3 newcomers win contested races to join Bay County Board of Commissioners

BAY COUNTY, MI – Voters in Bay County decided bids for four seats on the county board of commissioners in the November general election.

Tim Banaszak, Larry Beson, Christopher T. Rupp and Jerome Crete, all Republicans, were each elected to serve on the county board, representing district 2, 4, 5 and 7, respectively. That's according to the unofficial vote totals provided by the Bay County Clerk's Office.

Incumbent Banaszak defeated Democrat Kathie Marchlewski, racking up 5,241 votes to 3,081.

Beson, with 3,997 votes, defeated Democrat Colleen M. Maillette, who received 3,893 votes. He was joined by Rupp, who defeated Democrat incumbent Thomas M. Herek, 4,124 votes to 3,926, and Crete, who defeated Democrat Marnie Westphal, 4,539 to 3,606, as newcomers to the board.

The Bay County Board of Commissioners is the county's legislative branch, comprised of seven elected officials who serve four-year terms. Each seat was up this year, with the candidates for the other three districts running unopposed.

Kathy Niemiec (1st District) and Vaughn Begick (3rd District) will each be reelected to their seats. Former Bay City Commissioner and interim mayor Jesse Dockett ran unopposed for the county's 6th district.