Ex-House Speaker Rep. Joe Tate’s, D-Detroit, decision he wouldn’t seek reelection became official this week when he confirmed it this week to Michigan Chronicle.
However, the news didn’t come as a surprise.
First elected in 2018, Tate served as Speaker of the House from January 2023 to January 2025. He said in an interview Tuesday, Tate, 45, said he felt like eight years was the right time to move on. Tate didn’t say what’s next.
There’s several new and familiar names who have filed or expressed interest in launching campaigns to run for the state’s 9th District, which boundaries stretch from downtown to Belle Isle into the Grosse Pointes. You can see a full map of the boundaries here.
Tate’s departure received mixed reaction from Democrats, and kind words on social media from his successor, House Speaker Matt Hall. Tate played football for Michigan State and in the NFL and entered the U.S. military as a marine before running for office.
Hall said in his statement that Tate had “unfairly taken on much of the blame.” Hall blamed the lame duck debacle of December, 2024 to “the narrow ideological faction that undermined him at every turn.”
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer praised Tate in a statement released this week.
“Joe Tate is a good friend, committed public servant, and trailblazer who served as the first Black House speaker in Michigan history” Whitmer said in a news release. “Over the course of his term as speaker, I was proud to work with him to deliver historic tax cuts for working families and retirees, free breakfast and lunch for all 1.4 million public school students, clean energy laws, commonsense gun violence prevention legislation, reproductive health, and more.
I want to congratulate him on capping off his historic legislative career and wish him and his family the best as he begins a new chapter,” the governor said.
Currently in his fourth term, Tate is eligible to serve additional terms as a state legislator.
A number of candidates under 35 are running to replace Tate for state’s 9th House district that covers a large portion of Detroit’s east and west side.
Darryl Ervin, a former legislative staffer who graduated from Michigan State in 2022.
Arthur Harrington, a 24-year-old Wayne State law student who works for Detroit Council member Mary Waters. He’s received endorsements from local officials including Detroit City Council president James Tate, pro tem Coleman Young II, members Angela Whitfield Calloway and Scott Benson.
State Reps. Helena Scott, D-Detroit, Amos O’Neal, Peter Herzberg, D-Westland and Jimmie Wilson, D-Ypsilanti have also endorsed Harrington, as has Wayne County Executive Warren Evans.
Anthony Eid, who has not filed a campaign committee with the state, a former redistricting commissioner whose worked at Community Development Advocates of Detroit and COTS in the Cass Corridor. He told community members at a meeting last week he was considering launching a campaign for the Detroit House district.
Former Detroit police commissioner Willie Burton is the most recent candidate to file to run in the 9th district. At 46, he’s also the oldest. Burton was the runner-up in Detroit City Council’s District 5 race last November. He has not yet filed a campaign finance report.
Campaign finance reports shows Harrington raised $9,719 from the reporting period from Oct. 21 through Dec. 31, 2025, spending more than $6,000. Harrington ended the period with $3,603 left in his campaign account.
Ervin has raised $10,357.11 in the most recent reporting period, which covers Nov. 24, 2025 through December 31, 2025.
