Who will be on the November ballot in your township? What about the City?
by Sara Swanson
With the deadline to file to run with no party affiliation passed and last week’s primary election behind us, we now have a clear picture of who will be on the ballot in November in the Manchester area townships.
The current Bridgewater Township board of trustees will all be appearing on the November ballot and running unopposed. They are all running as Republicans. This includes supervisor Laurie Fromhart; clerk Michelle McQueer; treasurer Amy Ahrens; and trustees David C. Faust and R. Geoffrey Oliver.
Like Bridgewater, the current Freedom Township board of trustees will all be appearing on the November ballot and running unopposed. The two current trustees did face a contested primary but won the two top slots and will retain their seats. They are all also running as Republicans. This includes supervisor Larry Lindemann; clerk Valisa Bristle; treasurer Rudy Layher; and trustees Dennis Earl Huehl and Daniel L. Schaible.
Sharon Township’s primary results may have been confusing to the casual observer, as no one ran for any board positions on either the Republican or the Democratic ballots. Sharon Township’s current board is all running for reelection and will appear on the November ballot but registered with no party affiliation so did not appear on a primary ballot. This includes supervisor Katharyn Spiegel; clerk Michelle Mrocko; treasurer Brian Brickley; and trustees Chris Holda and Trudi Cooper. In addition, Sharon Township will have a contested election in November as the current trustees face a challenger, Anna K. Harvey, who is also running with no party affiliation.
Likewise, Manchester Township will also have a contested election in November and had some of its board of trustees candidates register to run with no party affiliation. Current board officers will all be appearing on the November ballot, running unopposed, and running as Republicans. This includes supervisor Ron Milkey; treasurer Kim Thompson; and clerk Danell Steele Proctor. Unlike the other three Manchester area townships, Manchester Township has four trustee positions. Current trustees Michael Fusilier, a Republican, and John Seefeld, a Democrat, both who appeared on the primary ballots, are running for reelection along with current trustee Lisa Moutinho, who registered with no party affiliation. Current trustee Krista Jarvis is not seeking reelection but newcomers Michael Walter and Corey Rippey, both registered with no party affiliation, will appear on the ballot in November and vie for four trustee positions.
The candidates in Sharon Township and Manchester Township who filed to run with no party affiliation may be running the way all township candidates will run in the future. There is an argument to make township positions nonpartisan. In 2021, Citizens Research Council of Michigan, a fact-based, nonpartisan, public policy organizations, published a paper by Eric Lupher arguing for the elimination of partisan elections of township and county officers. He argued three main points: that most services provided by townships and counties are mandatory and can’t be performed in alternative manners because of political leanings; residents may feel antipathy toward elected officials regardless of how well they are doing their job if their political parties differ; and voters having to choose what primary to vote in can prevent them from participating in significant elections. For example, in last week’s primary elections, voters in Freedom Township were able to either choose the Republican ballot and vote for their township trustees (as the winners are running unopposed by any Democrats on the November ballot) or choose the Democratic ballot and vote for their county sheriff (as the winner is running unopposed by a Republican on the November ballot); in either case, they were able to participate in only one election.
Unlike townships, all school boards and villages, and most cities, including the City of Manchester, have nonpartisan elected officials, which is why Manchester Community School board candidates did not appear on the primary ballots. The school board race will be on the November ballot. The City, however, will not. City Council members were elected in November of 2023. Mayor Pat Vailliencourt and trustees Cynthia Dresch, Steven Harvey, and Martin Way were all elected to an initial two-year term and their positions will be up for vote in November of 2025. (The positions will be four-year positions afterward.) The positions of the remaining three trustees, Sue LaRocque, Marsha Chartrand, and Patrick DuRussel, will be up for vote in 2027.
8-12-2024 Correction: The original version of this article incorrectly left John Seefeld off the list of candidates for Manchester Township trustee who will appear on the November ballot.
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