5 Kalamazoo-area races to watch in the August primary

KALAMAZOO, MI — Voters will head to the polls on Tuesday, Aug. 6 to make their voices heard on everything from Congress and the state House to city councils and local ballot measures.

In partisan races, voters will choose candidates to represent their party in the Nov. 5 general election. There are also nonpartisan races, such as for judgeships, where the field of candidates will be narrowed to two this week.

FURTHER: Kalamazoo County Elections August 6: See What’s on the Ballot

Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday. Citizens can register to vote until 8 p.m. on Election Day. Voters can check their voter registration status and find other voting information at mi.gov/vote.

Here are five notable races to watch this week in the Kalamazoo area.

Michigan House of Representatives, District 40

District 40 includes the city of Portage and parts of Texas Township and Oshtemo Township.

This race is particularly notable because current District 40 state Rep. Christine Morse, D-Texas Township, will not be running again, leaving a vacancy for the two-year seat.

Morse, on the other hand, is seeking a new judgeship in Kalamazoo County.

This week, two Democrats are vying for the nomination: former Portage Councilwoman Lisa Brayton and public health expert Matt Longjohn. The winner will face Republican Kelly Sackett in November.

Brayton ran as a Republican for the Kalamazoo County Commission in 2020 before being elected to a four-year term on the Portage City Council in 2021. She was disqualified from the city’s 2023 mayoral race due to a residency issue.

Longjohn ran as a Democratic candidate against Republican Fred Upton for a U.S. House seat in 2018. He faced criticism for using the MD title in campaign materials.

The Kalamazoo County Democratic Party has endorsed Longjohn in this race.

Circuit Court Judge 9, new judge position

A new judge position is being created in Kalamazoo County Circuit Court 9 as a result of Public Act 277 of 2022, in an effort to reduce the county’s docket volume.

In the running for the judge’s spot are Angelique Camfield, Christine Morse and Mariko Willis.

Camfield is a managing attorney at a family law and criminal law firm. She has more than 27 years of courtroom experience, including 15 years working in the district attorney’s offices of Kalamazoo, Allegan and Calhoun counties.

Morse is the current State Representative for Michigan’s 40th District. She has been a licensed attorney since 1999 and her experience includes clerkships in the St. Clair County and Berrien County District Attorney’s Offices in District and Probate Courts, as well as for the Honorable Gerald R. Rosen of the Eastern District of Michigan.

Willis is the owner and attorney at Fidelis Counselor at Law. She also provides legal counsel at Willis Law and is the chief operating officer of the Willis Foundation.

The two candidates who get the most votes will earn a spot on the Nov. 5 ballot, where they will face off for an eight-year term. This nonpartisan race will be on everyone’s ballot, regardless of whether they vote in the Democratic or Republican primaries.

Barry County Sheriff

Barry County Sheriff Dar Leaf has earned national recognition over the past five years for defying pandemic lockdown mandates, his connection to men accused (and acquitted) of plotting to kidnap Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and his investigations into alleged voter fraud.

On Tuesday, August 6, he will face three Republican challengers: farmer and truck driver Joel Ibbotson; Mark Noteboom, a 42-year-old officer hired by the department to investigate voter fraud; and Sergeant Richelle Spencer, a police dog handler for the Barry County Sheriff’s Office.

The candidate who receives the most votes will run unopposed in the November 5 election, unless there are campaigns by independent candidates.

St. Joseph County Sheriff

Five candidates are vying to become the next sheriff of St. Joseph County, replacing current Sheriff Mark Lillywhite, who decided not to run for re-election.

Republican candidates Dennis Allen, Undersheriff Jason Bingaman, Joe Bingaman (a cousin of Jason), Gordon Evilsizor, and Chad Spence are running for office.

Lillywhite is not seeking re-election after serving a four-year term. He pleaded guilty to drunken driving after a crash in 2023. After the incident, St. Joseph County commissioners voted to ask Whitmer to remove Lillywhite from office, but she has not yet made a decision on the request.

The winner of the August 6 primary will have no opponent in the November 5 election, barring a write-in campaign.

Kalamazoo Township Supervisor

Current Supervisor and longtime Kalamazoo Township official Don Martin faces a new Democratic challenger on Tuesday’s Aug. 6 ballot.

Newcomer David Combs, 32, calls for greater transparency in municipal government. He currently serves on the Kalamazoo Township Zoning Board of Appeals, the County Board of Public Works and acts as the county’s representative on the Regional Planning Council.

Martin, 81, was first elected to the town board in 2008. He was appointed to the supervisor position in 2018 and ran unopposed to remain in office in 2020.

Since then, the city has seen its share of drama. It fired City Manager Dexter Mitchell for illegally recording a closed-door meeting. Mitchell recently pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of willful neglect of duty after initially being charged with eavesdropping.

The winner of the August 6 primary will have no opponents in the November 5 general election, barring independent candidates.