Added on October 29, 2018  Marsha Chartrand

Voter’s Guide: Candidates speak out on the issues

The Manchester Mirror presents our 2018 voters guide especially designed for the Manchester area. Several candidates for these offices are Manchester residents, and many more are our nearby neighbors. This guide will tell you about each of the candidates in their own words.

Candidates who wish to represent Manchester on the most local levels were asked for their responses to a simple question: Why you are running; what important issues you think we face as a community; and why you feel you are best suited to meet these challenges?

Statewide offices, such as US Senator, Governor, Secretary of State, and Attorney General have been covered extensively by larger media outlets and more information on the candidates below, as well as those for statewide office, can also be found on the League of Women Voters site, Vote411.org.

US House, District 7

Tim Walberg (R), incumbent Congressman

As your Congressman, my commitment is to represent our Michigan values and seek bipartisan solutions on the issues that matter to our communities. By working together, I have passed nine bipartisan bills this term, which is the most in our state’s congressional delegation. These results are making a difference.

As I travel Michigan’s 7th District, from neighborhood stores to the factory floor, there is a renewed sense of optimism about the future. The unemployment rate is at its lowest level in almost 50 years, and consumer confidence and small business optimism are near all-time highs.

The economy is improving thanks to our pro-growth policies of cutting taxes and reducing excessive red tape. With the overhaul of our broken tax code, businesses are creating more jobs, expanding employee benefits and workforce development, and hardworking families are seeing bigger paychecks and more take-home pay.

As the economy continues to grow, so too does the need for a skilled workforce. That’s why the House passed, and the President signed into law, bipartisan legislation to improve career and technical education. Strengthening these programs will help even more students acquire hands-on experience to succeed in the 21st century workplace.

It’s not just our economy that’s getting stronger—our military is as well. The House passed legislation to give our troops their largest pay raise in nearly a decade, expand GI bill benefits, and reform the VA to help our veterans. All of these bipartisan initiatives are now law of the land.

We are working in a bipartisan way to combat the opioid epidemic, passing a comprehensive legislative package to enhance treatment, prevention, and recovery efforts. Last week, I was at the White House as the President signed it into law. This landmark law included two bills I authored with Rep. Debbie Dingell to help save and rebuild lives.

Agriculture is critical to our community, and I was proud to be recognized as a “Friend of Farm Bureau” for my consistent voting record in support of our farmers and growers. We have also taken bipartisan action to help expand access to rural broadband and rebuild our roads, bridges, and local infrastructure.

More work remains, and our focus will continue to be on improving people’s lives. I hope to earn your vote so we can build on these positive results and create more opportunities for Michigan families to get ahead.

For more updates on my campaign, please visit our website at WalbergForCongress.com or follow me on Facebook (/WalbergForCongress), Twitter (@TimWalberg), and Instagram (@TimWalberg).

Gretchen Driskell (D), Candidate for US House

I was raised in a family of service. My father, grandfather, and son all served our country in the armed forces, so I was raised to put your community first. I stepped forward to serve my community in local government because Saline needed new  leadership. When I ran to be your state representative in 2012, it was because I knew we could do better than the policies coming out of Lansing. That’s why I’m running to represent you in Congress. We need new leadership in Washington.

Our district is suffering from job loss, rising healthcare costs, and crumbling infrastructure. And all the while, our leaders in Washington are more interested in partisan fights than the real issues facing our nation. Something has to change. As a mayor, I was non-partisan for 14 years, and I worked to balance the budget and create opportunity in our city for real economic growth. I coordinated with our educational institutions and business leaders to bring and keep jobs in our town, and I will work to do that as your Congressperson.

What this district needs most is someone who will listen to the concerns of their constituents and will take action. When I was mayor, I was held accountable by my constituents wherever I went. A Congressperson should be no less accountable, and I want to take the transparency and hard work that I demonstrated as mayor of Saline to Washington. I will work with anyone to bring real results back to our district, and my record of working with Republicans and Democrats proves that I have what it takes to achieve real bipartisan solutions for the issues facing Michigan’s 7th District.

website: votedriskell.com
email address: gretchen@votegretchen.com
Facebook: facebook.com/votegretchen/
Twitter: twitter.com/gdriskell

Michigan Senate, District 22

Lana Theis (R), candidate for State Senate

Back in 2000, like many working families we bought the smallest house in the neighborhood so eventually, we could do an addition when we could later afford it. When Brighton Township passed a tree ordinance we learned it would cost us $40,000 before could even begin working on the addition. Working with friends and neighbors we ran a referendum and overturned the ordinance by a vote of nearly 2/3. Running a local ballot referendum showed me how big of effect one individual can have when they clearly explain the issue with other members of their community – and that is when I decided to become involved in politics.

It has been my honor to serve as state representative for the 42nd district, encompassing the South-Eastern portion of Livingston County since 2015. As a candidate for state senate, I am committed to honoring the principles I first ran for state representative: More Leadership – Less Government. As a state representative, I am a conservative Republican leader who does what is right, even when it means standing up to special interest groups or the establishment. I voted against raising your gas taxes and opposed raising your vehicle registration fees. I believe that as taxpayers, we already pay the government enough of our hard-earned money; and if we correctly prioritize the money we already give the government, there is no need to continue raising taxes. I voted in favor of reducing our income taxes and I opposed legislation which gave massive tax breaks to business, picking winners and losers. I voted yes on legislation which would create transparency in the Michigan Legislature and the Executive Branch, similar to the Michigan Freedom of Information Act.

As your next state senator, my top priorities in Lansing will be to lower our sky-rocketing auto insurance rates, reduce spending and lower taxes and protecting those who cannot protect themselves.

In 2017, I attended over 300 in-district events, held monthly coffee hours, and each week I spend 15-20 hours reading the legislation coming before for in committee and on the house floor. As your next state senator, I am going to continue doing what is right, not what is easy; and I will continue to stand by my principles of More Leadership – Less Government. If you have any additional questions or wish to learn more about my campaign, please visit www.lanatheis.com. Thank you for your consideration and I humbly ask for your support on Tuesday, November 6.

Adam Dreher (D), candidate for State Senate

I am running for state senate to make people a priority in Lansing once again. Unfortunately, our state government has gotten away from what it is supposed to be doing: protecting our public schools; providing an infrastructure that supports our health and growth; and promoting transparency and ethics in government. We need to get our state government back to basics.

My campaign started on November 7th, 2016. That day my son Daxton was born. Like all new parents I started looking at the world we live in in a whole new way and started to worry about what kind of schools we had, what kind of water we drank, what kind of roads we traveled on, and what kind of healthcare we would receive. The following day was Election Day, Dax and I stayed up to see who our next president was going to be. As the results from each state came rolling in, I held my future in my hands, while watching the future of our country unfold before me. It was at that point I knew I needed to get more involved in order to make a difference not only in my son’s future, but for the future of our state.

I had spent 5 years in the United States Army as a Cavalry Scout, with nearly half of my time spent in Iraq, learning toughness and determination. That determination allowed me to utilize the GI Bill and attend Eastern Michigan University, and Michigan State University College of Law, to learn the law and how it could shape people’s lives. My service to our country led to my service to our state when I was appointed as an assistant prosecutor and prosecuted criminals in district, circuit, and even Michigan’s Supreme Court. I will take my toughness, determination, and knowledge of the law to Lansing, where I will not back down when it comes to introducing and passing laws that benefit people again.

In my first term, I hope to change the way we fund our public schools to ensure more dollars go straight to instruction, rather than other expenses. That would provide us more opportunities to retain and obtain the best teachers for our children, and make Michigan a leader in K-12 education. Also, I’d like to see our state’s departments tasked with keeping our air and water clean more independent from the governor’s office. Flint should have been a huge wake-up call for our Legislature, but sadly we still struggle with water quality across the entire state. We need a state senate that will put people over politics.

I’ve represented our country. I’ve represented our state. Now I’m asking for your vote to represent our district. We need a state senator that understands the need to leave this state better off than when we found it. Because it is not just about my child, it’s about all of our children.

Eric Borregard (G), candidate for State Senate

The job of Michigan State Senator is about public service, serving the people and having personal integrity.  It’s not about taking PAC money and filling the orders of state lobbyists, while ignoring the needs of the people who elected you. So someone needs to step forward and represent the non-corporate nature and values of the average citizen, hopefully someone like me who is socially just and environmentally wise.

You may have heard that a section of ET Rover Pipeline exploded on September 10th in Center Twp. Pennsylvania. This 24 inch section of the pipeline was brand new, yet it exploded into a huge fireball after only six days service. It burned a house down into its basement, melted transmission towers, closed schools and cut power. So for the people in our community who have two of ET Rover 42 inch pipelines in their backyards the question now is not if, but when will ET Rover blow up again?

That’s why I’m calling for a complete shutdown of the Michigan section of ET Rover pipeline. I have also pledged to support the Let’s Ban Fracking in Michigan ballot initiative. This initiative has collected 252,000 signatures and is well on its way to being placed on the Michigan ballot in 2020. It would ban the drilling, transport and processing of fracking gases in Michigan.

The water in the Raisin and Huron River are highly polluted. This is not only affecting local wildlife but the human populations that have been drinking this water for years. The State does have a ban on eating fish from the Huron because of PFAS. Even so the foam in the river is toxic to animals and humans and the city of Ann Arbor is still drinking water from it. The river’s water also contains road tar, road salts, motor oil, micro plastics, mercury from coal fired power plants, sewage over flows, pesticides, nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizer.

Usually you could just say more money for Public Education would solve our problems. But with so much carbon monoxide, heavy metals and toxins in our children’s blood, no amount academic testing or money is going to fix our schools, until we clean up our environment.

The EPA under Obama & Trump and the Michigan DEQ and Health Department under Rick Snyder have done a horrible job of managed our state’s natural resources and protecting our children. Whoever we elect to this position actually needs to be able to confront both irresponsible parties. I think that’s why I’m best qualified to do that.

I do not accept corporate or PAC donations like my opponents. As an Independent candidate I’m permitted to speak freely and form my positions on the issues directly from citizen’s input. I won’t be filtering my words and positions to match what corporate donors, special interests or for what higher ups in the party are dictating, because I will have none.

Michigan House District 52

Teri Aiuto (R), Candidate for State Representative

Hello Manchester! My name is Teri Aiuto. I grew up in Manchester, graduated from Manchester High School, have been involved in many community activities and have owned and operated businesses in Manchester over the years. I am running for State Representative of the 52nd District and I am reaching out to each and every one of you for your vote this November 6th.

I am running for office because I believe that the residents of the 52nd District have not been properly represented. As a small business owner, community leader, proud mother and as your State Representative, I will be committed to fixing the issues that are most important to your families and our communities. I have knocked thousands of doors and the issues that are continually being echoed are: fixing roads, bridges and highways; improving K-12 education and skilled jobs training; protecting our Great Lakes and lowering the cost of car insurance. These are the top goals I have on my agenda when voted into office. I am guided by traditional values and support the 1st and 2nd Amendments. I am endorsed by the Right to Life Michigan PAC.

I believe with all my life experiences that I am the best suited candidate to represent the 52nd District. I have lived in Manchester my entire life and understand the dynamics of rural living: low taxes and less government. I have been a small business owner for 32 years; the Sharon Township Clerk for 16 years and the secretary of the Sharon Township Zoning Board of Appeals for 18 years; and have held many non-profit Executive Board positions along with holding a Bachelor of Science degree from Eastern Michigan University. I believe my resume speaks for its self and proves that I would be a good and committed representative for you in Lansing.

I invite you to visit my website: www.Teri4rep.com Facebook page: Teri4rep or contact or text me (734) 216-7569 with any questions, concerns and/or issues. I will always be accessible and willing to serve you.

I would greatly appreciate your vote on November 6th! Thank you!

Donna Lasinski (D), Incumbent State Representative

I’m Donna Lasinski, State Representative for Michigan’s 52nd House District. It has been a privilege to represent the Manchester community in Lansing for the past 20 months. We have accomplished so much together already, but we can’t afford to take our foot off the gas. I am running for re-election to continue our fight for safe roads, strong public schools, and clean drinking water.

For two decades, my husband Mike and I have raised our family in western Washtenaw. I love being a part of this community, where we all share a commitment to leadership, entrepreneurship, and community service. But we know that our crumbling roads, a lack of broadband internet access, and inability to trust that the water coming from the tap is safe to drink are holding us back.

As State Representative I have taken action on these issues – voting for $500 million in additional funding for roads without a tax increase, introducing legislation to allow local governments to invest in broadband infrastructure, and winning stricter clean-up standards for the dioxane in our drinking water.

I have raised my voice for investment in our traditional public schools, not for-profit cyber charters which have dismal student performance records. Our schools are the heart of our communities and we must support the policies and the necessary funding that allow every child to gain the skills they need to succeed in the 21st century.

I promise to continue to base my decisions on our community priorities, reason, and facts. I think our state has been divided too much by politics, which leaves the people who need help behind and puts our future in doubt. I have refused to be a part of that.

With two fellow democrats and three republicans, I crafted the Fair and Affordable No-fault Auto Insurance Reform package to lower rates without compromising benefits. This is exactly the bi-partisan work that needs to be done to ensure we are making a difference in the budgets of working families and putting Michiganders first.

Of course, in Lansing there are real differences. How we set our priorities matters. I have set my priorities by listening to my constituents and local officials at over 150 community events, 40 coffee hours, and through the 5,000 calls and emails that have been sent to my office. I believe that we can solve important problems by having civil discussions about solutions and by seeking to understand each other. We must look for common ground without sacrificing our values.

I am hopeful to be re-elected for my second term as State Representative for Michigan’s 52nd House District to continue working on the issues that matter most to our community.

Teresa Spiegelberg, (I) Write in candidate for state representative

Washtenaw County Commissioner, District 3

Melanie Weidmayer (R)

Did not respond.

Shannon Beeman (D)

My husband John and I moved to Manchester in 2005. We were looking for a house in an area that felt like home, both of us having grown up in Chelsea where John’s family has farmed for over 100 years. By happenstance, a high school friend and her new family also purchased a home a few roads over. It was wonderful to have friends so close by.

Fast forward 13 years and our friend lost her husband to the opioid crisis that is impacting our nation. Losing him, she lost everything. A mother of four children, with a high school diploma, she now works several part-time jobs to make ends meet, keep her kids in the schools they love, and the town they call home.

For my friend to better herself, build a strong foundation for her children, she longs to go back to school. Currently there are two options; use a reliable car to drive back and forth from an educational institution like Washtenaw Community College or use high-speed internet to attend classes online. In Manchester, like most of rural Washtenaw, there is no access to public transportation or reliable high-speed internet. As an educator, it pains me that her dreams are crushed through a lack of obtainable resources.

I am running for for the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners to enact real change; helping our region flourish and prosper. I am running because our families deserve a county government that works hard, gets results, and protects our tax dollars. I am running for people like my friend—like you—who need a voice.

For far too long, the voice for Washtenaw County has not reflected the words of my neighbors. District 3 needs a champion who will go to the table with the issues we face and work along side the eight other commissioners to make real change. Current Washtenaw County commissioners have endorsed my campaign and are eager to work side-by-side with me on the issues.

With my background in small business and economic development, I am ready for this challenge. I hold a Master of Business Administration (MBA), certification in small business counseling and economic gardening, and have experience working with county organizations. From attracting global corporations like Faurecia and Toyota to growing local businesses, I have dedicated my career to the heath of Michigan’s economy. I look to continue to support business and job creation in Washtenaw County through this elected position.

I have witnessed firsthand how our county dollars can make an impact or leave people behind. As a county commissioner, I will work to make an even stronger impact in the 3rd district.

www.votebeeman.com; votebeeman@gmail.com; https://www.facebook.com/voteshannonbeeman