U.S. Taxpayers Party of Michigan candidates for 2016

Earlier this week, jalp5dai left this comment to Michigan Green candidates from the bottom of the ballot to the top.

The Bureau of Elections list is now "official" -- meaning that the Board of State Canvassers has certified the results of the August 2 primary. Pending recount petitions -- and the results of the Democratic and Republican state conventions this weekend (nominating education-board and state Supreme Court candidates), this is how it will be.

I acknowledged the comment gratefully.

Thanks for that news. I went over to the Secretary of State's candidate page and checked it out. I see the U.S. Taxpayers Party held its convention and nominated candidates. I'll write them up on Friday or Saturday. Tomorrow is the 100th birthday of the National Park Service, so that's the topic of the next post.

I was distracted yesterday by the shiny object of a possibly habitable planet around Proxima Centauri, so Saturday (today) it is.  From the party's own website, here is the list of 2016 US Taxpayer Party Candidates interspersed with my comments.

President of USA - Darrell Castle

Vice President of USA - Scott Bradley

This ticket will come in fifth, both nationally and in Michigan, but consistent with my prediction that 2016 will likely be a good year for minor party candidates, it is getting some attention.  In particular, Glenn Beck interviewed Castle this week.  Regardless of how loony I think Beck is normally, his paying attention to Castle strikes me as being at least ideologically consistent for him.  Beck is anti-Trump and an arch-conservative, so his possibly supporting Castle would be the logical choice for him.  It's not often I get to praise Beck for being logical.

Follow over the jump for the rest of the nominees.

US Congress 2nd District - Ronald Graeser

Graeser ran for this office two years ago, so he's an experienced candidate.

US Congress 3rd District - Theodore Gerrard

The US Taxpayers Party didn't nominate anyone for this office two years ago.  However, Gerrard ran for the 28th district State Senate seat then, so he has some experience.

US Congress 4th District - George Zimmer

My prediction about the US Taxpayers Party nominating a candidate for this contest came true.

There is no Democratic challenger in the 4th District.  However, the Republican will be facing a Libertarian and likely a U.S. Taxpayers Party nominees in addition to the Green, who will have the left all to himself.  Let's see if he can get enough votes to come in second.

Zimmer ran for this office in 2014, so that was an easy prediction to make.  However, there is now a Democratic write-in.  I expect she'll come in second and the Green will come in fourth.  This is also one of the few contests in which the Natural Law Party has nominated a candidate, but that's a story for another entry.

Michigan State University Trustee  - Angela Grandy

State Board of Education - Karen Adams

State Board of Education - Doug Levesque

Wayne State University Governor - Robert Gale

Wayne State University Governor - Marc Joseph Sosnowski

University of Michigan Regent - Audra Driscoll

University of Michigan Regent  - Richard Hewer

Fewer than half of the candidates for educational boards have run for these positions before; the rest are new candidates.  Adams and Sosnowski ran for the same positions both two and four years ago, while Gale was the nominee for U.S. Senate four years ago.

11th State Rep District, Special Election - Marc Joseph Sosnowski

No, my readers and I aren't seeing things; Sosnowski is running for two offices.  He did this before in 2012, when he was a nominee for the special election to fill Thaddeus McCotter's seat.  He could get away with it then for the same reason he could get away with it now; the terms don't overlap.  The term being filled by the special election ends in January, the same month that the term for WSU Governor begins.  Clever.

17th State Senate District - Jeffrey Andring

That's an error.  Andring ran for the 17th State Senate District two years ago.  He's running for the 17th State Representative District this year.  Coincidentally, he lives in the same numbered district for both houses of the state legislature.  Determining how many localities that's true for would be an impressive bit of political trivia that I'm not up to researching right now.

22nd State Rep District - Lester Townsend

56th State Rep District - Randy Bain

76th State Rep District - Brandon Hoezee

79th State Rep District - Carl Oehling

85th State Rep District  - Matthew Shepard

Bain and Oehling ran for these seats two years ago, Shepard ran four years ago, and Hoezee hasn't run at this level before.

2nd District, Macomb County Commission - Brian Sumeracki

2nd District, Muskegon County Commission - Robert Shirk

16th District, Kent County Commission - Mark Petzold

Dorr Township Trustee - Christine Schwartz

Allegan County Sheriff - Steven Young

If "Steven Young" is the same as Stephen Young, then he's run for three offices in four years, MSU Trustee in both 2012 and 2014, along with Allegan County Commissioner in 2014.  He's also the head of the Allegan County Tea Party, which means that the Tea Party actually is a transpartisan organization of the Right, containing Republicans, Libertarians, and Constitution Party/US Taxpayers Party members.  That does make him an experienced candidate, even if he's not likely to win.

As for the local contest with minor party candidates that most interests me, Ypsilanti Township Parks Commission, at least the US Taxpayers Party didn't make things more complicated by nominating candidates.  Neither did the other two minor parties on the ballot in Michigan, the Natural Law Party and the Working Class Party, but that's a story for another entry.

Stay tuned for the Sunday entertainment entry, which is about the return of "The Strain."  It's the Vampire Apocalypse!