Check your own ballot. This guide is built from the St. Joseph County official candidate list dated 9/21/2026 and news voter guides. Look up your exact sample ballot (precinct-specific races, local proposals) at Michigan.gov/Vote. A "(R)" nominee is the Republican Party's nominee; Supreme Court and some boards are nonpartisan ballots, with party-convention nominations noted.
Republican slate at a glance
- Governor: John James (Lt. Gov. running mate Jay DeBoyer)
- U.S. Senate: Mike Rogers
- Attorney General: Doug Lloyd · Secretary of State: Anthony Forlini
- U.S. House (5th): Tim Walberg (incumbent)
- State Senate (17th): Jonathan Lindsey (incumbent) · State House (36th): Steve Carra (incumbent)
- Supreme Court (GOP-nominated, vote 2): Michael D. Warren Jr., Casandra Morse-Bills
- State Board of Education (vote 2): Bree Moeggenberg, Terence Collins
- U. of Michigan Regents (vote 2): Lena Epstein, Michael Schostak
- MSU Trustees (vote 2): Julie Maday, Roger Victory
- Wayne State Governors (vote 2): Andy Anuzis, Christa Murphy
Voting history on big topics
Only candidates who have held legislative office have votes. Everything below is sourced; where I couldn't find a vote, I say so rather than guess. Ratings come from outside groups, which pick their own bills.
John James (R) – Governor · U.S. House 2023–present
- Big budget/tax bill (One Big Beautiful Bill, 2025): Yes on final passage (his office's July 3, 2025 statement). It passed 218–214.
- Ukraine aid (Apr 2024, $60.8B): Yes. Per a Deadline Detroit roundup, he was the only Michigan Republican to vote for both the Ukraine and Israel bills. Walberg, Bergman, Huizenga, McClain and Moolenaar voted no.
- Border/immigration (Laken Riley Act, 2024 House version): cosponsor, Yes.
- Abortion (pro-life groups): SBA Pro-Life America describes him as consistently voting against abortion and taxpayer funding of it, and credits him with helping defund Planned Parenthood's Medicaid dollars for a year in the 2025 reconciliation bill (H.R. 1). The Michigan Democratic Party says he holds an A+ from SBA; I couldn't confirm the grade on SBA's page.
- Abortion (his stance): backed overturning Roe. In 2018 he called himself "100% pro-life." Since Michigan's 2022 Proposal 3 he has called the issue "decided" (NOTUS). He says he never said it was settled, and that he'd always vote to protect the life of the mother and child.
- Abortion (opponents' claims, partisan): DCCC, EMILY's List and American Bridge say he voted to restrict mifepristone, backed penalties for abortion doctors and opposed rape/incest exceptions. I did not verify these against roll calls.
- Transgender/LGBTQ: a voter guide says he voted to bar transgender students from girls' sports (the 2023 sports bill) and to make gender-affirming care for minors a federal crime. Those come from secondary sources, so verify against the House roll call. In 2018 he said employers shouldn't be able to fire someone for being gay. He wasn't in the House for the 2022 Respect for Marriage Act vote. His 2026 parents' plan would ban transgender girls from girls' sports.
- Party loyalty: trackers disagree: about 87% to 97% with the Republican majority, depending on method. Missed about 5% of roll calls (GovTrack, Jan 2023 – Sep 2026).
- Not found: his Heritage Action or ACU ratings, and his votes on the 2023 debt-limit deal or 2025 spending bills.
Mike Rogers (R) – U.S. Senate · U.S. House (8th) 2001–2015
- Obamacare: opposed it.
- Abortion: consistently anti-abortion; cosponsored several bills to restrict it.
- Surveillance: backed the Patriot Act. In 2013 he defended NSA phone-records collection against Justin Amash's amendment to curb it (the amendment failed narrowly).
- 2008 Wall Street bailout: No. Auto bailout: Yes.
- Iraq war (2002): Yes. Medicare Part D: Yes. Generally pro-free-trade.
- Conservative rating: Heritage scored him 53% lifetime vs. a 61% House Republican average (Bridge Michigan). Some conservatives will weigh this, and the bailout, Part D and surveillance votes above.
- Abortion (his stance): said in 2010 abortion should be legal only to prevent the mother's death, and backed a federal 20-week ban in 2013 (per Michigan Democratic Party summaries of press reports).
- Abortion (opponents' claims, partisan): Democratic groups say he cosponsored "personhood" bills defining life at fertilization, bills to suspend FDA approval of mifepristone (twice), and bills they say would restrict IVF. PolitiFact rated one related IVF/contraception claim "Half True." El-Sayed's campaign says he backed bans with no exceptions, which conflicts with his own 2010 statement. Check the primary record.
- Transgender/LGBTQ: opposes transgender athletes in girls' sports. Per advocacy sources: defended efforts to ban same-sex marriage (2004), voted against ENDA (2007), against repealing "don't ask, don't tell" (2010), and against hate-crime expansion. Verify against the roll calls.
- Not found: his debt-ceiling, gun and immigration votes, and ACU ratings.
Tim Walberg (R) – U.S. House, 5th District (your congressman)
- Big budget/tax bill (One Big Beautiful Bill, 2025): Yes on the May 22 and July 3, 2025 votes.
- Ukraine aid: No in March 2022 and again in April 2024.
- Jan. 6, 2021 electoral count: voted to object to Arizona and Pennsylvania's electoral votes (the objections lost 303–121). About two weeks later he said it was time to "accept the results."
- Debt limit: supports a constitutional amendment requiring a 3/5 vote to raise it (his website). No debt-ceiling vote found.
- Abortion: voted for the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act (H.R. 1797, 2013, limits abortion after five months) and for permanent Hyde Amendment / no taxpayer funding of abortion (H.R. 7, 2017). SBA List endorsed him in 2014 and said he held a 100 rating from National Right to Life at that time. These ratings are old; I found no current-Congress score.
- Same-sex marriage: voted No on the 2022 Respect for Marriage Act, with Bergman, Huizenga, McClain and Moolenaar. Only Meijer and Upton voted yes among Michigan Republicans.
- Conservative ratings: Heritage Action lifetime about 75%, 81% for the current Congress. Session scores ranged from 58% (115th) to 98% (117th). ACU yearly ratings run from the mid-70s to high-90s (Vote Smart).
- Not found: his votes on Obamacare repeal and Social Security.
Steve Carra (R) – State House 36th · House since 2021
- Environment/energy: Michigan LCV gives him 6% for 2021–2026, including votes on repealing the 2023 Clean Energy and Jobs Act.
- Self-reported (unverified): says he is the only state rep with a 100% score at freedomindex.us, and was ranked most conservative by MIRS News in 2022. His office also said he cast every floor vote in 2021.
- Abortion: opposed repealing Michigan's 1931 abortion ban after Proposal 3 (2023). Only two Republicans, Thomas Kuhn and Donni Steele, joined Democrats on the repeal. I confirmed his opposition from his statements, not from the roll call. Check HB 4006 and HB 4032 on legislature.mi.gov for his recorded vote.
- Transgender/parental rights: voted yes on a 2022 House resolution condemning Michigan Department of Education teacher training videos on student gender orientation and reaffirming parents' rights (adopted 58–39). In 2025 all House Republicans voted for the girls' sports ban (HB 4066, 58–46). I did not confirm Carra's individual vote on it or on the bathroom bill (HB 4024).
- Record: 3,021 votes since 2021 on MichiganVotes. I couldn't pull specific votes on guns, abortion, taxes or the budget. Search that page by topic.
Jonathan Lindsey (R) – State Senate 17th (incumbent, elected 2022)
- Abortion: I found no abortion votes for him (the Senate voted to repeal several state abortion restrictions after Proposal 3, but I couldn't tie his vote to it).
- Full voting history 2023–present is on MichiganVotes. I did not find his votes on abortion, guns or the budget in what I could read, so I'm not characterizing them.
Anthony Forlini (R) – Secretary of State · State House 2011–2016, Macomb County Clerk since 2021
- 4,093 votes in the House. Sampled votes include Yes on a 2015 bill extending state preemption of local gun control to air guns.
- Abortion: I found no abortion votes for him.
- Not found: a full ideological score. Browse his MichiganVotes page for the rest.
Michigan context: voters approved Proposal 3 in November 2022 (57%), putting abortion rights in the state constitution, so state-level abortion restrictions face that standard. Doug Lloyd (AG) has no legislative record, and I found nothing on his abortion position.
No legislative votes exist for Jocelyn Benson, Abdul El-Sayed, Garlin Gilchrist, Eli Savit, Doug Lloyd, Cole Slaski, Christian Vukasovich or Ashleigh Baker as far as I found. Gilchrist and Benson have executive records. I did not research their records.
Sources: Bridge Michigan on Rogers · GovTrack: James · Heritage Action: Walberg · SBA: James · NOTUS on James · OnTheIssues: Walberg · Michigan Advance on 1931 repeal · Michigan Advance on Jan. 6 objections · Michigan LCV: Carra · Carra questionnaire
Statewide ballot proposals
Two questions on every Michigan ballot. A third (proof of citizenship to register) was kept off by the Michigan Supreme Court.
Proposal 1 – Constitutional convention
Asks whether Michigan should hold a convention to rewrite the state constitution (this question appears automatically every 16 years). Yes starts the process; any new document would go back to voters. No keeps the current constitution. A group called Protect MI Constitution From Special Interests has raised over $860,000 to oppose it.
Proposal 2 – "Michiganders for Money Out of Politics"
A proposed law barring certain regulated utilities and large government contractors from donating to campaigns of officials who could affect their business, and expanding disclosure for political communications, including online. Yes adopts the law (no governor signature needed). No rejects it. Opponents say the campaign has not been fully upfront about who it affects. Read the full ballot language before you vote.
Official resources
- Michigan.gov/Vote – sample ballot, polling place, registration, absentee tracking
- St. Joseph County official candidate listings
- City of Three Rivers election info · City Clerk Leslie Wilson, 269-273-1075 ext. 108
- Votebeat Michigan voter guide
- Ballotpedia: U.S. Senate · Governor race