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| Michigan State Senate District 17 | ||
| Current incumbent | Dale Zorn  | |
| Population | 267,269 | |
| Gender | 50.5% Female, 49.5% Male | |
| Race | 90.0% White, 4.0% Black, 2.5% Asian, 2.2% Two or More Races, 1.0% Other, 0.3% Native American | |
| Ethnicity | 96.5% Non-Hispanic, 3.5% Hispanic | |
Michigan's seventeenth state senate district is held by Republican Senator Dale Zorn.
As of the 2010 census, a total of 267,269 civilians reside within Michigan's seventeenth state senate district. Michigan state senators represent an average of 260,096 residents. After the 2000 Census, each member represented 261,538 residents.
Members of the Michigan State Senate serve four-year terms with term limits. Senators are elected at the same time as the governor and serve four-year terms concurrent with the governor's term of office. Senate elections are offset by two years from U.S. Presidential elections (e.g., Presidential elections were in 2000 and 2004, senate elections were in 2002 and 2006). Michigan legislators assume office the at noon on first day of January.
Section 7 of Article 4 of the Michigan Constitution states, "Each senator and representative must be a citizen of the United States, at least 21 years of age, and an elector of the district he represents. The removal of his domicile from the district shall be deemed a vacation of the office. No person who has been convicted of subversion or who has within the preceding 20 years been convicted of a felony involving a breach of public trust shall be eligible for either house of the legislature."
| State legislators | |
|---|---|
| Salary | Per diem |
| $71,685/year | $10,800/year expense allowance for session and interim. Set by the compensation commission. |
The Michigan legislature is one of 15 state legislatures with term limits. Voters enacted the Michigan Term Limits Act in 1992. That initiative said that Michigan senators are subject to term limits of no more than two four-year terms, or a total of eight years. Senators who have not served more than half of someone else's Senate term are eligible for two full terms (i.e. - eight years). Michigan legislators assume office the at noon on first day of January.
The first year that the term limits enacted in 1992 impacted the ability of incumbents to run for office was in 2002.
Whenever a vacancy occurs in the senate, it is up to the Governor to call for a special election. A special election must be held during the next scheduled general election. If the vacancy happened after the statewide primary, leaders of the respective party organizations within the Senate district can submit a list of nominees to be voted on by party leadership. A vote must be held no later than 21 days after the vacancy.
This district is one of 710 state legislative districts that intersects with one or more Pivot Counties. These 206 Pivot Counties voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012.
The 206 Pivot Counties are located in 34 states. Iowa, with 31, had the most such counties. The partisan makeup of state legislative districts intersecting with Pivot Counties is slightly more Republican than the overall partisan makeup of state legislatures throughout the country.
Incumbent Dale Zorn (R) defeated Bill LaVoy (D) and Chad McNamara (L) in the general election for Michigan State Senate District 17 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate |
% |
Votes |
||
| ✔ |
|
Dale Zorn (R) |
57.8
|
57,771 |
|
|
Bill LaVoy (D) |
39.2
|
39,196 | |
|
|
Chad McNamara (L) |
2.9
|
2,903 | |
|
|
Total votes: 99,870 (100.00% precincts reporting) |
Bill LaVoy advanced from the Democratic primary for Michigan State Senate District 17 on August 7, 2018.
Candidate |
% |
Votes |
||
| ✔ |
|
Bill LaVoy (D) |
100
|
17,003 |
|
|
Total votes: 17,003 |
Incumbent Dale Zorn advanced from the Republican primary for Michigan State Senate District 17 on August 7, 2018.
Candidate |
% |
Votes |
||
| ✔ |
|
Dale Zorn (R) |
100
|
21,629 |
|
|
Total votes: 21,629 |
Chad McNamara advanced from the Libertarian primary for Michigan State Senate District 17 on August 7, 2018.
Candidate |
% |
Votes |
||
| ✔ |
|
Chad McNamara (L) |
100
|
145 |
|
|
Total votes: 145 |
Elections for the Michigan State Senate took place in 2014. A primary election was held on August 5, 2014, and a general election took place on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was April 22, 2014. Doug Spade was unopposed in the Democratic primary. Dale Zorn was unopposed in the Republican primary. Jeff Andring ran as a U.S. Taxpayers Party candidate. Zorn defeated Spade and Andring in the general election.
Michigan State Senate, District 17 General Election, 2014
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican |  Dale Zorn |
51.1% | 38,442 | |
| Democratic | Doug Spade | 46.2% | 34,706 | |
| U.S. Taxpayers | Jeff Andring | 2.7% | 2,039 | |
| Total Votes | 75,187 | |||
Elections for the office of Michigan State Senate consisted of a primary election on August 3, 2010 and a general election on November 2, 2010. The signature filing deadline for major party candidates wishing to run in this election was May 11, 2010. The deadline for independent candidates was July 15, 2010. Incumbent Randy Richardville (R) defeated John Spencer (D) and Ronald Muszynski (L) in the general election. Richardville defeated Al Bain in the Republican primary. John Spencer defeated Paun Hengy in the Democratic primary. Muszynski was unopposed in the Libertarian primary.
Michigan State Senate, District 17, General Election, 2010
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Randy Richardville Incumbent |
59.3% | 51,657 | |
| Democratic | John Spencer | 37.9% | 32,980 | |
| Libertarian | Ronald Muszynski | 2.8% | 2,415 | |
| Total Votes | 87,052 | |||
Michigan State Senate, District 17 Republican Primary, 2010
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|---|---|---|
| Randy Richardville Incumbent |
74.7% | 17,406 |
| Al Bain | 25.3% | 5,906 |
| Total Votes | 23,312 | |
Michigan State Senate, District 17 Democratic Primary, 2010
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|---|---|---|
| John Spencer |
74.6% | 6,767 |
| Paun Hengy | 25.4% | 2,304 |
| Total Votes | 9,071 | |
From 2002 to 2014, candidates for Michigan State Senate District 17 raised a total of $2,256,613. Candidates who raised money in contributions earned $205,147 on average. All figures come from Follow the Money.
Campaign contributions, Michigan State Senate District 17
| Year | Amount | Candidates | Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | $1,095,868 | 3 | $365,289 |
| 2010 | $191,512 | 2 | $95,756 |
| 2006 | $688,701 | 3 | $229,567 |
| 2002 | $280,532 | 3 | $93,511 |
| Total | $2,256,613 | 11 | $205,147 |
