2003 Flint mayoral election

2003 Flint mayoral election

←  2002 (special) August 5, 2003 (first round) November 4, 2003 (runoff) 2007  →

Candidate Don Williamson Floyd Clack James W. Rutherford Party Nonpartisan Nonpartisan Nonpartisan First round 7,159 48.13% 4,796 32.25% 2,293 15.42% Runoff 13,906 60.11% 9,228 39.89%

Mayor before election James W. Rutherford Nonpartisan Elected mayor Don Williamson Nonpartisan

The 2003 Flint mayoral election was held on November 4, 2003, following a primary election on August 5, 2003. Incumbent Mayor James W. Rutherford, who was elected in a 2002 special election following the recall of former Mayor Woodrow Stanley, ran for re-election. ^[1] He was defeated in the primary election by businessman Don Williamson and County Commissioner Floyd Clack, both of whom advanced to the general election. Williamson ultimately defeated Clack in a landslide, winning 60 percent of the vote.

Primary election

Candidates

• Don Williamson, businessman, 1991 and 1995 candidate for Mayor ^[2]
• Floyd Clack, Genesee County Commissioner ^[3]
• James W. Rutherford, incumbent Mayor
• Herbert G. Cleaves, Sr., member of the Flint Board of Education ^[4]
• Daron Rice, financial analyst, brother of Glen Rice ^[5]

Results

2003 Flint mayoral primary election results ^[6]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Nonpartisan	Don Williamson	7,159	48.13%
	Nonpartisan	Floyd Clack	4,796	32.25%
	Nonpartisan	James W. Rutherford (inc.)	2,293	15.42%
	Nonpartisan	Herbert G. Cleaves, Jr.	427	2.87%
	Nonpartisan	Daron Rice	198	1.33%
Total votes			14,873	100.00%

General election

Results

2003 Flint mayoral general election results ^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Nonpartisan	Don Williamson	13,906	60.11%
	Nonpartisan	Floyd Clack	9,228	39.89%
Total votes			23,134	100.00%

References

1. Machniak, Christofer (April 2, 2003). "Rutherford, Campbell join race for Flint mayor". The Flint Journal . Flint, Michigan. p. 5A. Retrieved July 1, 2025.
2. Machniak, Christofer (February 22, 2003). "Williamson takes out petitions for third run for Flint mayor". The Flint Journal . Flint, Michigan. p. 4A. Retrieved July 1, 2025.
3. Machniak, Christofer (January 29, 2003). "Flint: Clack first candidate for mayor to submit petitions". The Flint Journal . Flint, Michigan. p. 4A. Retrieved July 1, 2025.
4. Machniak, Christofer; Fonger, Ron (January 15, 2003). "Top politicos may enter Flint mayoral race". The Flint Journal . Flint, Michigan. p. 3A. Retrieved July 1, 2025.
5. Machniak, Christofer (May 23, 2003). "Candidate homes famous brother will aid Flint". The Flint Journal . Flint, Michigan. p. 1A. Retrieved July 1, 2025.
6. "City of Flint Primary Election - Genesee County, Michigan - Tuesday, August 5, 2003". August 5, 2003. Archived from the original on August 14, 2003. Retrieved July 1, 2025.
7. "City of Flint General Election - Genesee County, Michigan - Tuesday, November 04, 2003". November 5, 2003. Archived from the original on August 10, 2004. Retrieved July 1, 2025.