Fruitland Township voters' rejection of a proposal to rejoin the White Lake Ambulance Authority was one of several local election results determined Tuesday as Michigan primary voters throughout the state cast their ballots.
Over 62 percent of the 780 voters to weigh in turned down the WLAA proposal, which would have charged up to 1.9 mills ($1.90 per $1,000 of taxable value) of property tax in exchange for service. The WLAA said leading up to the election that the actual amount charged would likely have been significantly less than the 1.9, but voters elected to retain service with the township's current provider, Trinity Health EMS.
"While Fruitland Township will not be part of our primary service area, our commitment to helping our neighbors doesn't end at a township line," the WLAA stated on Facebook. "When requested through the mutual aid system, our crews will continue to respond to emergencies in Fruitland Township, just as we always have, working alongside our fellow EMS providers to ensure patients receive the care they need."
The WLAA will continue serving its current five municipalities - the City of Montague, Montague Township, White River Township, Whitehall Township and Blue Lake Township.
Whitehall Township voters also rejected two proposals for tax increases. A proposal that would have raised the township's operations millage by two mills, from 1.1022 to 3.1022, was soundly rejected, with 344 of 486 voters (70.78 percent) saying no. A request for 1.5 mills to address road repairs in the township was also turned down, with 274 of 491 voters (55.8 percent) saying no.
Voters throughout Muskegon County also narrowly rejected a millage restoration proposal from Muskegon Community College that would have restored 0.298 mills that have been removed from the original 1993 2.4-mill approval. The Headlee Amendment, which ensures Michigan property taxpayers' bills do not rise faster than the rate of inflation, has lowered the college's millage rate over the years. Of over 37,000 voters, 19,224 of them (51.44 percent) voted no.
"MCC remains deeply committed to providing safe, accessible, and high-quality learning environments for our students and will continue carefully evaluating priorities and planning for the future while keeping our community informed," MCC posted in a statement on Facebook.
In a Michigan state Senate primary, Kim Cole secured the Republican nomination by defeating Max Riekse. Cole received over 67 percent of the vote out of 13,743 ballots cast by Muskegon County voters. Cole will face Rebecca Amidon, who was unopposed in the Democratic primary, in the November general election.
On the national level, Michigan voters selected two Democrats in U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives primaries to face off with Republicans who were unopposed in their primaries. In the Senate, Abdul El-Sayed narrowly defeated Haley Stevens in the Democratic primary, although Muskegon County voters favored Stevens with 51 percent of the vote to El-Sayed's 45.19 percent. El-Sayed will face Republican Mike Rogers, who was defeated by Democrat Elissa Slotkin in the 2024 race for Michigan's other Senate seat and was unopposed in his primary.
In a primary for this November's race for a state House of Representatives seat, Ben Ambrose emerged as the Democratic nominee after edging Jamie Hill. Muskegon County voters also gave the edge to Ambrose, giving him 46.14 percent of the vote to Hill's 40.84 percent. Clyde Welford finished a distant third with 13.03 percent of the vote. Ambrose advances to face Republican incumbent John Moolenaar in November; Moolenaar was unopposed in his primary.
