Friday, February 15, 2013
Samantha Steckloff, a founding member of the Mayors Youth Council, says she wants to ensure other children have the same opportunities she did.
Among the seven people who have already pulled petitions to run for Farmington Hills city council this fall, Samantha Steckloff may well be one of the youngest candidates. Raised and now living in Farmington Hills, she turns 29 in March and has begun the process of buying a home in the community. "I had such an amazing childhood here," said Steckloff, who is the daughter of labor attorney Mark Steckloff and State Rep. Vicki Barnett. "The programs and education are top-notch, and that's what I'm looking for when I raise my children." Her decision also comes at a time when long-time council member Nancy Bates, who Steckloff refers to as one of her greatest mentors, is stepping down, leaving at least one open seat. (Bates confirmed …
Monday, November 12, 2012
The Oakland County executive proved he's a stand-up guy during an Election Night appearance in Royal Oak.
As Democrats celebrated election victories Tuesday in Michigan and across the country, the mood at the Emagine Royal Oak theater complex, where more than 200 Oakland County Republicans gathered, was a mixed bag. That is, until L. Brooks Patterson, 73, changed the energy of room. “He gave some remarks and then he told us he had a surprise for us – and then he stood up on his own,” said former Royal Oak Mayor Dennis Cowan. “Everyone burst into applause.” Patterson, elected to his sixth term as Oakland County Executive on Nov. 6, was injured in a crash in August that left him hospitalized at McLaren Oakland Hospital in Pontiac for five weeks after suffering almost a dozen broken bones. He returned to work in October using a wheelchair and …
Saturday, November 10, 2012
The Farmington Hills resident, who won Nov. 6 over incumbent John McCullough by a slim margin, plans to battle fracking and expand regional cooperation.
In a finish that may have surprised even the candidate himself, Oakland County Commissioner Jim Nash (D-15th District) won a tight race Tuesday to become the county's Water Resources Commissioner. Nash, who was redistricted out of his seat, beat out 12-year incumbent Republican John McCulloch by less than 1 percentage point, or about 2,700 of the more than 581,000 votes cast. What does a Water Resources Commissioner do? "The responsibilities are just about anything you can think of with water in Oakland County," Nash said. "We're in charge of all the water once it crosses Eight Mile ... except municipal (systems)." That means keeping track of lake levels, monitoring agricultural drains, dealing with water issues on construction sites, …
Thursday, November 8, 2012
While lines were long at the polls on Tuesday, turnout in both cities was slightly less than in the last presidential election.
Farmington and Farmington Hills residents came out to vote in droves for the 2012 general elections, but in numbers not quite as high as 2008. Voter turnout in Farmington was a healthy 76.3 percent, a little more than 3 points below the 2008 turnout of nearly 80 percent. In Farmington Hills, turnout this year was 74.21 percent, just slightly under the 74.5 percent recorded in 2008. Farmington voters chose President Barack Obama over Republican challenger Mitt Romney by a 15-point margin, 57 percent to 42 percent. The margin was even larger in Farmington Hills, where nearly 60 percent voted to re-elect the President. Both communities were also solidly behind re-elected U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow by 60-63 percent, helping to cement her …
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Unions were disappointed. Canadians were thrilled. All in all, reactions were varied as Michigan voters shot down all six statewide ballot proposals.
Unions were disappointed. Canadians were thrilled. All in all, reactions were varied as Michigan voters shot down all six statewide ballot proposals. (See all statewide election results here.) The six state proposals on the Nov. 6 ballot in Michigan were: How did you vote on these proposals?
Taj conceded the race Wednesday morning.
Some results are still trickling in, but Democrat Syed Taj conceded the race for Michigan's 11th Congressional District to Republican Kerry Bentivolio Wednesday morning. "It goes without saying that I am disappointed in last night's results. However, I am not disappointed in the campaign that we have ran in the 11th. We faced a tough map and in spite of this disadvantage worked our district hard and left nothing on the table," Taj said in a statement. Bentivolio spoke to a group of supporters just before midnight Tuesday at his election party at the Sheraton in Novi, thanking them for their support. "We're going to go to Washington, and we're going to represent the 11th District like it's never been represented before," he said. As of …
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The Baronette Renaissance Detroit-Novi Hotel
27790 Novi Rd, Novi, MI
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Sheraton Detroit Novi
21111 Haggerty Rd, Novi, MI
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Voters in some Farmington and Farmington Hills precincts reported waiting one to two hours to cast their ballots.
Despite thousands of voters creating long lines at polling places across Farmington and Farmington Hills, clerks for both cities say Election Day went virtually without a hitch. Turnout in Farmington precincts ranged from 74.5 percent in Precinct 4 to 82.85 percent in Precinct 1. In Farmington Hills, turnout was as low as 62 percent in Precinct 17 and as high as 81 percent in Precinct 23. Anticipating the larger turnout, clerks set up as many voting stations as precinct locations would allow. Farmington clerk Sue Halberstadt and Farmington Hills city clerk Pam Smith said voting machines worked without a hitch all day long. But while Halberstadt said she received no calls about the long lines, voters in Farmington Hills did contact Smith …
Republican challenger Bruce Lilley praises campaign team and talks about measuring success in a different way.
State Rep. Vicki Barnett cruised into her third and final term in the Michigan House on Tuesday, taking slightly more than 61 percent of the vote in the 37th District, which includes Farmington and Farmington Hills. Barnett finished with a wider margin of victory over Republican challenger Bruce Lilley of Farmington than when she won her first term in 2008. "I really want to thank the voters for repudiating the negative attacks and the robocalls that came out for my opponent's side," Barnett said during an election night party at Page's Food & Spirits. "They made it very clear that you win an election in Farmington and Farmington Hills by having ideas and positive things to say." "We walked all over this district," Barnett campaign …
Five of the six statewide ballot proposals were defeated, according to early results.
Voters throughout Michigan chose Barack Obama over Mitt Romney for president, according to early results, and voted no on at least five of the six state proposals. Michiganders also chose incumbent Democrat Debbie Stabenow over Republican challenger Pete Hoekstra for Senate, according to early results. Voter turnout was reported to be high across the state. In 2008, 66.2 percent of Michigan's registered voters cast ballots, the highest number since 1968 when voter turnout was 66.8 percent. On Tuesday, many precincts were still taking ballots well after 8 p.m. to accommodate voters. 1:32 AM: U.S. Rep. John Dingell claimed victory and a record-breaking 30th term in Congress. 12:46 AM: Results are trickling in. Dexter Patch reports Gretchen …
Oakland County voters elected an executive, clerk, sheriff and treasurer at the polls Tuesday.
5:30 AM: All precincts have been counted. Check the table above for final unofficial vote tallies. 1:20 AM L. Brooks Patterson kept his lead, with 499 of 522 precincts reporting. Also, Andy Meisner, Michael Bouchard and Jessica Cooper are continued to lead their opponents. Challenger Lisa Brown was stil leading incumbent County Clerk Bill Bullard. 11:52 PM With 75 percent of ballots counted, voter turnout looks to be about 65 percent in Oakland County. 10:40 PM: With more than half the precincts in Oakland County reporting, incumbents L. Brooks Patterson, Andy Meisner, Michael Bouchard and Jessica Cooper are continuing to lead their opponents. Challenger Lisa Brown is stil leading incumbent County Clerk Bill Bullard. 9:13 PM: Some …
Debra L. Van Buren
6:42 pm on Friday, February 15, 2013
Samantha Steckloff's background, coupled with her dedication to civic projects and learning about local government, make her well qualified and desirable to take on the open seat in the Farmington Hills City Council. The Council could benefit highly from the views and perspective of Steckloff's youth and enthusiasm, not to mention her undisputable pride in the city of Farmington Hills and what it… more ›