PRIMARY CONTEST PASS
Oakland County state Senator Ruth Johnson (R-Holly) won’t have an August primary fight with fellow Senator Douglas Wozniak (R-Shelby Township) after the latter withdrew his filing for the newly drawn 24th Senate District. The two Senate members had both filed for the Senate district which includes Romeo, Washington and most of Shelby Township in Macomb County, along with the lower tier of Lapeer County and part of northern Oakland County, which is currently represented by Johnson, who is completing her first term in the Michigan Senate. Wozniak, first elected to the state House in 2018, became a state Senator following a special election in 2021 to fill the vacancy created when Republican Peter Lucido was elected Macomb County Prosecutor in a special election. Johnson has served as an Oakland County commissioner, county clerk/register of deeds, state House member and Secretary of State – a long track record in Oakland politics, winning generally by substantial voting margins. Several insiders say there was no known GOP pressure to get Wozniak out of the 2022 contest for which he filed in late February of this year once the new districts were announced. Practical realities prompted the withdrawal, with one observer saying that Wozniak is a “pretty astute” guy who could not only read the tea leaves but knew that a tough fight with Johnson would not have set well with the party caucus in the Senate. Then there is the question of campaign funding – Wozniak with just over $12,000 on hand v. Johnson cash on hand of about $121,000 at the end of last year.