Primary voters choose trustees for general election

BLOOMFIELD TOWNSHIP — Voters in Bloomfield Township weighed in on the Bloomfield Township Board of Trustees race Aug. 6.

“Everything went really as expected,” said Bloomfield Township Clerk Martin Brook. “The overall turnout was kind of on par, and the process was on par with what to expect.”

Brook said there was a 30.1% voter turnout in Bloomfield Township for the primary election, according to unofficial results.

“We had a light turnout, but in the normal range,” he said. “We normally have light turnout in an August primary, even in a presidential year.”

On the ballot, three Democrats and five Republicans ran for their parties’ nominations to compete for four, four-year terms on the Bloomfield Township Board of Trustees in November. In the primary, the top four vote-getters in each party advance to the November general election.

For the Democrats, Valerie Sayles Murray was the top vote-getter with 4,260 votes, followed by Oscar Garner Jr. with 3,843, and Roman Grigoriev with 3,642, according to unofficial results from the Oakland County Elections Division. Approximately 78 votes were cast for unassigned write-ins.

In the Republican race, Neal Barnett earned the most votes with 2,651, followed by Christopher Kolinski with 2,581, Mark Antakli with 2,170, and Malissa Bossardet with 1,894, according to unofficial results from the Oakland County Elections Division. Margo Cargill earned 1,734 votes.

Trustees receive a compensation of $250 per meeting they attend, for a grand total of $6,000 per year, if they attend all of them.

The township, Brook said, had “by far” more people voting absentee than voting in person or voting early during the primary.

“One thing we’re hoping more and more people do is, there’s a new law that allows individuals to get an absentee ballot and vote it in person by putting it in the tabulator during early voting or in the precinct,” he explained. “We saw some of that this election, but it’s a brand-new thing, so most people don’t really know about it yet. Hopefully, it’s going to build over time. I think it’s the best of both worlds, especially for a November election, which is a really big ballot with lots of races. … You can get the ballot in early October, spend a month researching it, fill it out in advance and walk in the precinct and once you fill out the proper forms you will be allowed to vote that ballot.”

Across Michigan, Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson said more than 1.2 million voters had cast an early or absentee ballot in the August primary before the polls closed at 8 p.m. on Election Night. Election officials reported steady turnout throughout the day.

“First, I want to congratulate all voters for participating in the Primary Election,” Benson said in a statement. “Secondly, I want to assure them that the counting and canvassing processes will be carried out in accordance with the law, every ballot will be counted fairly and accurately, and the election’s outcome will reflect their will.

Benson said it’s common for vote tallies to change from the initial unofficial results, as Michigan’s election system has built-in steps to identify and correct errors before results are finalized and certified. At press time, she said bipartisan boards of county canvassers will canvas the results for accuracy and correct any clerical mistakes. After the Board of State Canvassers certifies, the primary election results will be official and final.

“Every place that does an election in Michigan depends on volunteers to come in and work the polls. Yes, they get paid, but they do it because they love it and it’s a great mission that all of us share in delivering the service fairly and accurately to our residents. … It’s a true joy to be able to do this task.”

The unofficial results reported by all Michigan counties are available online at Michigan.gov/Vote.