Democrats Sweep Congress; More Election Results

Democrats took control of Congress – winning both the House and Senate – in what the Associated Press called a “stunning rejection of President Trump’s power” in the midterm elections Tuesday. Democrats won several historic gubernatorial races and flipped Senate seats including Texas, South Carolina, Ohio, Maine, Iowa, Kansas, and North Carolina.

In Michigan, Democrat Jocelyn Benson clinched the gubernatorial race shortly before 2am. In one of the most closely watched Senate races in the country, Democrat Abdul El-Sayed won over Republican Mike Rogers, a race called at 2:30am with El-Sayed leading by six points with 87 percent of votes counted.

On the local level, Traverse City’s TIF 97 extension proposal failed, numerous millage proposals on the ballot looked likely to pass, and a mix of incumbents and newcomers appeared headed to the TCAPS board.

State Results
Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson will serve as the next governor of Michigan. She had a nearly 10-point lead over Republican opponent John James with 87 percent of votes counted. Benson, 49, will take over in 2027 for Governor Gretchen Whitmer, who was term-limited from running again. Democratic Lt. Governor Garlin Gilchrist was elected as Michigan’s new secretary of state, while Democrat Eli Savit was elected attorney general.

Long after most other U.S. Senate races had been called, Michigan’s race was called at 2:30am Wednesday by both the Associated Press and CNN. Democrat Abdul El-Sayed won over Republican Mike Rogers with 52 percent of the vote compared to Rogers’s 46 percent with 87 percent of votes counted. “It is my honor and privilege to be headed to the U.S. Senate to serve the great state of Michigan,” El-Sayed posted. “Michigan, we did what they said couldn’t be done. We won. Together. Now the real work begins.”

In Michigan’s 1st Congressional District race, Republican incumbent Jack Bergman was re-elected over Democratic challenger Callie Barr with a 9-point lead. “While tonight was a tough night for Republicans, there is no shortage of work ahead of us to get our nation back on track,” Bergman posted. “Americans are rightly frustrated with inflation, reckless government spending, and the direction of our nation. They deserve leaders who will listen, stand firm, and deliver results.”

In part because of missing results from Grand Traverse County (see below), some of the state races were not called as of 3am Wednesday. Incumbent Republican State Sen. John Damoose had a lead over Democratic challenger Kate Gallup, with 54 percent of the vote compared to her 46 percent. In Michigan’s 104th House District, Republican incumbent Rep. John Roth was leading with 59 percent of the vote compared to Democratic challenger Mitchell Distin’s 40 percent. In the 103rd House District, Democratic incumbent Betsy Coffia was leading with 58 percent of the vote compared to Republican opponent Edwin Dean’s 41 percent.

Incumbent Michigan Supreme Court Justices Megan Cavanagh and Noah Hood both won reelection to new eight-year terms, maintaining a 6-1 Democratic-nominated majority on the court. On the local judicial level, Judge Kevin Elsenheimer ran unopposed and won another six-year term on the Thirteenth Circuit Court.

Michigan voters overwhelmingly rejected Proposal 1, which would have kickstarted a process to rewrite the state’s constitution. The proposal automatically goes on the ballot every 16 years but has not passed in decades. Conversely, Michigan voters decisively supported Proposal 2, which prohibits electric and gas utilities and certain government contractors from making campaign donations. It also expands laws regulating spending on political communications.

According to the office of Deputy Secretary of State Aghogho Edevbie, as of 10:30pm Tuesday a total of 1,852,455 Michigan voters had returned their absentee ballots, representing over 84 percent of all ballots requested. More than 750,000 voters cast their ballots at early voting site before polls opened. Because of Michigan’s same-day voter registration law, more than 15,600 Michigan residents registered to vote and cast a ballot at their local clerk’s office on Election Day.

Traverse City TIF Proposal
The extension of the Traverse City Downtown Development Authority’s (DDA’s) TIF 97 plan, called the Infrastructure First TIF plan on the ballot, failed with all city precincts reporting. Approximately 57 percent of city voters opposed the proposal, with 43 percent in support in Grand Traverse County (those numbers were 59-41 percent in the lone city precinct located in Leelanau County). TIF 97 – which is one of two TIF plans that help fund downtown operations, along with the Old Town TIF – is set to expire in 2027.

City Manager Benjamin Marentette said earlier this year that if TIF 97 ended, regional funding for downtown would end and the city would become solely responsible “for all projects and programs” in that district. Marentette said on the positive side, the city would have greater flexibility on where it allocates its funds. However, there would also be “increased competition within the general fund for limited dollars,” which could require tough budget decisions ahead, Marentette said.

Millages
Grand Traverse County lagged behind dozens of other counties in Michigan in posting its results Tuesday night. The Ticker asked County Clerk Sam Gedman about the delay. “A few years ago, we stopped modeming in election results and now don't report them until the clerks physically bring the verified results back to us,” Gedman explained by email. “Some jurisdictions call in results, but we have traditionally not wanted to risk a transcription error. We err on the side of security.”

As of 3am, results were showing for Grand Traverse County for 26 of 36 precincts. East Bay Township’s results were not reported, and only portions of Acme, Union, Whitewater, and Peninsula townships were posted. Based on comfortable leads from the 26 reporting precincts, voters appeared to approve all millages that appeared on the Grand Traverse County ballot. Those included a renewal of the Bay Area Transportation Authority (BATA) 0.4589 mill to continue bus service operations for seven years, from January 2028 to December 2034. Leelanau County voters also backed the millage, without which BATA said it would lose up to 45 percent of its total funding.

A proposal appeared to pass to renew and reset a previously approved 0.1 mill for the Grand Traverse Conservation District for a 10-year term beginning in 2026 and running through 2035. The millage will generate an estimated $871,492 in its first year when levied. Also supported by voters was a surcharge proposal for all landline, wireless, and voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) service users in Grand Traverse County for 10 years to cover operational costs and equipment for GT 911/Dispatch. The proposal increases the current charge by 50 cents, up from $2.50 to $3 per device per month.

County voters also appeared to support a new millage that will create a dedicated funding source for the non-motorized trail network across Grand Traverse County. The 0.3-mill levy will cover a six-year period from 2026 to 2031 and generate approximately $2.6 million annually, which can be used for trail construction, planning and engineering, capital replacement, property/right-of-way acquisition, maintenance, and program administration.

In Whitewater Township, voters appeared to support a renewal request for ambulance services at 1.3787 mills for four years from 2026 through 2029. The request will generate approximately $473,621 in its first year.

TCAPS/NMC
Seven candidates vied for four open seats on the Traverse City Area Public Schools (TCAPS) board Tuesday. Incumbents Scott Hardy, Beth Pack, and Sara Bageris – who was appointed to the board last year, filling the late Holly Bird’s seat – appeared to be elected to the board, along with newcomer Diane Arnold. But in fourth place, Pack was close in votes to Dee Zuidersma, with Pack at 13.78 of the vote compared to Zuidersma at 12.49 percent (the other candidates were in the 16-18 percent range).

Three incumbent candidates ran for three open seats on the Northwestern Michigan College (NMC) board and won, with Pam Horne, Jody Lundquist, and Ken Warner each set to serve a new six-year term. Holly Hack Nittolo was the only candidate who ran for a partial open NMC term and will also join the board through the end of 2028.

Photo credit: Associated Press