Michigan’s crucial November election: Key races, how to vote
The November election in Michigan will be crucial, with important races for the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives at stake. Here’s how to vote and make sure your voice is heard.
In one of the most competitive races in Michigan that could decide the majority in the state’s House of Representatives this fall, the state Board of Elections on Monday certified Democrat Matt Schlinker as the winner of his party’s primary for the 68th District after he launched a last-minute write-in campaign following the death of former state Rep. Tim Sneller, a Democrat from Burton.
Voters had already received mail-in ballots with Sneller’s name on them when he died unexpectedly less than a month before the August primary. Just over a week before Election Day, Schlinker announced his decision to run as an ineligible candidate after his attempt to reprint the ballots and add his name failed. Since Sneller had no opponent in the Democratic primary, his name was the only one that appeared on the ballot.
Schlinker, a longtime General Motors employee who lives in Goodrich, said he has known Sneller for decades through her involvement in local campaigns. Schlinker described his decision to enter the race as a way to continue Sneller’s legacy.
“His commitment to civil rights and working families inspired many, and his vision for our future was one we all gladly supported,” Schlinker wrote in a Facebook post about Sneller. “With that in mind, I am running as a candidate to continue the mission that Tim so passionately championed.”
“This wasn’t something I wanted to do,” Schlinker said of his run for the House. “But Tim’s death surprised a lot of us and we were just sad to see him go and wanted to kind of carry on what he was working on,” he told the Free Press.
Schlinker is among Democrats fighting to keep their party’s control of the state House of Representatives, where they currently hold a narrow 56-54 majority over Republicans. In November, Schlinker will face incumbent state Rep. David Martin (R-Davison), who ran unopposed in the Republican primary. He was first elected to the state House in 2020.
In a statement to the Free Press, Martin defended his past record ahead of his fall campaign. “I have always been committed to staying in touch with my constituents. Whether visiting local businesses, holding regular office hours, attending community meetings or knocking on thousands of doors, I am keenly aware of the needs and priorities of my constituency,” he said.
Martin won the district by more than nine percentage points in 2022. This year marked the first election under new district boundaries that include Atlas Township, Davison, Davison Township, Grand Blanc and Village of Goodrich in Genesee County, and parts of Burton, Genesee Township and Grand Blanc Township and Groveland Township in Oakland County.
Past election results show the district has tipped in favor of both Democratic and Republican candidates. As voters look toward the Nov. 5 election that will determine whether Democrats retain their majority in the state House of Representatives, they may have a chance to play a decisive role. But it’s not the race they expected.
Last-minute write-in campaign
Sneller served in the Michigan House of Representatives from 2017 to 2022 and was ineligible for re-election two years ago due to term limits. But after voters amended Michigan’s Constitution to allow representatives to serve up to 12 years in the state’s House, Sneller hoped to return to the chamber.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer described him as a friend and champion of a more inclusive state of Michigan. “As one of the first openly gay Michiganders to serve in the state legislature, he fought hard to expand civil rights and create a more welcoming Michigan for all,” she said in a statement. Sneller was 68 when he died. The primary cause of death was heart disease, according to a copy of his death certificate obtained by the Detroit Free Press.
Under Michigan election law, votes cast for a deceased candidate are “void and shall not be counted.” However, the law allows precinct delegates to replace a deceased candidate in a party primary if the death leaves the party without a candidate.
Democrats chose Schlinker to replace Sneller on the ballot. But according to a Michigan Court of Claims court filing in the lawsuit filed by Schlinker, who is seeking a court order to replace Sneller’s name with his, county officials said it was too late to reprint the ballots. A Court of Claims judge denied the request because it was too close to the election. The judge noted that while state election law allows a political party to replace a deceased candidate, it does not specify whether ballots must be reprinted after they are mailed to voters.
Schlinker then decided to start a write-in campaign.
“It was intimidating to me. It seemed unlikely to me that we were going to get it done,” he said. Standing outside polling places greeting voters on a rainy election day, Schlinker recalled encounters with those who didn’t know about Sneller’s death. “And his name was the name they would see on the ballot if they were Democrats,” he said. Schlinker was then able to draw their attention to a part of the ballot that voters don’t usually notice — the line for handwritten entries — and ask them to write his name there.
With 1,247 votes in the primary, Schlinker exceeded the vote threshold needed to win his write-in campaign under a formula set out in Michigan election law. Martin received 6,762 votes in his primary.
Schlinker, who previously ran for a seat on the Genesee County Commission and served on the Flint City Council, is facing his toughest election campaign yet.
Do the Democrats have a chance to win the 68th Congress?
Both Democrats and Republicans competing statewide have won voters in the 68th District, according to previous election results compiled by the Michigan State Commission that draws district boundaries.
Former President Donald Trump won the district in 2020 and 2016. However, former President Barack Obama won it in 2012. The Democrats who hold Michigan’s three highest offices – Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, Attorney General Dana Nessel and Whitmer – all won the district in 2022. Whitmer and Benson also won the district in 2018, while Nessel lost it.
Contact Clara Hendrickson at [email protected] or 313-296-5743. Follow her on X, formerly Twitter, @clarajanehen.
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