By Robert Tomlinson
News Director
ST. JOSEPH COUNTY — Along with former president Donald Trump’s projected victory in Tuesday’s presidential election, St. Joseph County placed new officeholders in a few contested races on Election Day, while also voting on a few local school and city proposals.
Turnout in the election in St. Joseph County was reported to be fairly high in many places around the county, with a total of 29,476 ballots cast, according to the county’s election reporting data. The number of ballots cast was up from 2020, when 28,125 ballots were cast.
Here is a look at the notable results of races and proposal results in the county. All results listed are unofficial as of Tuesday night.
Kane wins probate judge race
In the only countywide contested race Tuesday, current St. Joseph County Family Court Director/Referee Kevin Kane defeated Van Buren County Juvenile Court Referee Kelly Ward for the nonpartisan seat of probate judge. He takes over the seat that will be vacated by the age-limited David Tomlinson.
Kane garnered 52.99 percent of the vote (12,157 votes), while Ward received 45.78 percent of the vote (10,503 votes). Write-in votes tallied 1.24 percent (284 votes).
In a statement Tuesday night, Kane thanked the county’s voters, and said he was “truly honored” to be elected to be probate judge.
“This journey has always been about giving back to the community that raised me, and I’m committed to bringing compassion, integrity, and dedication to our courts,” Kane said. “Together, we’ll continue building a stronger, more supportive environment for all families in our county. Thank you for believing in my and for allowing me the privilege to serve.”
White Pigeon schools pass bond proposal
In one of two major school proposals on the ballot Tuesday, voters in White Pigeon Community Schools passed a 0.85-mill bond proposal that will fund remodeling and re-equipping school buildings, acquiring and installing instructional technology equipment for the district’s schools, purchasing school buses, and a new parking lot near the football stadium.
The bond passed with 55.8 percent of the vote (1,684 votes) between St. Joseph County and Cass County precincts, while 44.1 percent voted against it (1,329 votes). Both St. Joseph County and Cass County each voted a majority “yes” on the proposal as well. It was the second time the proposal was put in front of voters, as it was defeated back in the May election by 42 votes.
In an interview Wednesday, Superintendent Shelly McBride said they hope to start projects related to the bond by the summer.
“It feels great to have a bond proposal that was passed both in St. Joseph County and Cass County,” McBride said. “Having the community support our students and our staff in this way feels amazing.”
Constantine schools fail to pass Headlee Rollback protection
Voters in Constantine Public Schools rejected a non-homestead operation millage proposal that would’ve prevented further reductions in the district’s operation millage rate, and potentially cause the school to lose some future funding, due to the Headlee Rollback.
In all, between St. Joseph County and Cass County precincts, there were 1,838 “no” votes (52.6 percent) for the proposal to 1,658 “yes” votes (47.4 percent).
It is the fourth time in four years that voters in the school district failed to pass a proposal from the school district, but this defeat was the narrowest one yet. The previous three votes were for bond requests, while this one was on the operating millage.
If passed, the operating millage would’ve been increased by three mills, but only functionally by around 0.5 mills, to bring the district from 17.5056 mills to the statutory 18-mill maximum allowable to counter future reductions to its millage rate due to what is called the Headlee Rollback, which requires districts to lower the non-homestead operating millage rate when property values grow faster than the rate of inflation.
Acting Superintendent Patrick Breen did not respond to a phone call for comment Wednesday.
Carra easily wins third and final term in state House
Incumbent State Rep. Steve Carra easily won a third and final term in the 36th District in the Michigan House of Representatives.
Carra, a Republican, garnered 67.64 percent of the vote in St. Joseph County, while Democrat challenger Erin Schultes received 31.89 percent of the vote in the county. Margins were similar in Cass County, where Carra got 68.85 percent and Schultes got 30.83 percent.
Carra, who was first elected in 2020, will serve his third and final term beginning in 2025.
Village races see new faces
There were multiple non-partisan village and city races on the ballot around the county, with some new faces being voted in place in Tuesday’s elections.
In Sturgis, Rick Bir won re-election as First District Commissioner over challenger Steve Shevick, garnering 58.88 percent (587 votes) to Shevick’s 38.62 percent (385 votes). In the Second District Commissioner race, a write-in race between incumbent Emmanuel Nieves and challenger Rodger Moyer, there were 117 write-in votes counted, however the race may not be sorted out until official counts are completed.
In the Village of Mendon, Aaron Olson defeated Michael Southworth to become the village’s new president, garnering 55.14 percent of the vote (204 votes) to Southworth’s 43.78 percent (162 votes). Meanwhile, in the Village Trustee race, Jerry Batten (265 votes), Don Saunders (174 votes) and Michael Leo (165 votes) won the three seats for Village Trustee. Darlene Watson finished fourth with 157 votes, while Mark Moerland finished with 105 votes and fifth place.
In the Village of White Pigeon, Jeffrey Wagaman Jr. won re-election as Village President, with 63.26% of the vote (377 votes) over Paige Wills, who got 35.74% of the vote (213 votes). In the village’s trustee race, Jennifer Wortinger (340 votes), Dianne Fenner (272 votes) and incumbent Jeffery Miller (209 votes) finish as the top three in the Village Trustee race to win the seats. Shireen Cline finished a very close fourth with 207 votes, and the other incumbent on the ballot, John Gentry, finished fifth with 193 votes.
In the Village of Colon, incumbent Keith Stickley (254 votes), Carl Thornton (228 votes) and John Sterlini (197 votes) finish as the top three in the Village Trustee race to win the seats. Matthew Smith finished in fourth with 186 votes, Jan Jones finishes in fifth with 168 votes, and incumbent Mickey Blashfield finished sixth with 130 votes.
Brief technical issues at polls quickly resolved
There were a couple of voting sites that had brief issues related to voting equipment during Tuesday’s election. In Lockport Township, their tabulator unexpectedly stopped working in the late morning, and Township Clerk Christy Trammell said County Clerk Gina Everson and Early Vote Coordinator Melissa Bliss assisted in bringing in a new tabulator within a couple of hours, and there were no issues reported the rest of the day. Trammell said the vote tallies in the election would still remain the same, and that all ballots that were cast during the error period would be tallied.
Meanwhile, Everson said Tuesday night there was also a “minor issue” in Constantine Township regarding a security key not functioning for one of their tabulators. The issue, she said, was resolved in 30 minutes when a new security key was provided. Everson said she ensured ballots from the auxiliary bin of the tabulator during that time period were processed and matched the totals accurately.
Other than those two issues, Everson said everything in the election ran “smoothly across the board.”
Robert Tomlinson can be reached at 279-7488 or robert@wilcoxnewspapers.com.
What was the results for Constantine trustee write-in votes?