Judge of District Court, 61st District, City of Grand Rapids
Grand Rapids city, Michigan
My vote power
High
Election date
November 3, 2026 · General election · 2 seats
How do we calculate my vote power?
What goes into the rating: Representation: how much weight one vote carries here compared with a statewide vote — the smaller the district, the more each vote counts. Decisiveness: how likely this race is to be close, based on past results or current analyst ratings, plus the number of candidates.
Representation: High · 68 out of 100
This district is a small slice of its state, so each vote here carries much more weight than a vote in a statewide race. About 198,535 people live here.
Show the representation math
score = 50 + 50 × ln(state population ÷ this district's) ÷ ln(50,000) = 50 + 50 × ln(10,077,761 ÷ 198,535) ÷ ln(50,000) = 68.15, measured against a statewide vote in MI (grades: 66+ high, 33+ normal, otherwise low; a statewide race is the 50 baseline)
Decisiveness: Unknown
No analyst ratings or past results for this contest yet.
High representation → My vote power: High.
Some data is missing, so this rating is based on partial information and capped at "High".
About this office
- Deciding traffic tickets and fines
- Deciding small claims cases
- Ruling on city code violations
Affects: Public Safety and Crime Control, Housing Affordability, Civil Rights,
Candidates
Nonpartisan · Incumbent · declared
Chief Judge of Grand Rapids' 61st District Court, appointed to the bench in 2022 after serving as the city's director of criminal enforcement, with a DePaul law degree. She presides over the court's Felony Sobriety Court, expanding treatment and behavioral health coordination.
Records: Legal Competence 1 for, Public Safety and Crime Control 1 for
Nonpartisan · Incumbent · declared
Judge of Grand Rapids' 61st District Court since his 2023 appointment, a Cooley Law School graduate and former Kent County public defender. He works on addressing racial disparities in the courtroom and on trial-skills training for indigent defense.
Records: Civil Rights 1 for, Public Safety and Crime Control 1 for
Sources: kentcountymi.gov · grcourt.org