Results in the five most expensive Republican Michigan House primaries


Republican primary elections for all 110 districts in the Michigan House of Representatives took place on Aug. 2, 2022. Of the 110 districts up for election in 2022, 73 had a Republican primary election with more than one candidate.

Across all contested Republican primary elections, candidates raised $8.0 million. Incumbents raised an average of $161,550 per candidate and challengers raised an average of $23,977 per candidate.

Five primary elections with the most fundraising

The table below details the five Republican primary elections with the most fundraising in the House of Representatives. Winning candidates’ names are in bold.

District Money Raised Officeholder Candidates
District 42 $881,764 Ann Bollin (R) Matt Hall and Gary Mitchell
District 107 $376,590 John Damoose (R) Neil Friske, Parker Fairbairn, Jonathan Scheel, Bob Carr, David Laughbaum, George Ranville, and Kendall Tough
District 102 $371,164 Michele Hoitenga (R) Curt VanderWall, Andrew Sebolt, Ryan Roberts, and Phil Morse
District 97 $315,284 Jason Wentworth (R) Matthew Bierlein, Rodney Wakeman, Dean Riley, Tom Kunse, and Mike Hoadley
District 59 $282,577 Steve Carra (R) Douglas Wozniak, Terence Mekoski, and Frank Cusumano

The officeholders above are listed for the current districts they hold. However, this is a redistricting year, so candidates have been identified below as incumbents even if they are running in a different district than they currently hold.

#1 District 42 – $881,764

Incumbent Matt Hall raised $863,406 and Gary Mitchell raised $18,358.

Matt Hall advanced to the general election with 71 percent of the vote and Gary Mitchell received 29 percent of the vote.

#2 District 107 – $376,590

Parker Fairbairn raised $136,470, Neil Friske raised $114,776, George Ranville raised $91,219, Jonathan Scheel raised $34,125, Bob Carr raised $0, David Laughbaum raised $0, and Kendall Tough raised $0.

Neil Friske advanced to the general election with 42 percent of the vote, Parker Fairbairn received 35 percent of the vote, Jonathan Scheel received 11 percent of the vote, Bob Carr received 7 percent of the vote, David Laughbaum received 4 percent of the vote, George Ranville withdrew, and Kendall Tough withdrew.

#3 District 102 – $371,164

Curt VanderWall raised $347,900, Phil Morse raised $23,264, Andrew Sebolt raised $0, and Ryan Roberts raised $0.

Curt VanderWall advanced to the general election with 59 percent of the vote, Andrew Sebolt received 32 percent of the vote, Ryan Roberts received 9 percent of the vote, and Phil Morse withdrew.

#4 District 97 – $315,284

Incumbent Rodney Wakeman raised $138,570, Tom Kunse raised $78,354, Mike Hoadley raised $66,515, Matthew Bierlein raised $31,845, and Dean Riley raised $0.

Matthew Bierlein advanced to the general election with 59 percent of the vote, Rodney Wakeman received 30 percent of the vote, Dean Riley received 11 percent of the vote, Tom Kunse withdrew, and Mike Hoadley withdrew.

#5 District 59 – $282,577

Incumbent Terence Mekoski raised $140,771, Douglas Wozniak raised $141,806, and Frank Cusumano raised $0.

Douglas Wozniak advanced to the general election with 52 percent of the vote, Terence Mekoski received 34 percent of the vote, and Frank Cusumano received 14 percent of the vote.

The data above are based on campaign finance reports that active Michigan PACs submitted to the Michigan Secretary of State. Federal PACs are not required to report to state agencies. Transparency USA publishes campaign finance data following major reporting deadlines. State or federal law may require filers to submit additional reports.

Report Name Report Due Date
2022 Annual/January 1/31/2022
2022 April (PACs) 4/25/2022
2022 July (PACs) 7/25/2022
2022 Post-Primary 9/1/2022
2022 Pre-General 10/28/2023
2022 Post-General 12/8/2022

This article is a joint publication from Ballotpedia and Transparency USA, who are working together to provide campaign finance information for state-level elections. Learn more about our work here.