Carra Becomes 59^th District Republican Nominee

With 100 percent of precincts in St. Joseph County reporting Tuesday evening, Republican David Marvin defeated embroiled incumbent John McDonough in the August 2020 primary election for the position of County Prosecuting Attorney. Marvin garnered 7,994 votes, compared to 1,735 for McDonough. With no challengers for the seat on the Democratic ticket, Marvin will go unchallenged in the November general election.

Also challenged for his position was Sheriff Mark Lillywhite, who retains his seat with 8,149 votes, compared to challenger Gordon Lynn Evilsizor’s 1,765 votes. In a Facebook post following Tuesday’s results, Lillywhite wrote he was “very humbled after today. I love serving the citizens of St. Joseph County. Thank you for allowing me to continue. I believe the people spoke and spoke loudly tonight. Thank you again.”

As for statewide and congressional elections, vote tabulations lasted into Wednesday morning. However, with 5,003 votes, Steve Carra won the Republican primary ticket for the seat of Representative in the State Legislature for the 59^th District. This district includes all of St. Joseph County and major parts of Cass County.

Carra bested four other candidates in the race, including current First District County Commissioner Allen Balog, who has been running for the 59^th District seat in lieu of his current position. Comparing the top three Republican candidates, Carra had 37.28 percent of the district vote. In second place, Jack Coleman had 23.37 percent, while Balog had 15.48 percent, leading Larry Walton and Daniel Hinkle. Carra will face Amy East on the Democratic ticket during the general election in November.

The 6^th Congressional District Representative race had two contenders on each ticket. Incumbent Fred Upton led the Republican ticket at 62.53 percent of the district vote versus Elena Oelke’s 37.47 percent. On the Democratic side, although Jen Richardson led for part of Tuesday evening, her final tally put her at 47.71 percent, while Jon Hoadley held a winning 52.29 percent of the count once all precincts reported.

For the U.S. Senate, Republican John James and Democrat Gary Peters each ran in the Michigan primary unopposed.

Three St. Joseph County Commission incumbents are unchallenged, including District Three Commissioner Dennis Allen, District Four Commissioner Daniel Czajkowski, and District Five Commissioner Ken Malone, all Republicans. 

In District One, Andrew George is unchallenged as a Democrat in the County Commission primary but will face Jared Hoffmaster in the general election. Hoffmaster defeated Scott Dolfman and John Bippus for the Republican ticket. Hoffmaster received 1,103 votes, compared to 439 for Bippus and 230 for Dolfman. In District Two, Kathy Greaves, an uncontested Democrat, will face Republican incumbent Kathy Pangle in the general election. Pangle also ran in the primary unopposed.

Also at the county level, Kathy Humphreys edged out Tammy Rigby 4,930 to 4,500 for the seat of County Treasurer/Finance Officer. Current County Clerk Lindsay Oswald is unchallenged to retain her position. The same is true for Drain Commissioner Jeffery Wenzel and Surveyor David Mostrom. All five candidates are Republicans. There were no Democratic candidates for those races.

In Park Township, Republican John English remains unchallenged for the seat of Township Supervisor. Republicans Michael Lee Kinne and Thomas M. Springer were unchallenged for the two available Trustee seats, as was Cindy Fenwick for Treasurer. Lari J. Roberts beat Katie Sweeney for the position of Township Clerk. Both are Republicans.

In Lockport Township, Mark Major defeated Eric Shafer 442 to 325 for the seat of Township Supervisor. Out of six candidates for two available Trustee seats, Rick Daniels and Donna Grubbs received the top two vote counts. In the general election in November, Republican Christine Trammell will face Democrat Peggy Reamfor the Township Clerk position. Both were unchallenged in the primary. The same situation applies to Republican Mike Friesner, who will face Democrat Elvontio Peterson for the Treasurer’s seat.

In Fabius Township, with a vote tally of 391, Ken Linn beat Daniel K. Wilkins by only three votes for the Township Supervisor position. Republicans Judy Holman and Cliff Maxwell ran with no additional opposition for the two available Trustee positions. Carol Wilkins was unopposed for Township Clerk, Cindy Haradine was unchallenged for Treasurer, and Don Falborski faced no competition for Constable.

A full list of race results, including other township races as well as various County Convention Delegate positions, can be found here.

According to at least one poll worker at the Riverside Church poll station in Three Rivers on Tuesday evening, turnout was slow. However, 13,472 people cast ballots on Tuesday, equating to 29.68 percent of the county’s roughly 45,938 voters. This bested turnout numbers in the August 2018 primary, which had a reported voter turnout of 25.45 percent. According to St. Joseph County Clerk Lindsay Oswald, the 2018 turnout of 8,885 voters was also higher than both the 6,576 county voters that cast ballots in the 2016 August primary and the 6,522 voters who participated in the 2014 August primary.

This article was originally published in the early hours of Wednesday, August 4, 2020 after all St. Joseph County precincts had reported. At that time, vote tallies for for state legislative and U.S. congressional races were not yet complete. The sections describing those races have since been updated to reflect the final results.

Dave Vago is a staff writer and columnist for Watershed Voice. A Philadelphia native with roots in Three Rivers, Vago is a planning consultant to history and community development organizations and is the former Executive Director of the Three Rivers DDA/Main Street program.

Alek Haak-Frost is the executive editor of Watershed Voice.