County Commission Continues to Silence Voters

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Monday, January 9, 2022

Contact: Chair Jay Fedewa

GeneseeCountyGOP@gmail.com

The Genesee County Republican Party today condemned actions recently taken by the Genesee County Board of Commissioners to move forward with filling two vacant commissioner seats by appointment, instead of allowing the voters of Districts 1 and 4 to decide who represents them on the Commission.

“The actions taken by the Board of Commissioners does nothing short of suppress the votes of the citizens in Districts 1 and 4,” said Jay Fedewa, Genesee Republican Party Chair. “The candidates who won the November election in these two newly-redrawn districts hadn’t even been sworn into office before these vacancies occurred, which adds even more importance to this situation.”

Fedewa said that the Genesee County Republican Party has received numerous communications from concerned residents of Districts 1 and 4 expressing their frustration with the Board of Commissioners’ attempts to stifle their right to choose their own elected representation on the county commission. He also expressed his appreciation to Commissioner Shaun Shumaker (R-Fenton Twp.) for his efforts to prevent Genesee County voters from being disenfranchised.

“In the interest of transparency and a fair election process, the Genesee County Republican Party calls on the Genesee Board of Commissioners to allow candidates for these vacant seats to be elected by the 80,000 voters who live in these two districts, rather than selected by 7 commissioners who do not even reside in the districts in question,” said Fedewa. “Although the wheels are already in motion for these seats to be filled through appointment, it isn’t too late for the Board of Commissioners to shift course and let the democratic process play out so that the voice of the voters does not continue to be silenced.”

Per the 6-1 decision by the Board of Commissioners on January 4, interested applicants for the vacancies in Districts 1 and 4 should submit a cover letter, resume and their answers to two questions by 4 PM on January 17th, with interviews being conducted on January 18th at 5:30 PM. The questions cover what experience applicants have with preparing budgets, the three biggest issues they believe are facing Genesee County, and how they would address those issues. Applicants for District 1 should email District1@geneseecountymi.gov, and applicants for District 4 should email District4@geneseecountymi.gov.

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