Updates About Governor

Ten total individuals have declared to run for the vacant 35th Senate District seat prior to the September 30th filing deadline. Six Democrats and four Republicans will face off in their respective primaries set on February 3rd, 2026. The winners will then proceed to compete in the special general election held on May 5th, 2026. Representatives Bill Schuette (R-Midland) and Timmy Beson (R-Bay City) considered entering the race but ultimately chose to seek reelection to the House instead. Rep. Schuette was regarded as the best candidate for the Republicans to retake the seat in what is expected to be a tightly contested race.

Governor Whitmer recently called for the special election after receiving attacks from Republicans who were frustrated with the Governor for not calling the election sooner. The 35th Senate District includes parts of Bay, Midland, and Saginaw counties. With Democrats holding a 19-18 majority in the Senate, a Republican victory would create a 19-19 tie, requiring the lieutenant governor to cast tie-breaking votes. The winner of the special election will also have to defend the seat again just six months later in the regular election if they choose to run.

The list of the candidates for each part are as follows:

DEMOCRATS

• Brandell Adams (Bridgeport Township) - Saginaw County Democratic Party Chair
• Martin Blank (Saginaw) - a surgeon and former Republican candidate
• Chedrick Greene (Saginaw) - former Marine and current Saginaw Fire Captain
• Dr. William Morrone (Bay City) - medical director of Recovery Pathways
• Pamela Pugh (Saginaw) - State Board of Education Chair
• Serenity Salak (Saginaw) - former Eligibility Specialist

REPUBLICANS

• Jason Tunney (Saginaw) - attorney
• Chadwick Twillman (Saginaw) - businessperson
• Christian Velasquez ( Midland) - former Dow executive
• Andrew Wendt (Saginaw) - former Saginaw City Commissioner

For more election-related news, see 2026 STATE ELECTION UPDATES

Recently when asked about her 2028 presidential prospects, Governor Whitmer mentioned that she would definitely like to help the Democratic nominee but stated she didn’t know if she was going to be the candidate running. Whitmer, who will be term-limited in 2026, has been frequently mentioned by political commentators and pundits alike as someone who might run for president in 2028. Despite outside influence, the Governor has stated she is committed to helping Michigan. For now, her focus has been on protecting Michigan’s economy from federal tariff threats.

As we prepare for the upcoming cold and flu season, Governor Gretchen Whitmer has taken steps to expand access to the COVID-19 vaccine through instructions in a recently-signed executive directive. Within the directive, Whitmer advised departments to give clear public and provider guidance on COVID-19 vaccine safety, ensure providers promote and administer the vaccines, remove barriers to access, and require coverage by all health plans under the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) and Department of Insurance and Financial Services (DIFS), including Medicaid and private insurers.

Michigan’s Chief Medical Executive, Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, also stressed the importance of vaccine accessibility in her Standing Recommendation issued shortly after the executive directive. According to the FDA’s vaccine administration guidelines, the vaccine is approved for individuals over the age of 65 and for those between age 5 and 64 with conditions that place them in a high risk category. Dr. Bagdasarian noted, however, that the FDA did not define which pre-existing conditions qualify an individual as high risk. As such, Dr. Bagdasarian’s recommendation designates that any individual age 6 months or older without contraindications may be eligible to receive the vaccine since any pre-existing or latent condition, including not previously being vaccinated against COVID-19, may qualify someone as high-risk.