OTTAWA COUNTY, Mich. — Ottawa County's political makeup is changing following Tuesday's general election. The county board will return to having a lone Democrat despite having a candidate from their party in every county commissioner race.
Commissioners backed by the Republican group Ottawa Impact have made their mark over the last year, but their power on the board will also change.
"Ottawa County electing 10 Republicans, very thankful for that. Still, a very strong conservative county, one of the leading conservative counties, maybe the leading in the state," Ottawa County Commissioner Chairperson and Ottawa Impact Founder Joe Moss told FOX17.
Moss, and his fellow OI founder Sylvia Rhodea, won their seats two years ago with five other PAC members.
"Two years ago, coming in and abolishing our DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) Department. Now you look at what's happened nationally with the DEI movement; it's being decimated," Moss added.
Since the initial meeting, where OI commissioners made sweeping changes, there have been several shifts in the board's makeup.
First Commissioner Jacob Bonnema separated from the group not long after the new board was sworn into office. He explained that the OI commissioners needed to be more transparent and fiscally responsible with government spending.
In late 2023, Republican Commissioner Kyle Terpstra stepped away from the Board of Commissioners. The OI-backed majority appointed Republican Kendra Wenzel, who is affiliated with the group. This appointment brought the group back to its seven-member majority.
Commissioner and OI member Lucy Ebel lost out in a recall race to Democratic challenger Chris Kleinjans in May.
Then, in the August primary, there was another shift, one in which we saw several OI commissioners lose out to represent the Republican Party in the presidential race.
OI Commissioners Gretchen Cosby and Roger Belknap both lost. However, they submitted to be considered write-ins on the November ballot.
Unofficial results show that Cosby and Belknap don't have the votes needed to surpass the newly elected Republican commissioners.
District Two Commissioner-elect Republican Jordan Jorritsma won his seat by beating Kleinjans by 237 votes. This race was the closest one of the 11 commissioner races.
"I'm excited, but really just feel very grateful, very honored, that the people of the second district put their faith in me and want representation — conservative, common sense representation — for the next four years," Jorritsma told FOX 17.
Jorritsma was one of more than 30 people vying to be an Ottawa commissioner. All but one seat had a Republican challenger. Jorritsma told FOX 17 that he disagreed with the OI commissioners' direction in the county.
"I am running because I was not thrilled with what I saw happening," Jorritsma said in July.
The newly elected commissioner recently told FOX 17 the need to work towards bringing stability to the county.
"I have no ill will against anyone in Ottawa Impact. I have no ill will against the Democrats. I will look forward to working with Ottawa Impact commissioners and Ottawa Impact supporters," Jorritsma said.
Jorritsma isn't the only newly elected Republican commissioner. The people in Ottawa County voted in favor of Phil Kuyers, James Barry, John Teeples and Josh Brugger.
Before they all take office for the next four years, the current county board still has two months in office to make decisions for the county. One item on the board that could happen before the end of the year is hiring a potential permanent county administrator.
"There'll be some process, probably some public interviews, public comment, things like that. And then it'll get passed up to the board," Moss said.
The new board is set to be sworn in next January.
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