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Michigan, State Senate, District 37

Michigan State Senate District 37
Current incumbentWayne Schmidt Republican Party
Population258,370
Gender50.3% Male, 49.7% Female
Race90.6% White, 4.5% Native American, 2.4% Two or More Races, 1.6% Black, 0.5% Asian, 0.3% Other
Ethnicity98.5% Non-Hispanic, 1.5% Hispanic

Michigan's thirty-seventh state senate district is held by Republican Senator Wayne Schmidt.

As of the 2010 census, a total of 258,370 civilians reside within Michigan's thirty-seventh state senate district. Michigan state senators represent an average of 260,096 residents. After the 2000 Census, each member represented 261,538 residents.

About the office

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.

Qualifications

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."

Salaries

State legislators
SalaryPer diem
$71,685/year$10,800/year expense allowance for session and interim. Set by the compensation commission.

Term limits

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.

Vacancies

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.

Elections

2018

General election
General election for Michigan State Senate District 37

Incumbent Wayne Schmidt (R) defeated Jim Page (D) in the general election for Michigan State Senate District 37 on November 6, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes

Wayne Schmidt (R)
58.9
73,338

Jim Page (D)
41.1
51,076

Total votes: 124,414
(100.00% precincts reporting)
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Michigan State Senate District 37

Jim Page advanced from the Democratic primary for Michigan State Senate District 37 on August 7, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes

Jim Page (D)
100
24,109

Total votes: 24,109
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Michigan State Senate District 37

Incumbent Wayne Schmidt defeated Jim Gurr in the Republican primary for Michigan State Senate District 37 on August 7, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes

Wayne Schmidt (R)
80.0
27,693

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Jim Gurr (R)
20.0
6,924

Total votes: 34,617

2014

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. Phil Bellfy defeated Jimmy Schmidt in the Democratic primary. Wayne Schmidt defeated Greg MacMaster in the Republican primary. Schmidt defeated Bellfy in the general election.

Michigan State Senate, District 37 General Election, 2014

Party Candidate Vote % Votes
Republican Green check mark transparent.pngWayne Schmidt 61.1% 54,981
Democratic Phil Bellfy 38.9% 35,037
Total Votes 90,018

Michigan State Senate, District 37 Democratic Primary, 2014

Michigan State Senate, District 37 Republican Primary, 2014

2010

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. Howard Walker (R) defeated Bob Carr (D) in the general election. Walker defeated Randy Bishop in the Republican primary. Carr was unopposed in the Democratic primary.

Michigan State Senate, District 37, General Election, 2010

Party Candidate Vote % Votes
Republican Green check mark transparent.pngHoward Walker 64.8% 62,697
Democratic Bob Carr 35.2% 34,122
Total Votes 96,819

Michigan State Senate, District 37 Republican Primary, 2010

Campaign contributions

From 2002 to 2014, candidates for Michigan State Senate District 37 raised a total of $1,488,089. Candidates who raised money in contributions earned $135,281 on average. All figures come from Follow the Money.

Campaign contributions, Michigan State Senate District 37

Year Amount Candidates Average
2014 $542,138 4 $135,535
2010 $231,861 3 $77,287
2006 $235,855 2 $117,928
2002 $478,235 2 $239,118
Total $1,488,089 11 $135,281