Election Results Lead to Governor Snyder’s Re-Election and Larger Republican Majorities in the State House and Senate
What seemed to be a close race between Governor Snyder and Mark Schauer leading up to election night turned out to be a larger margin of victory for Governor Snyder’s re-election than expected. Governor Snyder won his re-election bid by a 51-47 percent margin in a race that just days before the election was being reported by pollsters as a dead heat. Governor Snyder has been, by far, the biggest advocate for increased infrastructure investment in Michigan and his re-election will have a positive impact on MITA’s ability to get a comprehensive road funding package approved during the lame duck session.
What was more surprising in the election was how poorly Democrats did in legislative races. It was expected that in the House Democrats would gain a seat or two and even potentially take over the majority from the Republicans. The opposite occurred, and House Republicans actually picked up 4 seats, increasing their majority to 63-47. Two current Democratic incumbents were unseated, and two seats of term-limited Democrats flipped to Republican candidates.
Similarly in the Michigan Senate, leading up to election night it had been reported that Republicans would likely lose a seat or more from the 26-12 majority that they had, however, the opposite was the case. Republicans in the Senate actually gained a seat, increasing their majority to 27-11. Several candidates supported by the MITA PAC and its members won their elections, which demonstrates the importance of contributing to the PAC and supporting those candidates who will support our industry.
Both Republicans and Democrats in the House and Senate will hold their leadership elections in the next two days, which will set the stage for the 2015 – 2016 legislative session. The legislature will then meet officially next week and begin what is called the lame duck session. Every legislative leader, as well as the Governor, have said that the top priority for lame duck is finding a road funding solution. MITA staff has worked tirelessly and will continue to do so to get a solution through the legislature and on the Governor’s desk.
In addition to individual candidates running for office, there were several local road funding initiatives that were on the ballot. All in all, five counties sought increases for local road funding, and early data suggests that only Lapeer County voters had rejected their proposal. Eaton, Otsego, Ottawa, and Midland Counties passed increases for local road funding projects.
As more election information becomes available, and leadership elections occur in the state legislature, we will be sure to update you. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Mike Nystrom, Executive Vice President, at mikenystrom@mi-ita.com or Lance Binoniemi, Vice President of Government Affairs, at lancebinoniemi@mi-ita.com. They can also be reached at 517-347-8336.
