Busy GOP primaries for 104th, 105th

Jul. 30—TRAVERSE CITY — Two sitting Republican lawmakers eyeing newly redrawn House of Representatives districts are facing a primary challenge, one from three candidates.

Meanwhile, Democratic candidates for the same two districts, the 104th and 105th, face no opposition.

In the 104th District, Cathy Albro is the sole candidate for the Democratic nomination. Republican candidate Katie Kniss is challenging Rep. John Roth, formerly of Traverse City (he moved to Interlochen after redistricting put him and Rep. Jack O'Malley in the same district, as previously reported).

Kniss, reached by text July 21, declined to be in the Record-Eagle.

Her website lists supporting small businesses and eliminating the income tax, protecting the unborn at all stages, defending Second Amendment rights and opposing any masking or vaccine mandates among her top issues.

Kniss on her website also referred to unsupported claims of fraud in the 2020 election.

Roth, 59, is in his first House term. The former Grand Traverse County GOP chairman and county parks and recreation board chairman has a wife and two grown daughters.

While he was frustrated by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's veto of election security bills he backed, Roth said he doesn't believe there was widespread fraud in the 2020 election.

"For me to say that it was truly stolen would be hypocritical, because I was elected in that same election," he said.

He wants to see through several proposals, including boosting housing by giving tax abatements for renovating old buildings into homes.

Roth also wants the Senate to pass a bill he backed that would criminalize in-vitro fertilization fraud, where fertility doctors use their own genetic material without a patient's consent.

More training opportunities for skilled labor continues to be a focus as well, and Roth said he wants to keep pushing for more apprenticeships and four-year degrees at community colleges

The new 104th District will include parts of Antrim, Benzie, Grand Traverse, Kalkaska, Manistee and Wexford counties. Those boundaries will replace ones that currently match Grand Traverse County's boundaries.

For the 105th District, Rep. Ken Borton, R-Gaylord, is seeking the GOP nomination as is Mark McFarlin, Kim Morley and Diane Randall. Democratic candidate Adam Wodjan faces no primary opponent.

Borton, 64, is married and has two grown daughters. The former Otsego County commissioner is a freshman in the House.

Borton said he signed a letter asking former Vice Pres. Mike Pence to delay certifying the 2020 presidential election after constituents brought concerns over the election to him. He said he hasn't seen definitive proof of fraud himself and respects a Senate report rejecting allegations of fraud, but also respects the opinions of people who claim to have proof of it.

He wants to keep bringing money to the district for infrastructure projects, like expanding broadband networks and fixing local roads.

"We don't need new programs, we need roads, we need bridges, we need internet, we need things like that," he said.

Borton also wants to continue working with municipalities, including those that will be new to the district, to build more affordable housing.

He's also working with companies — he couldn't say which — to create jobs, and Borton wants to see managed growth to protect the district's northern Michigan lifestyle, he said.

McFarlin, 58, of Grayling since 2017, said he's a blackjack dealer with experience as a private investigator. He's starting a media company to investigate high-profile unsolved crimes.

McFarlin blasted Borton for backing a budget he saw as "horrible" and "bloated," and said he wants to eliminate the state's income and homestead property taxes. He would replace them with a sales tax on everything but food, and taxes on services, a plan that would require a statewide vote.

He also wants to protect both the environment and property rights from a proposed expansion of Camp Grayling he adamantly opposes even as he agrees the U.S. military needs space to train.

"The thing is, you've got to do that fairly for the people, you can't pollute their waters, you can't pollute their soils."

McFarlin called red flag laws, which allow law enforcement to seize guns from someone deemed a danger to themselves or others, as a backdoor "gun grab" and a violation of due process rights.

He also believes there were irregularities in the 2020 presidential election, McFarlin said, and believes the U.S. Supreme Court should've taken up the issue to at least provide some closure.

Morley, 56, of Roscommon since 2002, is the Grayling representative of the Munson Healthcare System board and served on Roscommon Area Public Schools board for nine years . She co-owns Pioneer Hills Marine with her husband, with whom she has a son.

Morley completed Michigan Political Leadership Program and believes in working across party lines, as in the program, she said. She believes compromise is not this-for-that dealmaking but working together on common goals.

"Where's our common ground? Because we're so angry at the other side that we're not willing to listen," she said. "So I think we should seek to understand, not just listen."

She wants to tighten state spending on "wants" like some tourism projects that got millions to make room for needs like mental healthcare, she said. She also favors cutting regulations on small businesses, and ensuring what's left is evenly enforced.

Morley said she backs tighter election security and, while she acknowledges Biden as president, believes something went wrong in the 2020 election. That's based on what county clerks told her about election rules changes, plus big swings in vote counts overnight.

The Associated Press rejected former Pres. Donald Trump's claims about massive lead shifts being evidence of fraud — they were a result of a legitimate vote-counting process, according to the report.

Randall, 60, of Roscommon, has been Roscommon Township Supervisor for 25 years, plus past Michigan Township Association president. She and her husband own a few businesses and have two grown children.

She wants to advocate for northern Michiganders, not lobbyists, including by lowering property taxes by cutting the state equalized value of a home to 35 percent of its market value, Randall said.

Going through the state budget line by line could show where to cut current spending instead of new taxes, Randall said. She gave the Michigan Economic Development Corporation as a first example to cut.

Randall also wants to completely discard the state's qualified voter file, arguing it's too full of errors to be trusted, she said.

"I think that was quite evident when the Secretary of State made up a new rule during COVID where they mailed out those absentee ballot applications to just everyone on the list," she said.

She would allocate money to local clerks to start new, and favors a requirement that voters re-register each time they renew their driver's license.

The new borders of the 105th District will include all of Crawford, Missaukee, Otsego and Roscommon counties, plus parts of Antrim, Kalkaska and Oscoda counties. Compare that to the current boundaries that contain all of Antrim, Charlevoix, Montmorency, Otsego and Oscoda counties.