Politics & Government
Chamber Rates Macomb Township Commissioner, State Rep Candidates
Using questionnaires and in-person interviews, the Macomb County Chamber of Commerce has rated the qualifications of candidates looking to represent Macomb Township as county commissioners and in Lansing.
A recent rating from the Macomb County Chamber of Commerce favors the incumbents in the county commissioner and state representative races for Macomb Township.
These findings, and others, appear in the chamber's newly released evaluation of candidates running in the Nov. 6 general election, and includes ratings for those in the races for Macomb County sheriff, prosecuting attorney, clerk and treasurer.
"This process is not about party affiliation," said Grace Shore, Chamber CEO, in a statement. "Our committee looks for pro-business candidates with the skill set and innovation to move our state and county forward."
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The ratings for Clinton Township's District 7 and 13 commissioner candidates and District 33 state representatives are as follows:
District 9
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- Incumbent Commissioner Fred Miller (D) – Well qualified
- Juliana Sabatini (R) – Qualified
District 13
- Incumbent Commissioner Joe Sabatini (R) – Well qualified
- Jonathan Garstka (D) – Qualified
District 33 - State Representative
- Incumbent State Rep. Ken Goike (R) – Well qualified, Preferred
- Martha O'Kray (D) – Not evaluated
The ratings are based on an interview and/or questionnaire sent to all county and state candidates each election cycle. In the questionnaire portion, candidates are asked to share their knowledge of issues relating to economic development, business environment and the future of Macomb County, while interviews are conducted with members of the Chamber’s Public Policy Committee and Board of Directors.
Only those candidates who respond to the questionnaire or take part in the interviews are given a rating.
Ratings were also released for sheriff, prosecutor, clerk and treasurer candidates:
Macomb County Sheriff
- Incumbent Sheriff Anthony Wickersham (D) – Well qualified, Preferred
- Steve Thomas (R) – Qualified
Macomb County Prosecutor
- Incumbent Prosecutor Eric Smith (D) – Well qualified, Preferred
- Michael Wrathell (R) – Not qualified
Macomb County Clerk
- Incumbent Clerk Carmella Sabaugh (D) – Well qualified, Preferred
- Debera Guenther (R) – Qualified
Macomb County Treasurer
- Incumbent Treasurer Ted Wahby (D) – Well qualified, Preferred
- Larry Rocca (R) – Qualified
The chamber does not release candidate answers to the questionnaires.
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