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Woodhaven, Michigan — ballot edition
Wayne County · ZIP 48183 · Last updated: November 3, 2026, 10:44 a.m. EST
Complete researched edition for the November 3, 2026 general election: every race, judge, board, and proposal on the ballot.
Official source: Michigan Voter Information Center — your exact sample ballot
Checked official Michigan Secretary of State, Wayne County, and reputable live-results sources on Election Day, November 3, 2026, while polls were still open until 8 p.m., so no winner could be verified for any tracked office. State Proposals 2026-1 and 2026-2, the Wayne County Zoo millage renewal, and the Wayne County museum millage also remain awaiting results, with no pass or fail confirmed and official results not expected until around November 23.
Your ballot at a glance — Woodhaven, MI
| Race / Proposal | Who is on it |
|---|
| U.S. Senator | El-Sayed (D), Rogers (R), Marsh (Green), Christensen (Libertarian), Long (U.S. Taxpayers), Kristy (Natural Law) |
| U.S. Representative — District 6 | Dingell (D, incumbent), Smiley (R), Teagan (Libertarian), Mickevicius (U.S. Taxpayers), Shabazz (Green), Rayburn (Working Class) |
| Governor / Lt. Governor | Benson/Brinks (D), James/DeBoyer (R), Hudson/Parmenter (Libertarian), Campbell/Clay (Green), Brandenburg/Cowper (U.S. Taxpayers) |
| Secretary of State | Gilchrist (D), Forlini (R), Sloan (Libertarian), Borregard (Green), Aughney (U.S. Taxpayers) |
| Attorney General | Savit (D), Lloyd (R), Dye (Libertarian), Polonowski (Green), Ludtke (U.S. Taxpayers), Dern (Natural Law) |
| State Senator — District 4 | Camilleri (D, incumbent), Grzywacz (R), Willis (Working Class) |
| State Representative — District 28 | Thompson (R, incumbent), Berecz (D) — plus any minor-party names on your sample ballot |
| State Board of Education | Pritchett & Tilley (D), Collins & Moeggenberg (R), plus minor-party names — see the race |
| University of Michigan Board of Regents | Brown & Makled (D), Epstein & Schostak (R), plus minor-party names — see the race |
| Michigan State University Board of Trustees | Scott & Tebay Zemke (D), Maday & Victory (R), plus minor-party names — see the race |
| Wayne State University Board of Governors | Akeel & Mack (D), Anuzis & Murphy (R), plus minor-party names — see the race |
| Michigan Supreme Court | Cavanagh & Hood (D-nominated incumbents), Warren & Morse-Bills (R-nominated), Howe & White (U.S. Taxpayers) |
| Court of Appeals — District 1 | Bazzi, Letica, Murray — all listed as incumbents |
| Wayne County Circuit Court — 3rd Circuit | 16 incumbent candidates for 16 positions, plus a separate non-incumbent contest — check your sample ballot for that contest's names |
| Wayne County Probate Court | Colegrove, Fanning, Moss — 3 candidates for 3 seats, plus a write-in campaign off the ballot |
| Wayne County Executive | Warren Evans (D, incumbent), Michael Evans (R), Olumba (Independent) |
| Mayor of Woodhaven | Abadie, Sikes |
| Woodhaven City Council | Penix, Castle, Minyard — 3 listed for 3 seats |
| Woodhaven-Brownstown School Board | Barrett III and Hatmaker are confirmed candidates; full field — CHECK YOUR SAMPLE BALLOT |
| Also possible on your precinct ballot | County Commission, 33rd District Court judge, community-college trustee — names and seats vary by precinct |
| State Proposal 2026-1 — Constitutional convention | State proposal |
| State Proposal 2026-2 — Money out of politics | State proposal |
| Wayne County Proposal A — Detroit Zoo millage RENEWAL | Wayne County proposal |
| Wayne County Proposal B — History museums millage — NEW tax | Wayne County proposal |
Races
Federal
U.S. Senator
6-year term · Vote for 1
Open seat — Senator Gary Peters (D) is not running again. This race can help decide control of the U.S. Senate. If you skip it: the seat is filled by everyone else's votes; with an open seat and a tight race, skipping lets the margin be decided without you.
El-Sayed changes who pays and who is covered — government guarantee, taxes at the top. Rogers keeps the current system and changes prices and rules inside it — tax cuts, deregulation, price transparency.
Abdul El-Sayed
Democratic
Fighting to change
- Health care, completely: Medicare for All — everyone covered, including vision, dental, and hearing, with no premiums, no copays, no deductibles
- Medical debt: abolish it — wipe it out, not just cap it
- Drug prices: expand the government's power to negotiate prices down
- Taxes at the very top: tax billionaire wealth; tax capital gains and inheritances over $1 million the same as ordinary income; raise the rate on earnings over $1 million — paired with a cost-of-living exemption up to $50,000
- Housing: build more homes; restrict corporate and private-equity buying of houses; restrict short-term rentals that take homes off the market
- Everyday costs: caps tied to income — water bills at no more than 2% of household income
- Money in politics: ban corporate money in politics
- Jobs: shift money into housing and job programs — manufacturing, apprenticeships, and clean-energy jobs
Fighting to keep
- Nothing about the current health-care system — his fight is to replace how it is paid for
- Michigan's constitutional abortion right is a state provision; this federal seat does not change it, and he is not running on changing it from the Senate
- Honest limit: one senator cannot pass any of this alone — Medicare for All needs a majority in Congress and, by his own acknowledgement, control of Congress and the White House too
Mike Rogers
Republican
Fighting to change
- Manufacturing: bring manufacturing jobs back to Michigan
- Taxes: cut taxes for working families
- Training: a shop class in every high school; expand skilled-trades training and apprenticeships; let 529 savings be used for vocational training
- Health-care prices, inside the current system: force hospitals and insurers to post real prices; penalize excessive insurance denials and delays; expand bulk drug purchasing
- Housing costs: make new construction in new residential zones tax-free; let 529 savings cover a first-home down payment; help with the first year of property taxes; build on vacant lots through land banks, like in Detroit
- Border and guns: stronger border security; protect gun rights
Fighting to keep
- The current health insurance system — he works inside it; explicitly not Medicare for All; he has said Medicare is too entrenched to remake
- Corporate money in politics — he opposes bans like Proposal 2's at the state level
- Michigan's state constitutional abortion right — he does not propose changing it from the Senate
Lydia Christensen
Libertarian
Timothy Long
U.S. Taxpayers
Walter P. Kristy
Natural Law
Federal
U.S. Representative — District 6
2-year term · Vote for 1
District 6 covers all of Washtenaw County, most of Wayne County (including Woodhaven), and parts of Monroe and Oakland counties. One House member out of 435 does not set federal policy alone — the seat's party also matters for which party holds the House majority.
Dingell keeps and funds the current direction — services and protections. Smiley changes the direction — lower taxes, less spending, fewer regulations.
Debbie Dingell (incumbent)
Democratic
Fighting to change
- Runs on affordability, health care, the economy, immigration, the environment, education, seniors, veterans, and equality — pushing the current Democratic House direction further, not breaking from it
Fighting to keep
- Health care and affordability programs funded — the help stays in the services themselves
- Worker protections on the job
Heather Smiley
Republican
Fighting to change
- Direction on taxes, spending, and federal regulation: lower taxes, less federal spending, fewer regulations. Detailed district-specific pledges were thin in the voter-guide material
Fighting to keep
- Nothing specified — her pitch is the change of direction itself
Timothy A. Teagan
Libertarian
Mike Mickevicius
U.S. Taxpayers
Linda Rayburn
Working Class
State
Governor / Lt. Governor
4-year term · Vote for 1 ticket
Open seat — Governor Gretchen Whitmer (D) is term-limited. You vote for the pair together. Not decided by this race either way: the 6% sales tax, Michigan's constitutional abortion right, and Proposals 1 and 2. The governor signs or vetoes bills, runs state agencies, and proposes a budget — the Legislature still has to pass laws.
Benson keeps Michigan's current path and expands the help inside it — costs attacked directly, service by service. James changes the path — eliminate the income tax, cut spending and regulation, repeal the clean-energy mandate, expand school choice.
Jocelyn Benson / Winnie Brinks
Democratic
Fighting to change
- Drug prices: an independent Prescription Drug Affordability Board to push back on price gouging
- Caregiving costs: a $5,000 caregiver tax credit
- Hospital prices: upfront hospital pricing; more mobile health centers for rural and underserved areas; restore federal health-care cuts
- Teacher pay: a $60,000 minimum starting salary for teachers
- Early childhood: pre-K for all 3- and 4-year-olds; make childcare more affordable — expand Rx Kids and remove barriers for childcare providers
- Reading: reading by third grade, tracked statewide; school funding weighted to student need; more career and technical education
- Housing: a tax credit for first-time buyers (and, in her guide answers, second-time buyers and people moving up, to free up starter homes); faster construction approvals; support for starter homes
- Big buyers: bar private equity firms and institutional investors from buying a home in its first 100 days on the market; hold investors who drive up rents accountable
- Cash for mothers and infants: expand Rx Kids statewide (cash help first launched in Flint)
- Energy bills: stop “unfair” rate hikes; audit the power grid; increase outage credits; modernize the grid
- Pollution: increase penalties for corporations that pollute water, land, and air; enforceable guardrails for the Great Lakes
- Data centers: pause new development until rules on community input, energy costs, and natural resources are set — and make data-center companies pay for the added energy use in local communities
- Tax help, targeted: credits like the $5,000 caregiver credit and first-time buyer credits instead of an across-the-board cut
- Government services: overhaul the Department of Health and Human Services so residents can actually access Medicaid, food assistance, and other services; let local governments set a higher minimum wage than the state
- Voting: a state Voting Rights Act; no proof-of-citizenship requirement to register
- Immigration enforcement: state police should not participate in federal raids; oppose federal cuts to sanctuary cities; support families targeted by federal overreach
Fighting to keep
- The 100% clean electricity by 2040 law — keep the transition in place
- Abortion rights — she supported Proposal 3 (2022) and campaigns to actively protect the constitutional right
- Unions — defend the right to organize and collective bargaining
- No tax hike on the middle class — relief comes as targeted credits
- Public schools as the center — opposes policies that drain resources from neighborhood public schools; charter schools supported only at the same rigorous standards
- Gun laws tightened, not loosened: universal background checks, red flag laws, safe storage
John James / Jay DeBoyer
Republican
Fighting to change
- The state income tax — eliminate it. The 4.25% income tax (not the 6% sales tax): cut it by about a quarter in year one, then keep cutting until it is gone. Paid for, he says, by cutting waste, subsidies, and unnecessary spending — he has not laid out a full detailed plan for replacing all of that revenue. The income tax currently helps pay for schools, Medicaid, and prisons
- Spending and regulation: cut both; review 10 years of state spending; fully fund the Auditor General; refund people and businesses fined for COVID-related violations
- Clean-energy law: repeal the 100% renewable-by-2040 mandate — he calls it “insane”; cut emissions through innovation instead of mandates
- Health care: less government — prevention, nutrition and exercise, price transparency, telehealth, recruiting rural providers. In Congress he voted for the Republican budget law that cut Medicaid and against extending Affordable Care Act subsidies
- Schools — parents and choice: a Parents' Bill of Rights (see curriculum and lesson plans, opt a child out of controversial instruction); opt Michigan into the federal Education Freedom Tax Credit on day one — up to a $1,700 credit for donations to scholarship groups for private schooling, tutoring, and special-needs services; expand charters; phonics-based reading; limit classroom cellphones
- Housing: faster permits, land-use rules that let people build near jobs, return control to locals, lower the cost of doing business
- Energy bills: cap regulated residential bill growth at inflation; tie utility profits to performance; increase outage compensation. Data-center pauses decided locally, not statewide
- Voting: amend the state constitution to require proof of citizenship and voter ID at the polls; audit the voter rolls to remove non-citizens
- Guns: loosen — Second Amendment “shall not be infringed”; national concealed-carry reciprocity; incentives for parents to buy a gun safe
- Government rules: expand public-records access; ban fundraising by state officials while the Legislature is in session; legislative approval to extend emergency orders beyond 14 days
Fighting to keep
- Right-to-work — he supports it and voted against restoring collective bargaining rights for federal workers (while also praising UAW members and joining a nurses' picket line)
- Michigan's constitutional abortion right, as voters decided it — he is personally pro-life (“100% pro-life,” 2018; by 2023 he supported exceptions for rape or incest), but in 2024 he said voters had “already decided” the issue by passing Proposal 3, and his change pitch is taxes, jobs, and spending — not undoing Proposal 3
- Police backing as-is and stronger: every officer gets training, equipment, legal protections, and respect; “lock up violent criminals”
- The 6% sales tax is not part of this race either way
Anthony Hudson / Beau Parmenter
Libertarian
Fighting to change
- Much smaller government, lower taxes and regulation beyond the Republican plan
Fighting to keep
No fight stated.
The Michigan Libertarian Party had publicly disavowed its own gubernatorial nominee, in reporting cited by a voter guide.
Douglas Campbell / Bobbie Clay
Green
Fighting to change
- Climate and social-spending priorities beyond the Democratic plan
Fighting to keep
No fight stated.
Donna Brandenburg / Robert Cowper II
U.S. Taxpayers
Fighting to change
- Constitutional / limited-government platform to the right of the Republican ticket
Fighting to keep
No fight stated.
State
Secretary of State
4-year term · Vote for 1
The job: runs elections and the voter roll, and runs the branch offices for driver's licences, IDs, and vehicle titles. This office does not write election law — the Legislature and the constitution set the rules; the Secretary of State administers them. Open seat: Benson is term-limited out of this office.
Gilchrist keeps the current office's direction and adds a campaign-finance cleanup push. Forlini changes the management and election administration. Neither one changes election law — that is not this office's power.
Garlin Gilchrist II
Democratic
Fighting to change
- Money in politics administration: build a system to get “dirty, dark corporate money out of our politics” — financial-disclosure and campaign-finance administration
- Branch-office service: respectful, working service whether or not you have an appointment
Fighting to keep
- Continuity with the Benson-era Secretary of State office — same direction, new head
Anthony Forlini
Republican
Fighting to change
- Management and election administration: run the office on his county-clerk model — a change from the Democratic officeholders who have held the job since 2019
Fighting to keep
No fight stated.
He did not return the Detroit Free Press voter-guide questionnaire, so his published issue answers in that guide are blank — a fact about the guide, not a position.
Christine Sloan
Libertarian
Scott E. Aughney
U.S. Taxpayers
State
Attorney General
4-year term · Vote for 1
The job: Michigan's chief law-enforcement officer and top lawyer — enforces consumer-protection law and can sue companies, utilities, and polluters in the state's name. The AG does not create crimes or repeal laws; the AG chooses what to prioritise, what to sue over, and what to defend in court. That discretion is the real difference in this race. Open seat: incumbent Dana Nessel is term-limited.
Both would keep defending the constitution and fighting consumer fraud. The change is emphasis: Savit points the office at corporations — wage theft, price-gouging, pricing algorithms — and supports red-flag laws. Lloyd points it at violent crime and trafficking first, and would repeal red-flag laws.
Eli Savit
Democratic
Fighting to change
- New consumer-protection rules in his first 100 days — aimed at algorithmic price-gouging, surveillance pricing, and AI deceptive marketing
- Enforcement priorities, in his order: 1) safeguard constitutional and voting rights, including reproductive freedom; 2) fight corporate misdeeds — wage theft, price-gouging, fraud; 3) protect the environment, public health, and the Great Lakes
- Gun laws: supports red-flag laws (ERPOs) — laws that “prevent tragedies… prevent death in the first place”
Fighting to keep
- Reproductive freedom as a constitutional right — he would defend it in court
- The AG office's consumer and environmental enforcement — aimed harder at pricing practices and corporate conduct
Doug Lloyd
Republican
Fighting to change
- Enforcement priorities, in his order: 1) public safety — violent crime, organised crime, human trafficking; 2) protect consumers from fraud and unlawful conduct; 3) defend the state's legal interests
- The office's posture: the AG should be “Michigan's lawyer… not a partisan political figure,” enforcing the law “without regard to partisan politics,” with more support for local prosecutors and law enforcement
- Gun laws: repeal red-flag laws (he says they strip a constitutional right without adequate notice/hearing); support “constitutional carry” — no concealed-carry permit requirement
Fighting to keep
- Michigan's constitutional abortion right — he says yes, he would enforce and defend it: “The Michigan Constitution is the law… My personal views would not determine which constitutional provisions the office enforces.”
- The AG office's consumer-protection and serious-crime work — continued, with a different emphasis (safety first)
John Ludtke
U.S. Taxpayers
State
State Senator — District 4
4-year term · Vote for 1
District 4 covers Woodhaven, Brownstown, Flat Rock, Gibraltar, Grosse Ile, Huron Township, Riverview, Rockwood, Romulus, Southgate, Trenton, Belleville, Sumpter, Van Buren, Wayne, and parts of Taylor and Westland. A state senator is 1 of 38 — either winner needs a chamber majority and the governor's signature to turn a pledge into law. This race also helps decide which party controls the state Senate.
Camilleri holds the current Lansing direction on education, workers, and spending. Grzywacz changes it toward lower prices, paycheck protection, law enforcement, and trades training — pledges whose machinery is not detailed in the guides.
Darrin Camilleri (incumbent)
Democratic
Fighting to change
- Keep and expand the current Democratic majority's approach in Lansing on education, workers, and state spending. The research gives his direction, not a detailed personal platform
Fighting to keep
- The current majority's direction — and his party's Senate control, which is on the line in this seat
Marcie Grzywacz
Republican
Fighting to change
- Lower prices; protect paychecks
- Jobs: bring jobs back and keep them in Michigan
- Crime: support law enforcement; tougher-on-crime policies
- Training: build the skilled-trades workforce; reprioritise career training for Downriver working families
Fighting to keep
- Nothing specified in the research
These pledges are stated without the mechanisms behind them — no tax, spending, or program specifics in the guides used.
Walter Willis
Working Class
State
State Representative — District 28
2-year term · Vote for 1
District 28 covers Berlin Township, Brownstown Township, Flat Rock, Rockwood, Woodhaven, and parts of Frenchtown Township and Taylor. A state representative is 1 of 110, on a 2-year term — the shortest leash on this ballot.
Both run on lowering costs — by opposite routes. Thompson's route is tax cuts (property, income, gas), deregulation, and accountability at MDHHS. Berecz's route is flipping the seat Democratic — lower costs plus worker/union protection and fixing infrastructure and public services.
Jamie Thompson (incumbent)
Republican
Fighting to change
- Lower the cost of living — her stated reason for running: property taxes, energy bills, groceries, healthcare
- Tax plan (House “HELP UP” package, HB 5872–5879, which she backs): eliminate the state property tax, repeal the “pop-up” tax, eliminate personal property taxes for small businesses, lower utility costs
- Housing: expand affordable housing opportunities
- Health care: improve access to affordable, quality care; her Next of Kin bills (HB 4418/4419) would let a person designate a surrogate to make medical decisions if they cannot decide themselves
- Child welfare: stronger accountability and transparency at MDHHS / Child Protective Services, driven by Auditor General reports and oversight hearings
- Elections: require voter ID, remove drop boxes, send only requested absentee ballots, remove Dominion software
- Taxes (her questionnaire answers): repeal the state income tax, the pension tax, and the gas tax
- Social issues: defund Planned Parenthood; remove the Certificate of Need law; medical freedom / vaccine choice; constitutional carry
Fighting to keep
- Right to Work — she opposed repealing it, and opposed expanding prevailing wage
- Energy: opposes green-energy mandates; supports expanding nuclear power
- Assistance as a “hand up”: social programs aimed at self-sufficiency rather than long-term dependence
Property-tax math, checked Oct 31: Michigan property tax is almost all local. A Woodhaven homestead pays 53.39 mills total; the only state slice is the State Education Tax — 6 of those mills, about $1,050/yr on a $350,000 home. Her plan removes that 6-mill slice; the other ~47 mills stay. There is no federal property tax. The package is tie-barred to HB 5880, a new 6% sales tax on services that has NOT passed — nothing takes effect without it — and repealing the 6-mill tax cuts about $3.1B/yr from the School Aid Fund.
Sherry Berecz
Democratic
Fighting to change
- Flip the seat Democratic — Thompson has held it since 2022
- Lower costs for working families — her stated first promise
- Good-paying jobs — build an economy “that works for everyone”
- Fix infrastructure and public services
- Protect workers — workers' rights and unions
Fighting to keep
- Workers' rights and unions — protection is the point of her run
- Local-government know-how in Lansing: 30 years in Brownstown Township government (supervisor now; clerk and trustee before) — pitched as keeping a Downriver voice that knows how local government works
State boards
State Board of Education
8-year terms · Vote for up to 2
These boards set tuition and budgets for their university (or statewide education policy, for the State Board) and hire the presidents / oversee the superintendent. They do NOT set your local school taxes, your child's curriculum, or K-12 funding formulas. The research gives direction by slate, not candidate-by-candidate platforms. Terms are 8 years — longer than the governor's.
Democratic slate = keep the board's current direction. Republican slate = change it — on tuition, spending, admissions/DEI-type policy, and leadership hires.
Judith Pritchett (incumbent)
Democratic
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Keeps the current incumbency direction on tuition, spending, admissions / DEI-type policies, and who gets hired as president / superintendent oversight
Tiffany Tilley (incumbent)
Democratic
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Keeps the current incumbency direction on tuition, spending, admissions / DEI-type policies, and who gets hired as president / superintendent oversight
Terence Collins
Republican
Fighting to change
- Changes the board's direction on tuition, spending, admissions / DEI-type policies, and who gets hired as president / superintendent oversight
Fighting to keep
No fight stated.
Bree Moeggenberg
Republican
Fighting to change
- Changes the board's direction on tuition, spending, admissions / DEI-type policies, and who gets hired as president / superintendent oversight
Fighting to keep
No fight stated.
Charles Essner
Libertarian
William Mohr II
U.S. Taxpayers
Christine Schwartz
U.S. Taxpayers
Mary Anne Hering
Working Class
State boards
University of Michigan Board of Regents
8-year terms · Vote for up to 2
These boards set tuition and budgets for their university (or statewide education policy, for the State Board) and hire the presidents / oversee the superintendent. They do NOT set your local school taxes, your child's curriculum, or K-12 funding formulas. The research gives direction by slate, not candidate-by-candidate platforms. Terms are 8 years — longer than the governor's.
Democratic slate = keep the board's current direction. Republican slate = change it — on tuition, spending, admissions/DEI-type policy, and leadership hires.
Paul Brown (incumbent)
Democratic
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Keeps the current incumbency direction on tuition, spending, admissions / DEI-type policies, and who gets hired as president / superintendent oversight
Amir Makled
Democratic
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Keeps the current incumbency direction on tuition, spending, admissions / DEI-type policies, and who gets hired as president / superintendent oversight
Lena Epstein
Republican
Fighting to change
- Changes the board's direction on tuition, spending, admissions / DEI-type policies, and who gets hired as president / superintendent oversight
Fighting to keep
No fight stated.
Michael Schostak
Republican
Fighting to change
- Changes the board's direction on tuition, spending, admissions / DEI-type policies, and who gets hired as president / superintendent oversight
Fighting to keep
No fight stated.
Andrew Chadderdon
Libertarian
State boards
Michigan State University Board of Trustees
8-year terms · Vote for up to 2
These boards set tuition and budgets for their university (or statewide education policy, for the State Board) and hire the presidents / oversee the superintendent. They do NOT set your local school taxes, your child's curriculum, or K-12 funding formulas. The research gives direction by slate, not candidate-by-candidate platforms. Terms are 8 years — longer than the governor's.
Democratic slate = keep the board's current direction. Republican slate = change it — on tuition, spending, admissions/DEI-type policy, and leadership hires.
Brianna Scott (incumbent)
Democratic
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Keeps the current incumbency direction on tuition, spending, admissions / DEI-type policies, and who gets hired as president / superintendent oversight
Kelly Tebay Zemke (incumbent)
Democratic
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Keeps the current incumbency direction on tuition, spending, admissions / DEI-type policies, and who gets hired as president / superintendent oversight
Julie Maday
Republican
Fighting to change
- Changes the board's direction on tuition, spending, admissions / DEI-type policies, and who gets hired as president / superintendent oversight
Fighting to keep
No fight stated.
Roger Victory
Republican
Fighting to change
- Changes the board's direction on tuition, spending, admissions / DEI-type policies, and who gets hired as president / superintendent oversight
Fighting to keep
No fight stated.
Daniel Patterson
Libertarian
Will Tyler White
Libertarian
Janet Sanger
U.S. Taxpayers
John Sanger
U.S. Taxpayers
John Anthony La Pietra
Green
State boards
Wayne State University Board of Governors
8-year terms · Vote for up to 2
These boards set tuition and budgets for their university (or statewide education policy, for the State Board) and hire the presidents / oversee the superintendent. They do NOT set your local school taxes, your child's curriculum, or K-12 funding formulas. The research gives direction by slate, not candidate-by-candidate platforms. Terms are 8 years — longer than the governor's.
Democratic slate = keep the board's current direction. Republican slate = change it — on tuition, spending, admissions/DEI-type policy, and leadership hires.
Shereef Akeel
Democratic
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Keeps the current incumbency direction on tuition, spending, admissions / DEI-type policies, and who gets hired as president / superintendent oversight
Richard Mack
Democratic
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Keeps the current incumbency direction on tuition, spending, admissions / DEI-type policies, and who gets hired as president / superintendent oversight
Andy Anuzis
Republican
Fighting to change
- Changes the board's direction on tuition, spending, admissions / DEI-type policies, and who gets hired as president / superintendent oversight
Fighting to keep
No fight stated.
Christa Murphy
Republican
Fighting to change
- Changes the board's direction on tuition, spending, admissions / DEI-type policies, and who gets hired as president / superintendent oversight
Fighting to keep
No fight stated.
Jami Van Alstine
Libertarian
Jeff McDonald
U.S. Taxpayers
Suzanne Roehrig
Working Class
Kathleen Oakford
Natural Law
Judges — nonpartisan section
Michigan Supreme Court
8-year terms · Vote for up to 2
Straight-ticket voting does NOT reach the judges' section — fill it in separately or it stays blank. Judges do not campaign on changing the law; what a court majority changes is how cases come out — on abortion, voting, guns, business, and criminal law — over the next 6–8 years. Current court: Democratic-nominated justices hold a 6–1 majority, and both seats up this year are held by Democratic-nominated incumbents. No outcome of this race flips the majority in 2026.
Cavanagh + Hood = keep the court's direction. Warren + Morse-Bills = start moving it conservative, 6–1 down to 4–3. Control does not flip either way this year.
Megan Cavanagh (incumbent)
Democratic-nominated
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- The court's current direction — electing both incumbents keeps the current court and its recent direction intact, 6–1
Noah Hood (incumbent)
Democratic-nominated
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- The court's current direction — electing both incumbents keeps the current court and its recent direction intact, 6–1
Michael D. Warren Jr.
Republican-nominated
Fighting to change
- The court's direction (narrow it, starting with future math) — electing both Republican nominees narrows the majority to 4–3 and moves future rulings in a more conservative direction, showing up from 2028's math onward, not by flipping this court now
Fighting to keep
No fight stated.
Casandra Morse-Bills
Republican-nominated
Fighting to change
- The court's direction (narrow it, starting with future math) — electing both Republican nominees narrows the majority to 4–3 and moves future rulings in a more conservative direction, showing up from 2028's math onward, not by flipping this court now
Fighting to keep
No fight stated.
Thomas W. Howe
U.S. Taxpayers-nominated
Fighting to change
- Judicial reform — probate-court critic who fought his mother's Genesee County probate case through 17 appeals
Fighting to keep
No fight stated.
⚠️ ELIGIBILITY FLAG: Michigan requires a Supreme Court justice to be licensed to practise law in Michigan for at least 5 years. Reporting from multiple sources says Howe does not meet that requirement and could not take the seat if elected, though he can legally appear on the ballot. A vote for him is not a vote that can seat him.
Jody White
U.S. Taxpayers-nominated
Fighting to change
- Judicial reform — probate-court watchdog advocate pushing to open secret judicial discipline
Fighting to keep
No fight stated.
⚠️ ELIGIBILITY FLAG: Michigan requires a Supreme Court justice to be licensed to practise law in Michigan for at least 5 years. Reporting from multiple sources says White does not meet that requirement and could not take the seat if elected, though she can legally appear on the ballot. A vote for her is not a vote that can seat her.
Judges — nonpartisan section
Court of Appeals — District 1
6-year terms · Vote for up to 3
District 1 covers Wayne County and 16 other counties in southeast / south Michigan — the court most state appeals go to before the Supreme Court. Three candidates listed for three positions in the official state report: voting here ratifies the incumbents; skipping does not open the seat to anyone else on the ballot.
No change on offer in this contest — three candidates for three positions.
Mariam Saad Bazzi (incumbent)
Nonpartisan
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Incumbent position — three candidates for three positions; there is no change on offer in this contest
Anica Letica (incumbent)
Nonpartisan
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Incumbent position — three candidates for three positions; there is no change on offer in this contest
Christopher M. Murray (incumbent)
Nonpartisan
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Incumbent position — three candidates for three positions; there is no change on offer in this contest
Judges — nonpartisan section
Wayne County Circuit Court — 3rd Circuit
6-year terms · Incumbents: vote for up to 16 — plus a separate non-incumbent contest
The county's main trial court: felonies, major civil cases, and family matters in Wayne County. An all-incumbent, seats-equal-candidates contest does not change the bench. The separate non-incumbent contest is the one that adds a new judge — its candidates could not be verified for this edition, so check that contest on your sample ballot.
Check your official sample ballot for this section: Michigan Voter Information Center.
The incumbent contest changes nothing on the bench; the non-incumbent contest adds a new judge.
David J. Allen (incumbent)
Nonpartisan
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Incumbent position — sixteen candidates for sixteen positions; an all-incumbent contest that does not change the bench
Chandra W. Baker-Robinson (incumbent)
Nonpartisan
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Incumbent position — sixteen candidates for sixteen positions; an all-incumbent contest that does not change the bench
Christopher M. Blount (incumbent)
Nonpartisan
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Incumbent position — sixteen candidates for sixteen positions; an all-incumbent contest that does not change the bench
Nicole L. Castka (incumbent)
Nonpartisan
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Incumbent position — sixteen candidates for sixteen positions; an all-incumbent contest that does not change the bench
Bradley L. Cobb (incumbent)
Nonpartisan
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Incumbent position — sixteen candidates for sixteen positions; an all-incumbent contest that does not change the bench
Chris Dingell (incumbent)
Nonpartisan
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Incumbent position — sixteen candidates for sixteen positions; an all-incumbent contest that does not change the bench
Charlene M. Elder (incumbent)
Nonpartisan
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Incumbent position — sixteen candidates for sixteen positions; an all-incumbent contest that does not change the bench
Helal A. Farhat (incumbent)
Nonpartisan
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Incumbent position — sixteen candidates for sixteen positions; an all-incumbent contest that does not change the bench
Nicole N. Goodson (incumbent)
Nonpartisan
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Incumbent position — sixteen candidates for sixteen positions; an all-incumbent contest that does not change the bench
Edward J. Joseph (incumbent)
Nonpartisan
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Incumbent position — sixteen candidates for sixteen positions; an all-incumbent contest that does not change the bench
Mary Beth Kelly (incumbent)
Nonpartisan
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Incumbent position — sixteen candidates for sixteen positions; an all-incumbent contest that does not change the bench
Don Knapp (incumbent)
Nonpartisan
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Incumbent position — sixteen candidates for sixteen positions; an all-incumbent contest that does not change the bench
Cylenthia LaToye Miller (incumbent)
Nonpartisan
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Incumbent position — sixteen candidates for sixteen positions; an all-incumbent contest that does not change the bench
Carla G. Testani (incumbent)
Nonpartisan
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Incumbent position — sixteen candidates for sixteen positions; an all-incumbent contest that does not change the bench
Margaret M. Van Houten (incumbent)
Nonpartisan
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Incumbent position — sixteen candidates for sixteen positions; an all-incumbent contest that does not change the bench
Shannon Nicol Walker (incumbent)
Nonpartisan
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Incumbent position — sixteen candidates for sixteen positions; an all-incumbent contest that does not change the bench
Judges — nonpartisan section
Wayne County Probate Court
6-year terms · Vote for up to 3
Probate Court handles wills and estates, guardianships, conservatorships, and mental-health commitments — the court a family meets after a death or when a relative cannot care for themselves. Three candidates for three seats — all three are elected if the ballot count holds, so your marks ratify rather than choose between them. Judges do not run on platforms; what is listed is each candidate's record and ratings.
No platform fight in this race — judge it on record and ratings.
Sarah Colegrove
Nonpartisan
Fighting to change
- Record: 25+ years concentrated in probate law (30 years legal overall); her own firm; mediator (U.S. Postal Service), arbitrator (Better Business Bureau), neutral case evaluator (Wayne County Mediation Tribunal). Endorsed by sitting Probate Judges Paolucci and McClory
Fighting to keep
- Three candidates for three seats — all three are elected if the ballot count holds
Detroit Bar Association rating: NOT QUALIFIED. As a court-appointed special fiduciary, the probate court approved her $51,159.55 fee and assessed it against Susan Hubbard; the Court of Appeals vacated that in Nov 2023 and sent it back for a hearing.
Suzanne Fanning
Nonpartisan
Fighting to change
- Record: probate attorney; first run for judge; elected chair of the Washtenaw County Bar's Probate & Estate Planning Section. Endorsed by Planned Parenthood Advocates of Michigan
Fighting to keep
- Three candidates for three seats — all three are elected if the ballot count holds
Detroit Bar Association rating: WELL QUALIFIED — the highest of the three.
Vanessa M. Moss
Nonpartisan
Fighting to change
- Record: Detroit attorney — family law, probate, juvenile, criminal defense; former judicial assistant at Frank Murphy Hall of Justice; ran for State Senate (2018) and 36th District Court (2024). Endorsed by UAW Region 1
Fighting to keep
- Three candidates for three seats — all three are elected if the ballot count holds
Detroit Bar Association rating: QUALIFIED. A challenge to her ballot spot over old campaign-finance filings from her 2024 run was rejected — the Court of Appeals ruled Aug 28, 2026 that her filing affidavit was accurate when signed.
Susan L. Hubbard
Write-in — not on the printed ballot
Fighting to change
- Write-in campaign: Judge Hubbard is not on the printed ballot — her petitions were ruled short of the 4,000 valid signatures required, and the Court of Appeals affirmed that ruling on August 28, 2026. She says she is continuing as a write-in candidate
Fighting to keep
No fight stated.
A Michigan write-in vote is only counted for a person who filed a declaration of intent by October 23, 2026 — whether she filed one had NOT been confirmed in the reporting reviewed. Confirm that filing before writing her in, and write the name exactly in the Probate Court write-in space.
County
Wayne County Executive
4-year term · Vote for 1
The job: chief executive of Michigan's largest county (43 cities and townships) — county roads, public health, the county jail and sheriff's budget side, parks, and a county budget approved at $2.1 billion for 2026–27. The County Executive does not set Woodhaven city services, your school board, or state/federal law. Note: Warren Evans and Michael Evans are NOT the same person — check the first name on the ballot.
Warren Evans = keep the county administration. Michael Evans or Olumba = replace it. The research carries no detailed county-policy platforms for any of the three.
Warren C. Evans (incumbent)
Democratic
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- The current county administration, in place since 2015 — his pitch is no change at the top
Michael A. Evans
Republican
Fighting to change
- “Back to Business” — replace an 11-year incumbent administration; foreclosure relief: a campaign proposal (not current law) under which the county covers an eligible delinquent property-tax bill and the homeowner repays the county over 5 years with no penalties, so families keep homes worth far more than the tax debt; run the county with business discipline / open contracting
Fighting to keep
No fight stated.
John Olumba
Independent (no party affiliation)
Fighting to change
- Also runs as a replacement for the incumbent administration
Fighting to keep
No fight stated.
No platform detail in the voter guides used for this research.
City of Woodhaven — nonpartisan
Mayor of Woodhaven
Vote for 1
Open seat — current mayor Patricia Odette's term runs 2023–2026 and she is not one of the two names listed, so there will be a new mayor either way. The mayor is the city's chief executive: city services, roads, public safety, and development decisions in Woodhaven itself. Detailed published platforms for either candidate were thin in the sources used — if this race matters most to you, read both names on VOTE411 and the city's candidate filings.
An open seat: a new mayor either way. Neither candidate runs under a party label.
Preston Abadie
Nonpartisan
Fighting to change
- Serve people first, independent of parties / big money — he has taken the GoodParty “People First” pledge: majority funding from individuals, not corporate PACs or big-money special interests, and open, accountable government. He is a sitting council member since 2015, running on accessibility and listening. No policy platform beyond the pledge was found outside the voter guides
Fighting to keep
No fight stated.
Jan Sikes
Nonpartisan
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Continuity: sitting Mayor Pro-Tem (No. 2 under Mayor Odette), running on continuity — she published no platform and did not take the People First Pledge
The one change she personally authored: the Woodhaven precinct-consolidation ordinance.
City of Woodhaven — nonpartisan
Woodhaven City Council
3 seats · Vote for up to 3
Council as a body approves the city budget, ordinances, and zoning / development. With candidates equal to seats, this contest as listed does not by itself change the council — your marks ratify the three. Any write-in line is governed by the filed-declaration rule described under Probate Court.
Three candidates for three seats — as listed, this contest ratifies rather than changes the council.
School district — nonpartisan
Woodhaven-Brownstown School Board
Vote for the number shown on your ballot
The board sets district policy, approves the school budget, and hires (and can fire) the superintendent. The board picked a new superintendent, Matthew Salah, in March 2026 — the board you elect now is the board he reports to. Board members do not set state curriculum law or state funding formulas; they decide local policy, spending priorities inside the district budget, and whether the current superintendent and direction stay. School board is one of the most-skipped races and one of the closest to daily life for families in the district.
Check your official sample ballot for this section: Michigan Voter Information Center.
Only two candidates could be confirmed for this edition — do not decide this race from these two names alone.
Robert Barrett III
Nonpartisan
Recommended by the Michigan Education Association's local screening committee.
Robby Hatmaker
Nonpartisan
Fighting to change
- “Parents as Partners — Our Kids, Our Voice, common sense always” — a Brownstown neighbour with 10 years serving local kids through a non-profit / mentoring; endorsed by State Rep. Jamie Thompson
Fighting to keep
No fight stated.
Your precinct
Also possible on your precinct ballot
Check your sample ballot
Woodhaven cases start in the 33rd District Court (19000 Van Horn Road, Woodhaven — serving Woodhaven, Trenton, Flat Rock, Gibraltar, Rockwood, Brownstown, and Grosse Ile). Whether a 33rd District judge seat, a Wayne County Commission seat, and a community-college trustee seat appear on YOUR precinct's ballot — and the names in them — could not be verified from a Woodhaven precinct sample ballot for this edition. Do not leave the back of the ballot blank without looking: if those contests are printed there, fill them in using VOTE411 for the names shown.
Check your official sample ballot for this section: Michigan Voter Information Center.
Unverified for any specific precinct — flagged, not guessed.
Proposals
State proposal
State Proposal 2026-1 — Constitutional convention
“Shall a convention of elected delegates be convened in 2027 to draft a general revision of the State Constitution for presentation to the state's voters for their approval or rejection?”
A YES vote
Fighting to change
- Convene a convention in 2027 to draft a general revision of the entire Michigan Constitution. 148 delegates (one per state House district + one per state Senate district), elected on a partisan ballot, could revise every article, provision, and word of the 1963 constitution — taxes, education funding, abortion, voting, local government, all of it open at once
- Estimated cost: roughly $70–$90 million
- A YES does not change one word of law on Election Day — delegates must be elected, a draft written, and voters must approve any new constitution in a later vote
Fighting to keep
No fight stated.
A NO vote
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Keep the current 1963 constitution as it is. This question is required to appear every 16 years; voters said no in 1978, 1994, and 2010, and it will appear again in 16 years if it fails
- Who lines up where: opposed by the Michigan Chamber, the Small Business Association of Michigan, Michigan LCV, and a broad business / labour / education / health coalition (“Protect MI Constitution from Special Interests”). A Detroit News / WDIV poll cited in September had 47% supporting, 31% opposed, 22% undecided
State proposal
State Proposal 2026-2 — Money out of politics
A citizen-initiated law (backers: Michiganders for Money Out of Politics, “MMOP”) to amend the Michigan Campaign Finance Act: (1) prohibit regulated utilities, big government contractors, and their substantially connected persons from contributing to officials who can impact them; (2) expand political-communication disclosure to communications that clearly identify a candidate or ballot question; (3) expressly apply “who paid for this” disclosure to internet political communications.
A YES vote
Fighting to change
- Ban campaign contributions — direct or indirect — from regulated electric and gas utilities, from contractors with over $250,000 a year in government contracts, and from people/organisations with “substantial connections” to them (including immediate family members, per campaign-finance guides) — to candidates and officials who can impact them. In plain terms: DTE / Consumers Energy-type money and big state-contractor money comes out of campaigns for the officials who regulate them and award their contracts
- Close the “issue ad” gap: expand disclosure rules to political communications that clearly identify a candidate or ballot question, even if they never say “vote for / vote against”
- Online ads included: the “who paid for this” disclosure law expressly applies to internet political communications
Fighting to keep
No fight stated.
A NO vote
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Keep current Michigan campaign-finance law: utilities and large contractors may keep contributing under current rules and limits, and ad-disclosure rules stay as they are
- What this proposal does NOT do either way: it does not ban all corporate money, does not ban PACs in general, does not limit what you personally can give, and does not touch federal races. It is a state law for state campaigns, not a constitutional amendment
- Who lines up where: backed by Michiganders for Money Out of Politics (MMOP), recommended Yes by Michigan LCV; opposed by the Michigan Chamber and the “Protect MI Free Speech” coalition, on free-speech / unequal-treatment grounds
Wayne County proposal
Wayne County Proposal A — Detroit Zoo millage RENEWAL
“Do you approve the renewal and restoration of the levy of 0.10 mill on all taxable property in Wayne County for a period of ten (10) years, from 2028 through 2037?”
A YES vote
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- Keep the Zoo millage running 2028–2037 at 0.10 mill = 10 cents per $1,000 of taxable value — the same rate you already pay, restored from the rolled-back 0.0982 mill. On a home with $100,000 taxable value: about $10 a year
- Funds animal care (2,000+ animals, 200 species), education and senior programmes, and facility maintenance at the Detroit Zoo. Estimated first collection at the restored rate: about $6.15 million. Voters approved this millage in 2008 and renewed it in 2016
A NO vote
Fighting to change
- Let the millage expire — the Zoo loses this county funding stream when the current levy ends. A No does NOT close the Zoo by law; it removes this money
Fighting to keep
No fight stated.
Wayne County proposal
Wayne County Proposal B — History museums millage — NEW tax
“Shall a 0.2 mill tax on all taxable property located within Wayne County be imposed by the Authority for a period of ten (10) years, being years 2026 through 2035… to provide historical museum services…?”
A YES vote
Fighting to change
- Create a new tax: 0.2 mill = 20 cents per $1,000 of taxable value, for 2026–2035, levied by the Southeast Michigan Public Historical Museum Authority to support the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, the Detroit Historical Museum, and the Dossin Great Lakes Museum, and other public historical museums in Wayne and Oakland counties
- On a home with $100,000 taxable value: about $20 a year — in addition to the Zoo millage if both pass. Estimated to raise about $12,219,200 in Wayne County in 2026; after administrative costs, 15% of the Wayne County revenue goes to Wayne County for supporting historical museums in the county
Fighting to keep
No fight stated.
A NO vote
Fighting to change
No fight stated.
Fighting to keep
- No new tax. The museums keep operating on their other funding; the authority gets no Wayne County levy
Promise tracker
| Office | Status | Winner | Term | Promises |
|---|
| U.S. Senator (Michigan) | Awaiting results | — | 6-year term, decided Nov 3, 2026 | — |
| U.S. Representative — District 6 | Awaiting results | — | 2-year term, decided Nov 3, 2026 | — |
| Governor / Lt. Governor of Michigan | Awaiting results | — | 4-year term, decided Nov 3, 2026 | — |
| Michigan Secretary of State | Awaiting results | — | 4-year term, decided Nov 3, 2026 | — |
| Michigan Attorney General | Awaiting results | — | 4-year term, decided Nov 3, 2026 | — |
| State Senator — District 4 | Awaiting results | — | 4-year term, decided Nov 3, 2026 | — |
| State Representative — District 28 | Awaiting results | — | 2-year term, decided Nov 3, 2026 | — |
| Wayne County Executive | Awaiting results | — | 4-year term, decided Nov 3, 2026 | — |
| Mayor of Woodhaven | Awaiting results | — | Decided Nov 3, 2026 | — |
Sources
- Michigan Voter Information Center — your exact sample ballot, registration, clerk, early-voting site
- Wayne County Clerk — November 3rd, 2026 General Election (official candidate and proposal lists)
- Statewide proposals, full ballot language (WDIV)
- Michigan 2026 ballot measures (Ballotpedia)
- Proposal 1 and 2 explainers (Small Business Association of Michigan)
- Michigan LCV guide to the 2026 ballot proposals
- Governor — five tickets and running mates (Ballotpedia News)
- Governor issue-by-issue voter guide (guides.vote)
- Governor — healthcare and education proposals compared (Michigan Independent)
- James income-tax elimination pledge (Americans for Tax Reform)
- U.S. Senate election in Michigan, 2026 (Ballotpedia)
- El-Sayed / Rogers forum on health care, housing, tariffs (WCMU)
- Michigan general election candidates (BallotReady)
- Detroit Free Press 2026 general election voter guide
- Attorney General — Savit and Lloyd in their own words (Detroit Free Press)
- State House endorsements incl. District 28 (Detroit Free Press)
- State Senate District 4 — Grzywacz campaign
- Education and university board slates (MEA recommendations)
- Supreme Court — six candidates, two seats (Ballotpedia News)
- Wayne County Executive race (The Mitten Daily)
- Wayne County Zoo and museum millages (The Mitten Daily)
- Woodhaven Mayor candidates (GoodParty.org)
- Woodhaven City Council candidates (GoodParty.org)
- School board — Hatmaker campaign
- How to find who's running in every U.S. state (The Sun — points to VOTE411, Ballotpedia, and official state lookups)