By Flint. Daily. and EVM Staff

Voters in Flint’s First Ward will have a new city council representative this year, as incumbent Councilman Leon El-Alamin is running to represent the Third Ward after ward boundary changes. El-Alamin was originally appointed to the seat in late March 2024 after the death of Councilman Eric Mays and subsequently won a partial-term in the November 2024 election.

The First Ward encompasses the city’s northernmost segment – which includes the former Flint Northwestern High School – and holds multiple community attractions, like Max Brandon Park, Flint Park Lake, and Hasslebring Park. It is also home to the Mays Senior and Community Center and Flint Community Schools’ Brownell-Holmes campus. The ward’s boundaries are visible on the city’s interactive map.

The designated boundaries of Ward 1 in the City of Flint. (Image courtesy City of Flint)

Three candidates are on the Aug. 4 primary ballot: Debra J. Coleman, Cynthia Haynes, and Arthur Woodson. The top two vote-getters will advance and face each other in the general election on Nov. 3. 

One of the three candidates responded to a questionnaire by East Village Magazine and Flint. Daily. leadership that was designed to provide readers with a brief snapshot of each candidate’s background, experience, history and connection with Flint, priorities should they win their seat, and their thoughts on recent examples of Flint City Council votes. Their responses are listed alphabetically by last name below. 

All candidates in a primary, including certified write-ins, were contacted at their publicly-available email address and phone number, as listed in their filing forms. For this story, neither Coleman nor Haynes replied to the questionnaire after multiple emails and a phone call from our staff. For questions, please reach out to us at team@flintdaily.news or eastvillagemagazineflint@gmail.com. 

More background about the questionnaire, our methodology, and the partnership between East Village Magazine and Flint. Daily. publications is available in our story announcing the collaboration last week.

We will publish one story each day in this order:

*Editor’s note: the publication schedule was adjusted after July 9 to allow a candidate who had a family emergency enough time to submit responses.

Age:

  • Arthur Woodson: 59

Occupation/relevant professional experience:

  • Woodson: Disabled veteran

Education:

  • Woodson: 14 years

How long have you lived in Flint?

  • Woodson: 58 years

How long have you lived in your ward?

  • Woodson: 50 years

What neighborhood or area of your ward do you live in?

  • Woodson: Merrill

Do you own or rent/lease a residence outside of your ward? If so, how often do you stay there?

Woodson: No.

Do you promise voters that you will file your campaign finance statements by all required pre- and post-election deadlines for the primary and general election? If not, have you filed a Reporting Waiver and promise voters that your campaign will not receive or expend more than $1,000 in your election bid, per that waiver’s requirement?

  • Woodson: I can’t promise, but I will show them my account. It is hard trying to keep up with the address, and not having a treasure.

What things do you enjoy doing in the city for fun or in your spare time?

  • Woodson: Fishing.

What boards or community organizations have you been involved with?

  • Woodson: FC3 Cancer Advisory Board

What made you decide to run for City Council?

  • Woodson: I have done all I can do as an activist. I am tired of asking council to help the people and it goes over their head sometimes.

What separates you from other candidates in your primary election race?

  • Woodson: I have been out here fighting for the people. I know the Charter and Robert’s Rules. It’s a positive knowing what’s going on at Council, so you can hit the ground running working for the people of First Ward.

The City Council has long been plagued by difficult working relationships among council members and with the mayor’s office. How would you create a healthier environment on council and with the mayor to move city business forward?

  • Woodson: It’s okay to disagree, but it is about respecting each other’s decisions and opinions. You have to respect the First Amendment. Everybody has a right to express themselves respectfully. 

What do you see as the biggest challenges facing the city?

  • Woodson: Public safety, water rates and distribution system, and blight.

What do you see as Flint’s greatest assets or opportunities for the future?

  • Woodson: Downtown and the State Park.

What would be your three top priorities should you be elected?

  • Woodson: Public safety, water, and blight.

The Flint City Council recently passed a 1-year moratorium on data center developments in the city. Do you agree with that resolution? Why or why not?

  • Woodson: I support the moratorium. Why would the people pay $72 million to clean it up, and then contaminate it again? Noise pollution, air pollution, and it takes a lot of electricity and water. I am against it (data centers).

The Flint City Council recently passed a permanent resolution recognizing June as Pride Month in honor of Flint’s LGBTQUIA+ residents. Do you support that resolution? Why or why not?

  • Woodson: I support it, a person has a right to live their life the way they like.

Have you ever been charged with or convicted of a violent or financial crime, and if so, how was it resolved? 

[NOTE: This question is not intended as a judgement on a candidate’s criminal history. We do not believe that a criminal history should be a barrier to anyone holding elected office. Rather, this is an opportunity for a candidate to directly respond to voters regarding any public criminal or financial records that do exist or public accusations that have been made that voters may be aware of.]

  • Woodson: Yes, I did three years in prison. I was young and I learned that prison was not for me.

Editor’s Note: According to a November 2017 MLive article, Woodson has previously spoken about being convicted in 1989 for credit card fraud, wiring fraud, receiving stolen goods, and forgery. He was later charged with simple assault of federal employees for an altercation at a Veterans Administration medical center, and, while in custody, he was charged with (and pleaded no contest to) assault with a deadly weapon. The charge arose from what he said was another inmate throwing a juice container at a guard’s head. “They assumed it was me because I had been arguing,” Woodson told MLive. “But that’s why I pleaded no contest. They didn’t even have any witnesses… It just showed me how the judicial system could be, and I’m going speak out about injustice.”

Do you have a campaign website or social media pages for voters to learn more about you?

Lead image caption: The City of Flint’s First Ward Flint City Council candidates for the 2026 primary election. From left to right: Debra J. Coleman and Arthur Woodson. Cynthia Haynes is not pictured as she did respond to the request for a photo to be provided and did not have campaign Facebook page as of press time. (Photos courtesy of candidates or candidate’s campaign page)