With a few election races being uncontested in Sanilac County, August 2nd will see residents join citizens across Michigan in casting their vote in the primary election.
In the governor race, voters will be asked to determine who will run against Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer, from a pool of five (or six, if you count former Detroit Police Chief James Craig’s write-in campaign, beginning after he and four other candidates were disqualified earlier this summer for fraudulent signatures on the petitions to get them on the ballot). With the last governor debate being Friday, July 29, most Michigan citizens know of the five Republican candidates: Tudor Dixon, Ryan D. Kelley, Ralph Rebandt, Kevin Rinke and Garrett Soldano. The winner will move onto the November ballot.
In Congressional runs, incumbent Lisa McClain of the 9th district finds herself being opposed by newcomer Michelle R.E. Donovan, a Republican lawyer from New Baltimore, Michigan, for the November ballot spot, where the winner will face democrat Brian Jaye, lawyer and small business owner of Rochester, for the congressional seat.
For state senate, incumbent Daniel V. Lauwers is running unopposed, meaning he will be seeing his opponent for the November race in Bert Van Dyke, the democrat who hopes to unseat him this fall.
With Robert Mroczek the only one running in the democratic primary for the state representative of the 98th district, it will be the Republican side of the primary with the action as Greg Alexander, Kurt E. Damrow, Joe O’Mara and Westley D. Tahash duking it out for the nomination.
Residents in Worth Township will be joining parts of St. Clair County to determine the Republican nominee for the 64th District, where incumbent from the old 83rd district, Andrew William Beeler, and incumbent of the old 81st district, Gary R. Eisen, face off against John W. Mahaney, who ran for Eisen’s district seat before.
On the local level, Leslie Hilgendorf is running unopposed for County Clerk, a role she has been filling since the retirement of Denise McGuire. Speaking of McGuire, you will see her on the Republican side of the ballot, facing off against incumbent Gary R. Heberling for the role of county commissioner representing the 3rd District.
Current County Comissioner Joel Wyatt is seeking to unseat incumbent Ronald Gerstenberger as County Road Commissioner for the November nomination, where the winner will be running unopposed. Robert Ordish is on the ballot unopposed for the role of delegate to the county convention.
For local millages in Sanilac County, there are five measures focused on renewal of services. The five millage renewals include the 911/Emergency Services, the S.A.V.E. (Sanilac Area Violence Elimination & Education) Partnership, Sanilac County’s Drug Task Force, Sanilac County Parks and Sanilac County Veteran services, with all but the Drug Task Force renewal asking for a 0.2000 millage (or, 20 cents for every $1,000 in taxes). The Drug Task Force’s millage would be renewing at its current millage of 0.5000, or for 50 cents for every $1,000 taxed.
Polls in Sanilac County open at 7:00 a.m. on Tuesday, August 2, and close at 8:00 p.m. that evening.
