With Ottawa Impact set to lose majority on county commission, Dems look to pick up more seats

Of the upcoming races, all eyes will be on districts 2, 6 and 8 in the November general election; the countywide officer races won’t feature any Democrats.

In District 2, Democrat Chris Kleinjans defeated former OI commissioner Lucy Ebel in a may recall election by 20% points. Now that Ebel lost the Republican primary, Kleinjans will now face Jorritsma in the general election.

In District 6, Wenzel — who was appointed in November after former commissioner Kyle Terpstra resigned mere hours after Administrative Health Officer Adeline Hambley filed a request in Muskegon County circuit court asking a judge to enforce a $4 million settlement agreement she reached with commissioners on Nov. 6, in exchange for her resignation. Wenzel now will face Democrat Michelle Dieleman in November.

Arguably the most-watched race of all, Rhodea — co-founder of Ottawa Impact and vice chair of the county commission — will square off against Democrat Rebecca Patrick in a district that includes Grand Valley State University.

Larry Jackson, chair of the Ottawa County Democrats, said the top priorities will be helping Kleinjans to defend his seat as well as to help Patrick unseat Rhodea.




https://michiganadvance.com/2024/08/12/with-ottawa-impact-set-to-lose-majority-on-county-commission-dems-look-to-pick-up-more-seats/