Family: (l-r) Daughter Angela, Sharon, Daughter Erika

About Sharon McPhail

Sharon McPhail is a dedicated public servant.

In 1993, McPhail became the first woman in Detroit’s history to win a primary election for Mayor of the City of Detroit, securing the victory amid a field of 23 mayoral candidates.

McPhail is the eldest of seven children, and the first college graduate in her family. Sharon has two children, Angela and Erika, and was a foster mother for many years.

Born and raised in Cambridge, Massachussets, Sharon moved to Southeast Michigan to attend the University of Michigan Law School. She graduated from the Northeastern University School of Law, and was admitted to the Michigan State Bar Association in 1976.

McPhail is an experienced trial lawyer. She served as Chief of Screening and District Courts in the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office for eight years, and has also served as an Assistant United States Attorney, as corporate counsel with Ford Motor Company, and as a partner in a local law firm. McPhail has extensively practiced public interest law throughout her career, and has emphasized protecting voters’ rights and challenging legislative attempts to dismantle Detroit’s right to home rule.

Sharon in the Community: (Clockwise top left) Supporters, working for our schools, with the Late Honorable Maryanne Mahaffey, as Detroit Police Commisioner

McPhail has served in several quasi-judicial capacities throughout her legal career, having served as Hearing Officer for the Michigan Civil Rights Commission, and as an arbitrator and mediator in Wayne and Oakland counties.

Sharon McPhail is a devout community servant, having served as President of the local Wolverine Bar Association, President of the National Bar Association, Member and Chair of the Detroit Board of Police Commissioners, and Vice President of the Detroit Branch of the NAACP. She also served as a member of the Senior Advisory Council to the Transition Team Cluster Group for Justice and Civil Rights by appointment of President Bill Clinton. McPhail also serves, without pay, as general counsel to “Keep The Vote – No Takeover” – a coalition dedicated to recapturing the right to vote for a fully elected and empowered Detroit School Board – and was part of the leadership effort that defeated Proposal E.

McPhail is the recipient of numerous awards. She was named one of Ebony Magazine’s 100 Most Influential Black Americans, and received the Humanitarian of the Year Award from the March of Dimes. Other accolades garnered by McPhail include the Bill of Rights and Black History Award, the Woman of Excellence Award from the Renaissance Chapter of the Links, the Woman’s Justice Center Annual Award, the National Sojourner Truth Meritorious Service Award from the National Association of Negro Business and Professional Women’s Clubs, and awards from the National Black Law Students Association.