(WXYZ) — Ahead of the 2025 primary in the Detroit Mayoral Election, 7 News Detroit Anchor Carolyn Clifford is speaking to Saunteel Jenkins, one of nine people who are running to be the next mayor.
Related: See interviews with all 9 Detroit mayoral candidates here
Watch our full interview with Saunteel Jenkins in the video below
Jenkins has spent her adult life serving Detroit as a social worker, addiction treatment center director and political leader.
She was on the Detroit City Council and then went on to serve as the CEO of The Heat and Warmth Fund, and now she wants to be mayor.
"It's critical that our next mayor be prepared on day one, and that's why I'm running," she said.
I asked Jenkins what the biggest difference Detroiters will see compared to the current mayor, Mike Duggan.
'There will be a much greater focus on neighborhoods," she said.
Jenkins says the next mayor will need to be fiscally astute so we don't go backwards
"I am proud to say I have led with transparency, high integrity and ethics my entire life, and that would not change if I were mayor," Jenkins said.
The divide between long-time Detroiters and newcomers?
"Nobody says, 'I don't wanna grow.' People say I don't want gentrification because that's when people are left out of the process," she said.
I also asked about how she plans to address gun violence in the city if elected.
"I lost my 14-year-old brother to gun violence in 1991," she said. "So when we talk about safety, we gotta talk about prevention. We have to talk about safe spaces between the hours of 3 p.m. and 8 p.m., which are the most dangerous hours for children in our community."
She said that she gives Duggan credit for the blight removal, but, "We still have a lot of work to so we have to continue the plans that are working and hold everyone accountable equally."
Her message to families who are struggling in the city?
"I've lived in a house with no lights. I know what that feels like," she said. "In me, you will have a mayor who sees you, who understands you and who will be fighting on your behalf."
Finally, I asked the one thing to define her legacy in the first year, if she is elected.
"It would be that stronger partnership with schools, because schools, though the mayor does not control them, our schools are building our future inside," she said.
Her final message is personal after battling breast cancer.
"God gave me a second chance. It's my responsibility to just leave it all on the field and do everything that I can to make life better for as many people as possible, and this is the way I can do that," she said.