By DAVID RUNK
The Associated Press
Saturday, November 5, 2005; 6:35 PM
DETROIT -- Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick runs the risk of becoming the first Detroit mayor since 1961 to be defeated in a re-election bid, four years after becoming one of the city's youngest leaders. Kilpatrick's quest for another term comes as the nation's 11th-largest city struggles with poverty and decades of population decline. He and his challenger clash over where Detroit stands _ on the brink of revival or the edge of collapse. Kilpatrick sees himself at the helm of a city dealing with its problems and heading in the right direction. "I was building the plane while flying it in the first term," Kilpatrick said while shaking hands at an auto engine plant. But his opponent, former Deputy Mayor Freman Hendrix, says the city is about to plunge over a cliff into financial receivership. "This city is on its knees," Hendrix said. "We've got a crime rate that's out of control. We've got a poverty rate that's the worst in America. We've got problems with housing, problems with city services." Four years ago, Kilpatrick became one of the city's youngest mayors at age 31. But he finished second in the August primary and has trailed Hendrix in recent polls. Quality of life has been a focus throughout the campaign. Crime is down but remains high compared with many other U.S. cities. Some city services have improved under Kilpatrick, who touts getting the grass cut in parks and plowing snow from streets among his successes. New homes and downtown construction speak to revitalization efforts, but blight pervades many neighborhoods. Kilpatrick, now 35, is a lawyer and former schoolteacher whose mother serves in Congress. He swiftly rose through the state House of Representatives to the mayor's office but found himself asking voters for forgiveness during the campaign. "Yes, I've made a few mistakes. There's no question about it," Kilpatrick said during a debate with Hendrix. "I am not a perfect man, and there is not a saint running for this office." Kilpatrick has implied that the news media are out to get him with scrutiny that included his use of a city credit card on expensive out-of-town travel and a city lease of a luxury sport utility vehicle for his family. And he has tried to shake the label of "hip-hop mayor," removing his trademark diamond earring. Hendrix, 55, is a career bureaucrat who earned a business degree after four years in the Navy. He was deputy mayor under Kilpatrick's predecessor, Dennis Archer, and his last job was with a Detroit-based consulting firm until he began his mayoral bid. The next mayor will inherit a budget deficit between $139 million and $300 million that has required police and fire cuts. Detroit also faces a continuing population decline that started a half-century ago when the American auto industry was at its peak. It now has just over 900,000 residents, compared with 1.8 million in 1950. Earlier this year, it was listed as the nation's most impoverished big city. Detroit is about 80 percent black, and both mayoral candidates are black. But race and the issue of how much the city should cooperate with mostly white suburbs have been constant themes. Less than two weeks before the city's mayoral election, a full-page newspaper ad depicting images of black corpses and likening media coverage of Kilpatrick to lynching was published in the city's largest black newspaper. It is unclear who placed the ad, and the mayor has denied any link to it. Kilpatrick said the city "is on the cusp of becoming the biggest turnaround story in American history." But Hendrix insists the mayor is in denial. "This isn't just about who is voting," Hendrix said. "This is absolutely about every single person who lives or is a stakeholder in this city." ___ On the Net: Freman Hendrix: http://www.fremanhendrix.com Kwame Kilpatrick: http://www.ci.detroit.mi.us/mayor/default.htm