Congratulations, Judge Pierangeli

Congratulations to Scott Pierangeli, who was appointed to the Kalamazoo County Probate Court.

Scott Pierangeli, former Kalamazoo County assistant prosecutor, appointed probate court judge

Pierangeli lost a tough race for Kalamazoo County Prosecutor in 2012 to Jeffrey Getting, who fired Pierangeli after winning the election.  Pierangeli was previously secretary of the Kalamazoo GOP 2008-2012.

Another State Senate Candidate

There is another Republican candidate for state senate.

Kalamazoo resident Ron Zuiderveen Jr. announces he will seek state Senate seat

Zuiderveen Jr., who hasn't previously held public office, said in a statement announcing his release that he intends to run as "the people's candidate" because he believes in limited government and personal responsibility.  

Zuiderveen Jr., 46, said a few years ago he was divorced, lost his home to foreclosure and his car was repossessed. He said his handicapped son, Steven, also died around this time.  

But, in the past year, Zuiderveen Jr. says he has rededicated his life to Christianity and felt compelled to run for public office.

His platform isn't too specific, although he sounds fairly conservative.  A first-time candidate is unlikely to beat established politicians such as O'Brien and Wenke, but he could hurt O'Brien if he attracts conservatives upset at her votes on Medicaid expansion and Common Core.

2014 Kalamazoo County Commission Election Preview

This post was last updated October 22, 2014.

Republicans won a 6-5 majority on the Kalamazoo County Commission in 2010. The map is likely to maintain a Republican majority, but several districts will have competitive races. Six incumbents will retire, four to run for state representative.  Only two of the remaining commissioners were in office before 2010.  These are Republican Jeff Heppler and democrat John Taylor, who were both elected in 2002.  They are probably the favorites to be the leaders of the commission next year.

Incumbents are marked below with asterisks. The following post has detailed descriptions of the districts and their political leanings. The numbers given are the percentage the Republican county commission candidate got in 2012, Mitt Romney's 2-party percentage in 2012, and Ruth Johnson's percentage in 2010.

Kalamazoo County Commission Districts.


List of Kalamazoo County Candidates

District 1 [N Kalamazoo] Safe Democrat
R% 2012: 13.9 Romney: 13.5 Johnson: 20.3
Democrat: Stephanie Moore
Republican: none
Carolyn Alford, who has held office since 2006, is retiring. She defeated fellow incumbent Robert Barnard in this minority-majority district in 2012.  Moore is a Kalamazoo city commissioner who has been convicted of several crimes over the years.  She won the primary with 55% over Barnard (21%), Vicki Cohn (13%), and Rico White (11%).

District 2 [SE Kalamazoo] Safe Democrat
R% 2012: 0 Romney: 28.1 Johnson: 33.4
Democrat: Kevin Wordelman
Republican: David Lee
Incumbent David Buskirk, who is the board vice-chairman and has held this seat since 1992, retired to run for the democrat nomination in the 60th state house district, which he lost. Wordelman, a union organizer at WMU, defeated Jeremy Orr 68-32 in the primary.

District 3 [SW Kalamazoo] Safe Democrat
R% 2012: 31.1 Romney: 30.1 Johnson: 37.2
Democrat: John Taylor*
Republican: Sonjalita Hulbert
Taylor, who was first elected in 2002 by 13 votes, is safe here.  He was recently elected chair of the Kalamazoo democrat party.  Hulbert is a black conservative.

District 4 [Kalamazoo Twp, Parchment] Safe Democrat
R% 2012: 32.2 Romney: 31.7 Johnson: 41.8
Democrat: Michael Seals*
Republican: none
Seals, who defeated fellow democrat Franklin Thompson in 2010, is unopposed.

District 5 [Alamo, N Oshtemo, NW Kalamazoo Twp] Likely Democrat
R% 2012: 44.3 Romney: 47.2 Johnson: 56.9
Democrat: Julie Rogers*
Republican: Chuck Ybema
Rogers defeated David Worthams in 2012 to win this swingy open seat.  Ybema was the Republican nominee for state rep in the 60th district in 2008 before moving here.

District 6 [Cooper, Richland, Ross] Safe Republican
R% 2012: 54 Romney: 54.7 Johnson: 62.9
Democrat: none
Republican: Jeff Heppler*
Heppler has been on the board since 2002. In 2012, he defeated Tom Novak, who had applied for an open seat claiming to be an independent and received the votes of all the democrats. Heppler won the 2014 primary with 53% over Linda Winters (29%) and Neal Turluck (17%), who finished third in the 2012 primary.

District 7 [Comstock, Galesburg, Charleston, Climax, Wakeshma] Lean Republican
R% 2012: 50.9 Romney: 50.6 Johnson: 59.3
Democrat: David Burgess
Republican: Roger Tuinier*
Tuinier, who is a greenhouse owner, barely defeated Leroy Crabtree in 2012.  Crabtree defeated Republican incumbent Joe VanBruggen 50.7-49.3 in 2006. He was defeated by Ann Nieuwenhuis in 2008 54.5-45.5, and lost a rematch in 2010 61.9-38.1.  Burgess is a Comstock Township Trustee who finished fourth of eight candidates in 2012.

District 8 [Pavillion, Brady, Schoolcraft, Prairie Ronde] Safe Republican
R% 2012: 100 Romney: 55.1 Johnson: 63.5
Democrat: Bret Willis
Republican: John Gisler
Moderate Republican board chairman David Maturen, who has been on the board since 2002, is running for state house in the 63rd district.  Former commissioner John Gisler, who deferred to him in the 2012 Republican primary, is running this year.

District 9 [Texas, SE Oshtemo] Safe Republican
R% 2012: 53.9 Romney: 51.7 Johnson: 62.5
Democrat: Scott Spicer
Republican: Dale Shugars
Brandt Iden, who was elected in 2010, is running for state house in the 61st district.  Shugars is a conservative former state senator (1994-2002) and state rep (1990-1994).  He won 72% to moderate Brian Kovacik's 28%.  Spicer lost a dem primary for county commission in 2010.

District 10 [W Portage] Likely Republican
R% 2012: 52.8 Romney: 49.4 Johnson: 58.8
Democrat: Larry Provancher
Republican: Stan Runyon
Conservative Republican Phil Stinchcomb defeated democrat Michael Quinn 56.4-43.6 in 2010, and defeated Connor Farrell in 2012.  Stinchcomb lost a bid for state house in the 61st district.  Runyon is the Kalamazoo GOP Treasurer.  Provancher, who is 78, was a democrat county commissioner representing central Portage 1995-2002.  He defeated Mary Roscoe 61-39 in the primary.

District 11 [E Portage] Likely Republican
R% 2012: 52.5 Romney: 47.5 Johnson: 56.5
Democrat: Jamie Jager
Republican: Scott McGraw
John Zull, who has been on the board since 2000, is retiring. In 2012, he defeated Jamie Jager, who was nominated as a write-in.  McGraw formerly worked for the Kalamazoo Homebuilders Association and now runs the Kalamazoo Business Alliance.

Obamacare in Kalamazoo

A disaster, just like everywhere else.

Obamacare enrollment in Kalamazoo area lags, 'execution has been a nightmare'

Obamacare's impact on Kalamazoo residents: 'We're in the worst spot we could be'

Spending in Oshtemo

Oshtemo will be taxing more and spending more.

Oshtemo Township board approves 1 percent pay hike for officials, increases meeting pay for trustees

The board voted Tuesday to raise the salaries for the supervisor, clerk and treasurer 1 percent to $64,653 each.  

The trustees’ annual salary of $2,400 was approved unchanged.

Their per-meeting pay for township board meetings will go from $50 to $100, while their committee meeting pay will stay at $50 per meeting.

Oshtemo Township raises assessments for police protection, looks to put more deputies on patrol

The township board voted unanimously Tuesday to set the rates at 1.25 mills for the residential, agricultural and industrial properties in district 2009-1 and 3.25 for the commercial, multi-family and high-density residential properties in district 2003-1.

Currently, district 2009-1 pays 0.5 mills and district 2003-1 pays 2.5 mills.

With the change in rates, the owner of a home with a market value of $144,000 -- the average in Oshtemo Township – will pay $90 a year, up from $36 currently, starting in 2014.

For a commercial property with a market value of $736,086 -- the average in Oshtemo -- the change means a tax increase from $954 to $1,240 annually. For a multi-family property with a market value of $2,471,784 -- the average in Oshtemo -- the change means an increase from $3,089 to $4,016.

Another candidate in 63

Marshall school board president Vic Potter is the second candidate to run for the Republican nomination in the 63rd district after Dave Maturen.

Marshall school board president files for 63rd District seat

UPDATE: Marshall school board president Victor Potter announces run for 63rd District state House seat

David Maturen Running for State House District 63

Kalamazoo County commission chairman David Maturen is running for state house in the district of term-limited House Speaker Jase Bolger.

Kalamazoo County Board Chair David Maturen announces candidacy for state House

“My number one priority is building on the efforts of Gov. Snyder and the Republican legislative delegation to once again make Michigan a magnet for job creation” Maturen said. “Requiring sensible regulatory reforms, ensuring efficient and effective delivery of governmental services and keeping taxes low to allow businesses to reinvest in equipment and technology and families to keep more of their had earned dollars to spend on their priorities, will all aid in achieving that goal.”

This is little surpirising, but maybe it shouldn't be. Maturen was interested in running in 2008, but deferred to Bolger.  He was elected to the county commission in 2002 and hasn't had a competitive race since then.

Maturen represents about 23000 people in county commission district 8, which includes Prairie Ronde, Schoolcraft, Brady, Pavilion, and Portage 2.  However, only Brady and Pavilion are in the 63rd. They together have about 10,500 people.  Furthermore, Maturen has only had Pavilion for one term, leaving Brady (pop 4200) as his core base.  That's only about 5% of the district.

There are several other possible candidates.  Former Calhoun GOP chairman and former Calhoun County Commissioner Greg Moore have both been mentioned as candidates, but neither seem to have announced yet.  Moore lost the 62nd district 38-62 in 2008, and Mobley lost it 45-55 in 2010.  Both are now in the 63rd due to redistricting.

Election Results

All the incumbents were reelected in Kalamazoo.  Bobby Hopewell won a fourth term as Mayor and sixth on the commission.  David Andersen will be vice-mayor, succeeding Hannah McKinney, who retired.  The other incumbents in descending order were Don Cooney, Barb Miller, Robert Cinabro, and Stephanie Moore.  The seventh seat will go to former democrat county commissioner Jack Urban.  The runners up were Tracy Hall, Jeff Weisman, Nicholas Boyd, Rico White, Mike Perrin, E Allen Hayes, Birletta Bean-Hardeman, Fred Lawrence. Republicans remain shut out here.

In Portage, Pete Strazdas was reelected Mayor unopposed.  Incumbents Claudette Reid and Terry Urban finished first an third.  Republican former county commissioner Nasim Ansari finished second; he will fill the seat of Ed Sackley.  Richard Ford finished fourth. This could be important, as there is an open seat following the resignation of Elizabeth Campbell, and the runner up is commonly appointed to an open seat in Portage. Unqualified 25-year-old democrat Connor Farrell finished a disappointing fifth.  Kevin Park was sixth.

There were a bunch of other elections scattered across the country. See this excellent roundup from RedRacingHorses:

http://www.redracinghorses.com/diary/3411/election-2013-the-morningafter-rounup

Goodacre Running in 60

The 60th district race already has David Buskirk and Jon Hoadley, and it's getting more crowded.

Kalamazoo Township Trustee Pamela Goodacre announces 2014 state House run

"Earlier this year members of our local and state community approached me to discuss the need for my candidacy to run for the Michigan 60th District House of Representatives," said Goodacre, who revealed in September that she was considering a run. "After much consideration and prayer, I am very excited to announce my decision to step up to the challenge."

Goodacre currently works as an intermittent lecturer for the University of Michigan and has served as a Kalamazoo Township Trustee since 2012. She said her work as an educator has made her want to be a voice for education in the state.

"As an educator, I believe in the necessity for not only job creation but also training, education and job preparation," Goodacre said. "I stand firmly for social justices, education and job creation."

Goodacre said she is trying to step up to provide more Democratic voice in Lansing for those she believes are underrepresented.

"In the past, I have been a strong advocate for families, women and children’s rights, public education, sensible gun laws, a living wage, and issues of equality, diversity and inclusion," she said. "These 21st Century issues warrant different actions and a different dedication."

Phil's In

County commissioner Phil Stinchcomb is officially running for state rep in the 61st district.

Kalamazoo County Commissioner Phil Stinchcomb announces 2014 state House bid

"I am motivated by three reasons -- 1) Valerie, 2) Tyler, 3) Michael -- My three children," Stinchcomb said in a press release. "I cannot stand back and watch progressives of Lansing or Washington D.C. steal our posterity's future."

What could that be a reference to?

UPDATE:


Previous: Phil Stinchcomb for State House

Upton for Amnesty, Again

The stupid party strikes again.

Congressman Fred Upton says he will be part of 'bipartisan effort' to pass immigration reform this fall

A bipartisan approach has more chance of success than trying to persuade hard-liners in the Republican caucus, he said.  

"There are people that will never be a yes vote," he said. "There are some that want to send all 11 million home. That doesn't happen ... Let's just take that off the table."

Let's not.  Bipartisanship is when democrats and Republicans get together to screw the public.

Upton, however, stopped short of calling for a pathway to citizenship, saying, "We need somewhat of a pathway to legal status."

No citizenship would protect Republican politicians (for a while, anyways), but would leave illegals free to take your jobs.

Kalamazoo City Commission Fundraising Reports

The Gazette reports on the fundraising for Kalamazoo City Commission candidates.

Mayor Bobby Hopewell leads fundraising for Kalamazoo City Commission campaigns; incumbents outraising challengers by nearly 2-to-1 margin

• Incumbent Mayor Booby Hopewell raised $16,697 so far in his bid for re-election. Hopewell had $7,652.34 left as carryover from his last campaign, and has spent a total of $11,935.44
• Incumbent Bob Cinabro has raised $11,950.77 and spent $11,144.41.
• Incumbent David Anderson has raised $9,805 and spent $8,153.
• Newcomer Jeff Weisman has raised $9,645 and spent $3,852.
• Incumbent Barb Miller has raised $8,130 and spent $6,279.
• Newcomer Tracy Hall has raised $7,135 and spent $5,195.
• Newcomer Jack Urban has raised $6,785 and spent $5,368.
• Incumbent Don Cooney has raised $4,735 and spent $4,692.
• Newcomer Nick Boyd has raised $1,340 and spent $1,286.
• Newcomer E. Allen Hayes has raised $3,305 and spent $3,189.

Based on these figures, it would seem that Weisman, Hall, Urban, or Hayes are the most likely to win the open seat.

Dordt v. Sebelius

Two Christian colleges, Dordt College in Iowa and Cornerstone in Grand Rapids, are suing the federal government over the contraception mandate in Obamacare.

Iowa college sues over health care contraception mandate

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) — A Christian school in West Michigan has joined a college in Iowa in a lawsuit opposing the federal health care law's contraception provision.

Grand Rapids-based Cornerstone University and Dordt College in Sioux Center, Iowa, filed the suit Wednesday in federal court in Iowa.

They're challenging requirements that employee and student health insurance plans provide free coverage of contraceptive services, including contraceptives that cause early abortions.

The schools say that as a matter of religious conviction "it would be sinful and immoral" to intentionally support access to abortion "which destroys human life."

Cornerstone and Dordt could face fines for non-compliance.

Criminals Demand Amnesty

Another rally for amnesty by illegal aliens.

Immigration reform march draws 300 activists to the Kalamazoo Mall

The article contains the usual sob stories.

Esteban Reaser, 11, used a megaphone to tell the crowd the story of how his father was deported in June. 

"I was devastated, sad and angry," Reaser said. "My little sister Bella still cries for him almost every night. We were just getting to spend more time with my dad."

Reaser has a 10-year-old brother and a 7-year-old sister.

"I'm out here for all the kids like me," he said. "We need the law fixed so that other people don't lose their dads too."

Events like these help neighbors and friends "step out of the shadows," he said.

"If my dad were here, he'd be really proud of me," Reaser said.

Having children is not an excuse to break the law.  Families can always reunite in their home counties.

Brandt Iden Running for State House

Kalamazoo County Commissioner Brandt Iden is running for State House in the 61st district.

Kalamazoo County Commissioner Brandt Iden announces run for state representative

"I want to commend Representative O'Brien for her leadership and her service to the constituents in our 61^st district," said Iden, a Republican commissioner, in a statement. "I wish her the best of luck and want to support her in her candidacy for state Senate."

Iden is probably correct that supporting Margaret helps more than ticking off Lorence Wenke hurts.

Iden said he plans to make job growth in Michigan a priority. He said other key issues include: property tax reform, fiscal responsibility and finding creative, responsible solutions for Michigan's aging infrastructure.

"We need thoughtful, progressive leadership on these issues. I believe with my track record of service to the community, and my experience as a small business owner, I will be the right public servant for the people of the 61^st District and the state of Michigan," said Iden.

Progressive?

2012-2013 ACU Michigan Legislature Ratings

The American Conservative Union has long been the premier organization rating members of Congress on how conservative their voting records are.  Recently, ACU began rating state legislators on their voting records, and it just released its second ratings of the Michigan state legislature.

ACU State Ratings 2013--MI

Their PDF is hard to read, so I will summarize the relevant information here.

ACU rated 20 house votes and 16 senate votes from 2012 and 2013.  Their timing is curious, since this overlaps distinct legislative sessions.  This isn't a big deal for the state senate, which wasn't up for election in 2012, but the composition of the state house changed significantly.  Thus some state reps are rated only for 2012 (12 votes) or 2013 (8 votes)  Fourteen of the bills are the same for both halves of the legislature. The most common topics for the state house votes were taxes (4 votes), gun rights and hunting (4), and education (3).  The most common topic for the state senate votes was gun rights and hunting (5 votes).

ACU Michigan state senate ratings 2012/2013:

100%: Brandenberg, Hune
93-94%: Colbeck, Green, Robertson
88%: Meekhof, Moolenaar, Pavlov, Schuitmaker
81%: Booher, Hildenbrand, Jansen, Pappageorge, Proos, Rocca
75-77%: Caswell, Emmons, Jones, Kowall, Marleau, Richardville, Walker
69%: Hansen, Kahn, Nofs
56%: Casperson
30%: Gleason
13%: Andersen, Bieda, Hunter
6%: Gregory, Hood, Hopgood, Johnson, Smith, Whitmer, Young
0%: Warren

The average for the Republicans was 78%.  The average for the democrats was 9%.  The overall average was 59%, which was down slightly from 62% in the previous ratings.

The biggest changes from 2012 were Richardville (-14), Jansen (-13), Green (+17), Walker (-19), Casperson (-16).

Joe Hune repeated his perfect score from before, and was joined by Jack Brandenberg.  The lowest-scoring Republican was again Tom Casperson, who put up a pathetic 56%.  Next-lowest were Geoff Hansen (tough district), Roger Kahn (tough district, term-limited), and Mike Nofs, who has no excuses.  The highest-scoring democrat was John Gleason, who resigned after being elected Genesee County Clerk.  He was replaced by the more liberal Jim Ananich (25%).

Notably, the democrats are almost all solidly liberal, while the Republican scores are more spread out.  Nonetheless, there is a clear partisan divide.

Here are the 2012 scores for comparison.

100%: Hune
94%: Brandenberg, Jansen, Pavlov, Robertson, Walker
89%: Colbeck, Emmons, Hildenbrand, Kowall, Meekhof, Richardville
83%: Booher, Jones, Marleau, Moolenaar, Pappageorge, Rocca, Schuitmaker
76-78%: Caswell, Green, Hansen, Kahn, Proos
72%: Casperson, Nofs
28%: Gleason
22%: Hunter
17%: Bieda
11-13%: Andersen, Johnson, Smith, Young
6%: Gregory, Hood, Hopgood, Warren, Whitmer

ACU Michigan state house ratings 2012/2013 (rounded to nearest 5%):

100%: Agema**
90%: Dianda*, Kelly*, Leonard*, Lund, Olson**, Roy Schmidt**
85%: Franz, Genetski, Goike, Hooker, Huuki**, Knollenberg**, Lafontaine, McMillin, Opsommer**, Somerville
80%: Bumstead, Cotter, Farrington, Haines, Heise, MacGregor, MacMaster
75%: Daley, Damrow**, Gilbert**, Graves, Jenkins, Lauwers*, Moss**, Muxlow, Nesbitt, Ouimet**, Price,  Rendon, Schaughnessy**, Shirkey, Verheulen**, Victory**, Yonker
70%: Bolger, Crawford, Haveman, Jacobsen, Johnson, Kowall, Kurtz, O'Brien, Outman, Pettalia, Poleski, Potvin, Pscholka, Rogers, Wayne Schmidt, Stamas, Tyler**, Walsh
65%: Callton, Cochran*, Denby, Foster, Glardon, Howrylak*, Kesto*, Lyons, Pagel*
60%: Forlini, Horn**, Hughes**, McBroom, Zorn
50%: Abed*, Brinks*, Driskell*, Lamonte*, Lavoy*, McCready*, Yanez*
45%: Brunner, Lori, Oakes, Smiley
40%: Faris*, Kivela*, LeBlanc*, Olumba
35%: Dillon, Lane, Stapleton**
30%: Brown, McCann, Nathan, Santana, Segal
25%: Ananich, Banks*, Cavanaugh, Geiss, Greimel, Knezek*, Kosowski, Liss**, Slavens, Zemke*
20%: Clemente, Durhal, Haugh, Hobbs, Lindberg**, Stallworth, Stanley, Talabi
15%: Barnett, Byrun**, Constan**, Hovey-Wright, Irwin, Kandrevas, Lipton, Roberts*, Robinson*, Rutledge, Schor*, Singh*, Tlaib
10%: Bauer**, Bledsoe**, Darany, Hammel**, Howze**, Meadows**, Switalski
5%: Townsend
0%: Jackson**, Womack**

* assumed office in 2013
** left office after 2012

The house average was 53%.  The average for (current) house Republicans was 75%. The average for current house democrats was 29%.  Both caucuses were closer to the center that their senate counterparts, particularly the democrats.

In the state house, Dave Agema was again the only member to score 100%.  He was term-limited in 2012, and elected Republican National Committeeman that year. Pete Lund scored 90%, along with retiring Rick Olson, and party-switcher Roy Schmidt.  The lowest-scoring Republican was Matt Lori (45%).  Next-lowest were five scoring 60%.

Democrat Scott Dianda scored a surprising 88% (7/8), after topping a Tea Party scorecard earlier.  He scored better than Matt Huuki, the Republican he beat in 2012.  Several other newly-elected democrats scored perhaps unreasonably high scores on the eight votes in 2013.  Tom Cochran got 63%, and all eight with 50% are democrats.

The largest positive changes were Talabi (+14), Olumba (+38), Stallworth (+16), Nathan (+13), Santana (+24), Cavanaugh (+13), Geiss (+12), Lipton (+15), Greimel (+12), Stanley (+12), Hobbs (+14), Barnett (+15), Smiley (+27), McCann (+12), Segal (+12), Oakes (+27), Brunner (+20). All are democrats.

The largest negative changes were Walsh (-24), Forlini (-22), Townsend (-14), Crawford (-18), Rogers (-18), Kowall (-18), Jacobsen (-18), Denby (-23), Zorn (-22), Jenkins (-13), Lori (-43), O'Brien (-18), Bolger (-18), Poleski (-18), Shirkey (-19), Nesbitt (-13), Outman (-18), Yonker (-13), MacGregor (-14), Pscholka (-18), Daley (-13), Lyons (-23), Callton (-23), Price (-19), Haveman (-24), Johnson (-12), Stamas (-18), Potvin (-18), Schmidt (-18), Pettalia (-12), Foster (-23), McBroom (-23). All except Townsend are Republicans.

Notably, Republican scores consistently fell and democrat scores rose from the previous ratings. While one might think that representatives were positioning themselves for the 2012 election, all but two votes took place after that election. It could be that ACU chose less polarizing votes to score this time, though this was not obviously the case on the senate side. The partisan divide was much less clear in the house.

Of course, the usual caveats apply to any legislative ratings system. Legislators' scores will vary from year to year, so it will be interesting to compare these scores to future years' scores. Also, ratings only cover issues that were actually voted upon, so controversial issues that never made it to a vote can't be scored.

Nonetheless, ratings such as this are a valuable tool for voters heading into the 2014 primary and general elections.

Previous: 2012 ACU Michigan Legislature Ratings

Tom Barrett for State House

Here is Tom Barrett's announcement that he is running for state house in the 71st district.



Previous: Tom Barrett for State Representative

Phil Stinchcomb for State House

Kalamazoo County Commissioner Phil Stinchcomb made an unofficial announcement that he intends to run for state house in the 61st district.

Margaret Runs for Senate

Margaret O'Brien has made it official.

State Rep. Margaret O'Brien to run for state Senate

O'Brien will join state Rep. Sean McCann, D-Kalamazoo, and former Republican state Rep. Lorence Wenke as candidates seeking to replace state Senator Tonya Schuitmaker in the 20th District, which includes all of Kalamazoo County.

Schuitmaker announced last month that she intends to run in the new 26th District, which now includes her hometown of Lawton after district lines were redrawn.

Here is the press release:

---------------------------------

Dear Friends,

I am very excited to announce that I am seeking election to the Michigan State Senate in the 20th District, which includes all of Kalamazoo County.

As a lifelong Kalamazoo County resident, I am committed to this community. Southwest Michigan deserves a leader who demands accountability in government and has a strong track record of providing solutions.

I was first elected in 2010 to the State House, having first served on the Portage City Council from 2003-2010. During my time as a City Council member, I was a champion of transparency, fiscal responsibility and customer service.

As a mom of two, I share the same concerns of other parents in our community. It is important that we do more to create jobs in Michigan, and implement common sense solutions to Michigan problems. Our state is making a comeback. We balanced the State budget on time without gimmicks. Housing prices are rebounding, population is growing again, and we can't go back to the old days of taxing and spending.

During my time in office, I have sponsored legislation improving public education, lowering taxes, protecting our most vulnerable and removing regulations that hurt small businesses, particularly in Southwest Michigan.

I have lived in Portage for the last 22 years with my husband and two teenaged children. As a former social worker with Catholic Family Services and REALTOR® for the last 10 years with RE/MAX Advantage, I believe I have the skills, compassion, and work ethic to be your next State Senator.

I sincerely appreciate your support and would love to get you involved in my campaign. For more information on how to volunteer or donate, please contact me at margaret@margaretobrien.com or by phone at 269-324-9626.

Thank you so much for allowing me to serve you. We have a lot of work ahead but I look forward to making our community an even better place to live and work for years to come.

Kalamazoo Income Tax?

The new Kalamazoo city manager is proposing an income tax in Kalamazoo.  Of course, this would only encourage productive people to move to Portage or the townships.

Battle Creek's Jim Ritsema picked as next Kalamazoo city manager by commissioners

When it comes to budgeting, Ritsema said he likes to budget for the long term, not one-time fixes. When asked how he would enhance city revenue, Ritsema proposed an income tax, which Battle Creek has. Even though it is hard to sell, he said, Kalamazoo could band together with Portage and neighboring townships and could identify a service and tie a revenue stream to it that could be voted on, such as an income tax.