Friday, May 15, 2009
Councilwoman Collins won't seek re-election

Darren A. Nichols and Charlie LeDuff / The Detroit News

Detroit -- Barbara-Rose Collins, one of the city's longtime and most controversial leaders, is calling it a career, deciding today to end her re-election bid for the City Council.
Collins, the first African-American woman elected to U.S. Congress from Michigan and a longtime member of the council, submitted papers at the city clerk's office today withdrawing her candidacy in the Aug. 4 primary.
"I'm 70 years old, and I'm not sure how much longer I have. I want to accomplish some other things," Collins told The Detroit News. "Almost my whole adult life has been in government, since I was 30 years old. It's frightening to step away from the power, the ability to negotiate from the inside. I love government, the legislative end of government."



http://www.detnews.com/article/20090...ek-re-election