Report: Rep. Huizenga challenger short signatures, may be removed from ballot

Carolyn Muyskens, The Holland Sentinel
·2 min read
Joseph Alfonso
Joseph Alfonso

LANSING — U.S. Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Holland Township, may be running unchallenged for re-election to his seat in the U.S. House of Representatives in November.

The Democratic candidate for the 4th Congressional District, Joseph Alfonso of Holland, did not submit enough valid signatures to be eligible for the ballot, the Michigan Bureau of Elections said in a report released Monday night.

The report was a recommendation to the state Board of Canvassers, which is expected to decide on the recommendations Thursday. The board is made up of four members, two Democrats and two Republicans.

Alfonso's campaign submitted 1,027 signatures. Board of Elections staff identified 68 invalid signatures, primarily errors with mismatched dates, addresses or incomplete information, dropping Alfonso to 959 valid signatures, below the 1,000 threshold needed to make the August ballot.

More: State elections report: James Craig and Perry Johnson filed too few signatures for ballot

More: Republican field crowded in many Holland-area races

Alfonso said he intends to fight the recommendation at the Board of Canvassers meeting this week, but if the body votes to remove him from the ballot, he will mount a campaign as an independent.

"I'm now more than ever more determined to make sure that we give our community a better option, so I went straight to our print shop and got 600 pages worth and we'll try as an independent to get the signatures we need by July 21st," Alfonso said. "Our community needs more options."

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If that fails, Alfonso said, he will file as a write-in candidate.

Huizenga is the only Republican candidate for the 4th Congressional District after U.S. Rep. Fred Upton announced he would retire rather than face off with Huizenga in the newly-drawn district, which combined parts of Huizenga and Upton's current districts.

State Rep. Steve Carra also dropped his bid for Congress to back Huizenga's reelection instead after former President Donald Trump announced his support for Huizenga.

Representative Bill Huizenga talks with member of the Holland Rescue Mission before their thanksgiving banquet Wednesday, Nov. 24, 2021, at DeVos Fieldhouse in Holland.
Representative Bill Huizenga talks with member of the Holland Rescue Mission before their thanksgiving banquet Wednesday, Nov. 24, 2021, at DeVos Fieldhouse in Holland.

The Board of Canvassers will also be deciding Thursday on recommendations to disqualify five out of the 10 GOP candidates for governor, including leading candidate James Craig, after thousands of allegedly fraudulent signatures were found on Craig and others' nominating petitions.

Craig, Oakland County businessman Perry Johnson, former Michigan State Police Capt. Michael Brown, Byron Center businesswoman Donna Brandenburg and Grand Haven financial adviser Michael Markey were all recommended to axed from the August primary ballot in the reports released Monday.

Three other Congressional candidates were short valid signatures, according to the Board of Elections review: Republican Elizabeth Ferzst, a candidate for the 5th Congressional District, Republican Jake Hagg, a candidate for the 7th Congressional District and Republican Gabi Manolache, a candidate for the 3rd Congressional District.

— Contact reporter Carolyn Muyskens at cmuyskens@hollandsentinel.com and follow her on Twitter at @cjmuyskens. 

This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Rep. Huizenga challenger short signatures, may be removed from ballot