NBA Great Dave Bing Re-Elected Detroit Mayor

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NOAH OVSHINSKY: I'm Noah Ovshinsky in Detroit. A tumultuous year in electoral politics here in the Motor City came to an end yesterday when voters gave Mayor Dave Bing a big stamp of approval. The former NBA all-star, auto supplier and political novice won the mayor's race with almost 60 percent of the votes.

At a celebration last night, many Bing supporters expressed a sigh of relief, including Tiffany Harville(ph). At a time when Detroit faces a $300 million deficit and other challenges, she says the last thing the city needs is a professional politician. She says Detroit needs a CEO at the helm.

Ms. TIFFANY HARVILLE: You need someone who understands economics. You need someone who understands how to bring jobs, and you need someone who is not afraid to make the tough decisions.

OVSHINSKY: Bing's victory comes a little more than a year after Kwame Kilpatrick resigned in disgrace following a conviction on felony charges. Since winning a special election in May, Bing has sought to distance himself from what he called politics as usual, using his outsider status to push through big changes in city government, including union concessions and service cuts.

For a politician who was to face voters again in a matter of months, the strategy was seen as risky. Speaking after the final results were tallied last night, Bing said he had no regrets.

Mayor DAVE BING (Detroit): I think it was telling people the truth. I mean, I could've sugar-coated a lot of things. I could have skirted a lot of issues by not making the hard decisions that needed to be made and waited until this election was over. But I thought that was a mistake.

OVSHINSKY: That said, Bing says his strategy was a gamble.

Mayor BING: I did what I thought I had to do and wherever the chips would fall, I was willing to accept that. And fortunately, they fell in the right place.

OVSHINSKY: After a six-month audition, Bing now has four years to try and solve some of Detroit's most pressing problems.

For NPR News, I'm Noah Ovshinsky in Detroit.

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