%
Total votes 222,774 100.00%
2017 Detroit City Council at-large primary[23]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Nonpartisan Brenda Jones (incumbent) 46,110 45.29%
Nonpartisan Janeé Ayers (incumbent) 25,742 25.28%
Nonpartisan Mary D. Waters 17,190 16.88%
Nonpartisan Beverly Kindle-Walker 6,587 6.47%
Nonpartisan Alisa McKinney 6,185 6.08%
Total votes 101,814 100.00%
2017 Detroit City Council at-large election[24]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Nonpartisan Brenda Jones (incumbent) 71,306 42.79%
Nonpartisan Janeé Ayers (incumbent) 48,103 28.87%
Nonpartisan Mary D. Waters 32,717 19.63%
Nonpartisan Beverly Kindle-Walker 14,522 8.71%
Total votes 166,648 100.00%
2018 Michigan Thirteenth Congressional district special Democratic primary[25]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Brenda Jones 32,769 37.75%
Democratic Rashida Tlaib 31,121 35.85%
Democratic William R. Wild 13,174 15.18%
Democratic Ian Conyers 9,749 11.23%
Total votes 86,813 100.00%
2018 Michigan Thirteenth Congressional district Democratic primary[26]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Rashida Tlaib 27,841 31.17%
Democratic Brenda Jones 26,941 30.16%
Democratic William R. Wild 12,613 14.12%
Democratic Coleman Young II 11,172 12.51%
Democratic Ian Conyers 5,866 6.57%
Democratic Shanelle Jackson 4,853 5.43%
Democratic Kimberly Hill Knott (write-in) 33 0.04%
Democratic Royce Kinniebrew (write-in) 2 0.00%
Total votes 89,321 100.00%
2018 Michigan Thirteenth Congressional district special election[27]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Brenda Jones 169,330 86.84% +9.74%
U.S. Taxpayers' Marc J. Sosnowski 17,302 8.87% +8.87%
Green D. Etta Wilcoxon 8,319 4.27% +4.27%
Republican David A. Dudenhoefer (write-in) 36 0.02% -15.71%
Independent Jonathan Lee Pommerville (write-in) 5 0.00% +0.00%
Independent Danetta L. Simpson (write-in) 1 0.00% +0.00%
Total votes 194,993 100.00%
2018 Michigan Thirteenth Congressional district election[28]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Rashida Tlaib 165,355 86.84% +9.74%
Working Class Sam Johnson 22,186 11.30% +11.30%
Green D. Etta Wilcoxon 7,980 4.07% -0.27%
Independent Brenda Jones (write-in) 633 0.32% -86.52%
Republican David A. Dudenhoefer (write-in) 75 0.04% +0.02%
Independent Jonathan Lee Pommerville (write-in) 61 0.03% +0.03%
Independent Danetta L. Simpson (write-in) 3 0.00% +0.00%
Independent John Conyers III (write-in) 3 0.00% +0.00%
Independent Royce Kinniebrew (write-in) 2 0.00% +0.00%
Independent Kimberly Hill Knott (write-in) 1 0.00% +0.00%
Independent Jim Casha (write-in) 1 0.00% +0.00%
Total votes 196,299 100.00%

See also

References
  1. "Detroit council candidates sound off on blight, neighborhoods vs. downtown focus". August 1, 2017. Archived from the original on April 2, 2020.
  2. https://history.house.gov/People/Detail/25769805301
  3. "Detroit City Council head seeks Conyers' Congress seat". January 26, 2018. Archived from the original on April 2, 2020.
  4. "City Council: Important chance for change". Detroit Free Press. November 10, 2005. p. 14. Archived from the original on April 2, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. Gottlieb, Bryan (April 2, 2020). "Detroit City Council Elects New President". Metro Times. Archived from the original on April 2, 2020.
  6. Ikonomova, Violet (January 5, 2021). "Detroit City Council president Brenda Jones says she won't seek re-election — but don't count her out yet". deadlinedetroit.com. Deadline Detroit. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
  7. Ferretti, Christine; Burke, Melissa Nann (October 29, 2018). "Jones riles Democrats with independent run". Detroit News. Archived from the original on April 2, 2020.
  8. Samilton, Tracy (October 31, 2018). "Detroit City Council President Brenda Jones' unwelcome announcement". Michigan Radio. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  9. Burke, Melissa Nann (October 23, 2018). "Lack of precedent clouds Brenda Jones' bid for Conyers seat". The Detroit News. Retrieved November 7, 2018.
  10. Burke, Melissa Nann & Ferretti, Christine (November 7, 2018). "Tlaib urges Jones to say if she'll leave city post for partial term". The Detroit News. Retrieved November 7, 2018.
  11. Stafford, Kat (August 13, 2018). "Detroit: Brenda Jones can hold John Conyers', council seat". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved November 7, 2018.
  12. Melissa Nann Burke (November 29, 2018). "Jones sworn into Congress after deal reached". The Detroit News. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
  13. Burke, Melissa Nann (January 1, 2019). "The 5-week congresswoman: Brenda Jones exiting House". Detroit News. Retrieved January 4, 2019.
  14. Burke, Melissa Nann (March 25, 2020). "Brenda Jones running for Congress again in challenge to Tlaib". Detroit News. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  15. Cunningham-Cook, Matthew (May 28, 2020). "Tlaib Opponent Brenda Jones Collected Campaign Contributions From Quicken Loans Executives As Public Subsidies Flowed". The Intercept. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  16. Broadwater, Luke (August 5, 2020). "Rashida Tlaib Cruises to Victory in a Primary Rematch". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 6, 2020.
  17. Guillen, Joe (April 2, 2020). "Detroit City Council President Brenda Jones tests positive for coronavirus". Detroit Free Press. Archived from the original on April 2, 2020.
  18. Burke, Melissa Nann (August 4, 2020). "Tlaib wins rematch with Jones in Michigan's 13th District". Detroit News.
  19. "2005 Detroit City Council primary". December 5, 2014.
  20. "2005 Detroit City Council election". March 25, 2008.
  21. "2013 Detroit City Council at-large primary". August 7, 2013.
  22. "2013 Detroit City Council at-large election". December 8, 2014.
  23. "2017 Detroit City Council at-large primary". October 14, 2017.
  24. "2017 Detroit City Council at-large election". April 6, 2018.
  25. "2018 Michigan Thirteenth Congressional district special Democratic primary". May 14, 2019.
  26. "2018 Michigan Thirteenth Congressional district Democratic primary". May 14, 2019.
  27. "2018 Michigan Thirteenth Congressional district special election". April 22, 2019.
  28. "2018 Michigan Thirteenth Congressional district election". November 26, 2018.
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by
John Conyers		 Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Michigan's 13th congressional district
2018–2019		 Succeeded by
Rashida Tlaib
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