Laura Berman

Pugh's star status wins over Detroiters

Almost lost in Charles Pugh's campaign and triumphant victory Tuesday was his status as a gay man. Now the sexual orientation of the new City Council president creates evidence of a singular Detroit political truth: celebrity trumps all.

While there was national chatter on Twitter and other social media sites about Pugh's "first" accomplishment on Wednesday, Pugh didn't trumpet his sexual orientation during the campaign.

Instead, this neophyte pol, who has had a long career on Detroit radio (WJLB-97.9 FM) and TV (WJBK-Fox 2 News), ascended to the top of an 18-candidate field, largely on the basis of perceived credibility and trust built through years of on-air exposure.

Even static in the media about his financial problems -- including a condo in foreclosure and a record of late rent payments -- failed to disrupt Pugh's powerful airwave frequency.

And that, combined with his home-grown, Murray-Wright grad, guy-about-town familiarity made him impossible to beat.

Ferndale mayor sees change

Craig Covey, who was elected as Ferndale's first gay mayor two years ago (and re-elected Tuesday), sees a climatic change over the last few years.

A long-standing hostility to gays in Detroit -- and historic opposition from black churches -- crumbled for Pugh, who grew up in Detroit, and came home to hang out, telegenically, in Detroiters' living rooms.

"I'm very proud of what Detroit has done here," says Covey, who called Pugh's sexual orientation a nonissue during the campaign.

Pugh's strong showing squarely fits into a Detroit tradition of electing celebrities. If that proved ill-fated in the cases of Monica Conyers and Martha Reeves, Tuesday's election proved the city still hungers for star power -- but preferably untainted by corruption or incompetence.

"We saw him out there, connecting with the community," said Adriana Garza, a Detroit voter, who works as a children's coordinator for the Michigan AIDS Coalition. "He was promoting change, and people responded to that."

Just about everyone running tried to address the need for change. What was surprising was how decisively voters proved they wanted it.

A formerly female majority on council was largely displaced by a new group of men. The city's first gay council person is also its president.

Breaking with city's past

Pugh overcame the historic -- some say, overstated -- disapproval among African-Americans, and especially in the black church, of homosexuality.

On Tuesday night, at his victory party, the Rev. Charles Adams III of the influential Hartford Memorial Baptist Church introduced Pugh to supporters, a statement that couldn't be missed.

Is Pugh's sexual orientation a nonissue? Well, yes, but that in itself represents a decisive break with the city's past.

Yes, he's a TV celebrity, and that helped. But in Detroit, change has to mean including more kinds of people, including gays and immigrants, into the life of the city. Charles Pugh may or may not be the city's savior -- but his election signals that the city's getting more savvy and open and serious about its survival.

lberman@detnews.com (313) 222-2032