Election 2022: Candidates for Michigan Senate District 22 in their own words

On this year's ballot are members from both branches of the Michigan Legislature (the state House of Representatives and Senate). If you are unsure which legislative district you vote in, visit the Michigan Voter Information Center to find more information — including your sample ballot customized to your home address.

Whether you choose to vote absentee or in person, get to know the candidates before you vote by reading their responses to key issues facing Michiganders. Here (below) are candidates in their own words. To return to the main election package, click here.

Meet the candidates

Jordan Genso (Democrat): I live in Brighton with my wife and two daughters. I serve on the Brighton District Library Board and City of Brighton Zoning Board of Appeals. I am a Realtor. I was a 2014 candidate for state representative, 2020 candidate for Livingston County clerk and 2021 candidate for Brighton city council.

Jordan Genso
Jordan Genso

Lana Theis (Republican): No response.

On systemic racism

Jordan Genso (Democrat): As a real estate agent, I’m keenly aware of the lasting effects from the practice of redlining, which was a government-driven action that harmed minorities. My grandparents were able to purchase a home wherever they wanted, but that isn’t a statement some of my peers could make, and the consequences of that discriminatory treatment still echo today. So I would like to see our government target additional investments in communities harmed by redlining, to increase home property values in those communities. It would be an obvious, logical step to mitigate some of the harm done by previous government actions.

Lana Theis (Republican): No response.

On the COVID-19 response

Jordan Genso (Democrat): B+. As a citizen, I strive to give elected officials flexibility when they are making decisions in an environment of uncertainty. I have my opinions, of course, but respect that policies won’t always reflect my opinion. As an example, I wanted an in-person schooling option in the fall of 2020, but I otherwise wasn’t going to criticize school boards for the safety protocols they implemented to enable it. I think we all should give our government a wider window of what we’ll accept, and only when policies go to the extreme should we give them a hard time.

Lana Theis (Republican): No response.

On economic stability and inflation

Jordan Genso (Democrat): The proper economic role for the state government is to invest in our infrastructure, protect the public from abuses in the private sector, and educate our citizens so they have the skills and opportunities to succeed. To be honest, inflation is beyond the scope of our state government’s role. But by investing in our communities and our people, that is what ensures a better economic future.

Lana Theis (Republican): No response.

On election security

Jordan Genso​​​​​​​ (Democrat): Our election system has numerous safeguards already built into it, and they ensure that we can trust the results. There are some who want to prevent our citizens’ legal votes from being counted because they disagree with the candidate receiving the votes, and that is a radical, unprecedented danger to our democratic system. “Accepting election results” should never have become a point of disagreement, and those who have made it so are spitting on the graves of our nation’s founders.

Lana Theis (Republican): No response.

On reproductive rights

Jordan Genso​​​​​​​ (Democrat): There are few things more personal than pregnancy, and the situations that arise from it. I am adamantly opposed to government-mandated pregnancy decisions. Any policy restricting a woman’s freedom to make her own medical decisions would have utterly horrific outcomes. And those opposed to reproductive rights refuse to acknowledge that reality.

Lana Theis (Republican): No response.

On LGBTQ rights

Jordan Genso​​​​​​​ (Democrat): The purpose of Elliott-Larsen is to protect our citizens from discrimination for simply being who they are. The same underlying principle for why we shouldn’t allow discrimination based on religion applies to the LGBTQ community. There is no justification for allowing such discrimination, and so it is a failure of our state that LGBTQ people are not already protected.

Lana Theis (Republican): No response.

Other issues of import

Jordan Genso​​​​​​​ (Democrat): I think the most important hurdle our state (and nation) faces is an unwillingness to engage with each other. As a state senate candidate, I’ve put myself out there, willing to sit down with anyone across the political spectrum to have a civil discussion, but it is astonishingly difficult finding a partner. And without engagement, there is no communication, nor understanding of the other side. And that’s why our government is so broken. Until we fix our broken government, few other problems can be adequately solved.

Lana Theis (Republican): No response.​​​​​​​

This story was assembled from email questionnaires managed by LSJ news assistants Jayne Higo, Veronica Bolanos and Jack Moreland. Contact them at LSJ-EAs@lsj.com or 517.377.1112.

This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Election 2022: Candidates for Michigan Senate District 22