Allegan County commissioners announce joint re-election campaign

Mitchell Boatman, Holland Sentinel
·2 min read

ALLEGAN — All five members of the Allegan County Board of Commissioners will seek re-election in November.

The commissioners, calling themselves the "Allegan Action Team" in a release, announced their plans to seek re-election Friday, Jan. 26.

The Allegan County Board of Commissioners — from left: Gale Dugan, Scott Beltman, Jim Storey, Dean Kapenga and Mark DeYoung.
The Allegan County Board of Commissioners — from left: Gale Dugan, Scott Beltman, Jim Storey, Dean Kapenga and Mark DeYoung.

The incumbent commissioners are:

  • District 1: Jim Storey of Holland. Storey, the current board chair, was first elected in 2012 and has secured re-election five times. His district includes the city of Holland and Fillmore, Laketown, Overisel and Salem townships.

  • District 2: Mark DeYoung of Dorr. DeYoung was appointed in 2000 and has since been re-elected 12 times. His district includes the city of Wayland and Dorr, Leighton and Wayland townships.

  • District 3: Dean Kapenga of Hamilton. Kapenga was first elected in 2006 and has been re-elected eight times. His district encompasses the cities of Douglas, Saugatuck, South Haven and Fennville — in addition to Casco, Cheshire, Clyde, Ganges, Lee, Manlius and Saugatuck townships.

  • District 4: Scott Beltman of Hopkins. Beltman was elected in 2022 and is seeking re-election for the first time. He represents the city of Allegan, village of Hopkins and Allegan, Health, Hopkins, Monterey, Trowbridge and Valley townships.

  • District 5: Gale Dugan of Otsego. Dugan was first elected in 2016 and has been re-elected three times. His district includes the cities of Otsego and Plainwell, the village of Martin, and Gun Plain, Martin, Otsego and Watson townships.

In the release, commissioners highlighted recent projects, including countywide fiber internet, the expansion and remodeling of the Allegan County Courthouse and the addition of public safety staff.

“The current board members are united in working to advance Allegan County with improved services for individual residents," the group wrote.

The commissioners said their “unity of purpose” will benefit the county.

“We pledge to continue working together in that vein if the voters choose to return us to the board,” they wrote.

Allegan County’s Board of Commissioners was reduced to five members from seven after the 2022 election cycle. It's the smallest the board has been since the commission was formed in 1966.

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According to a candidate listing for the primary election on the Allegan County website, last updated Jan. 26, no other candidates have yet filed to run for commissioner. The filing deadline is April 23.

This year, the stakes for county commissioners are higher, after the state legislature increased their term length from two years to four years.

— Contact reporter Mitchell Boatman at mboatman@hollandsentinel.com.

This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Allegan County commissioners announce joint re-election campaign