By Tim Martin
Associated Press Writer
LANSING (AP) -- Michigan voters are set to shuffle the lineup of state lawmakers bound for the Capitol next year.
Just 67 of the Legislature's 148 seats are held by an incumbent seeking re-election to the same seat. That means at least 52 new faces in the 110-member state House as of Jan. 1 and at least 29 new faces in the 38-member Senate.
The turnover is caused mainly by the state's term limits law, which restricts senators to two terms of four years and representatives to three terms of two years.
The law barred dozens of legislators from seeking re-election this year and prompted others to voluntarily give up their seats in the House to run for the Senate or other jobs.
Republicans now hold a 22-16 edge in the Senate while Democrats have a 65-42 advantage in the House with three vacancies. It's likely each party will maintain control of its current chamber next year. But Republicans may pick up more seats in what many analysts expect to be a strong year for Republicans nationwide.
All four legislative leaders -- Republican Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop, Democratic House Speaker Andy Dillon, Democratic Senate Minority Leader Mike Prusi and Republican House Minority Leader Kevin Elsenheimer -- are among those who will be leaving at the end of the year because of term limits.
The turnover will be most dramatic in the state Senate, where only nine of 38 incumbents are running for re-election.
Most of the drama will center on 10 or so seats in so-called "swing" districts being vacated by longtime lawmakers. The districts typically have a fairly even distribution of Republican and Democratic voters who will be choosing among current or former members of the state House to represent them in the Senate.
Some of the tightest races involve current members of the House vying for promotion to the Senate.
Republican Tonya Schuitmaker of Van Buren County's Antwerp Township faces Democrat Robert Jones of Kalamazoo in a race to replace outgoing Sen. Tom George, a Republican from Kalamazoo County's Texas Township. Republican Goeff Hansen of Hart faces Democrat Mary Valentine of Muskegon in a battle to replace Republican Sen. Gerald Van Woerkom of Norton Shores.
Another interesting race is for the seat being vacated by Republican Sen. Bruce Patterson of Canton Township. Kathleen Law of Gibraltar, a former Democratic state representative, is running against Republican business consultant Patrick Colbeck of Canton Township. John Stewart of Plymouth, a Republican when he served three terms in the House, now is running as an independent.
The House has strong Democratic districts in Detroit and solid Republican districts in pockets of the state, particularly in west Michigan. But dozens of the 110 races may be competitive enough to go either way Nov. 2.
Republicans have 23 incumbents seeking re-election in the House. Democrats have 35 incumbents running for re-election, including a few who potentially could lose their seats if Republicans have a strong Election Night and pull upsets.
Republicans probably have too much ground to make up to grab control of the House. But they could narrow the gap with Democrats, who have run the chamber since 2007.
Published: Tue, Oct 5, 2010
