Cindy Gamrat
Cindy Gamrat was a 2016 Republican special election candidate for District 80 of the Michigan House of Representatives.[1][2]
Gamrat is a former Republican member of the Michigan House of Representatives, representing District 80. She was first elected to the chamber in 2014 and was expelled from office early on Friday, September 11, 2015, for misconduct related to an extramarital affair with Rep. Todd Courser (R-Lapeer). Courser resigned shortly before Gamrat's expulsion.[3]
Committee assignments
2015 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Gamrat served on the following committees:
| Michigan committee assignments, 2015 |
|---|
| • Appropriations |
Sponsored legislation
Elections
2015
A special election for the position of Michigan House of Representatives District 80 was called for March 8, 2016. A primary election took place on November 3, 2015. The filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was September 18, 2015.[1]
The seat was vacant following Cindy Gamrat's (R) historic expulsion on September 11, 2015. She was expelled for misconduct related to an extramarital affair with Rep. Todd Courser (R-Lapeer).[3]
David Gernant was unopposed in the Democratic primary, while Mary Whiteford defeated Eric De Witt, Cindy Gamrat, Bill Sage, James Siver, Jim Storey, Shannon Szukala and Kevin Travis in the Republican primary.[2] Arnie Davidsons ran as an Libertarian candidate. Whiteford defeated Gernant and Davidsons in the special election.[4][5]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican |  Mary Whiteford |
64% | 14,860 | |
| Democratic | David Gernant | 29.9% | 6,945 | |
| Libertarian | Arnie Davidsons | 6.1% | 1,424 | |
| Total Votes | 23,229 | |||
| Michigan House of Representatives, District 80 Republican Primary, 2015 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|
Mary Whiteford |
51.1% | 5,545 |
| Jim Storey | 26.3% | 2,859 |
| Cindy Gamrat | 8.9% | 962 |
| Bill Sage | 7.3% | 794 |
| Kevin Travis | 3.2% | 348 |
| James Siver | 1.3% | 145 |
| Eric De Witt | 1.3% | 145 |
| Shannon Szukala | 0.6% | 60 |
| Total Votes | 10,858 | |
2014
Elections for the Michigan House of Representatives took place in 2014. A primary election was held on August 5, 2014, and a general election was held on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was April 22, 2014. Geoff Parker was unopposed in the Democratic primary. Cindy Gamrat defeated Randy Brink, Stephen Schulz and Mary Whiteford in the Republican primary. Gamrat defeated Parker and Arnis Davidsons (L) in the general election.[6][7][8][9]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Cindy Gamrat |
62.8% | 17,632 | |
| Democratic | Geoff Parker | 33.7% | 9,451 | |
| Libertarian | Arnis Davidsons | 3.6% | 1,003 | |
| Total Votes | 28,086 | |||
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|---|---|---|
|
Cindy Gamrat |
40.8% | 3,924 |
| Mary Whiteford | 29.1% | 2,798 |
| Stephen Schulz | 25.6% | 2,462 |
| Randy Brink | 4.4% | 427 |
| Total Votes | 9,611 | |
Endorsements
In 2014, Gamrat's endorsements included the following:
- Right to Life of Michigan[10]
Campaign themes
2014
Gamrat's website highlighted the following campaign themes:[11]
Individual Liberty
- Excerpt: "I shall do everything in my power to protect all of our Constitutional freedoms including our freedoms of speech, religion, and the right to bear arms."
Second Amendment
- Excerpt: "All other freedoms hinge on our Second Amendment freedoms and I will stand STRONG to protect them!"
Economic Freedom
- Excerpt: "I will stand STRONG to fight for our citizens to keep more of their hard earned money and for free market solutions to reduce government red tape and obstacles to business growth and opportunities."
Freedom to Work
- Excerpt: "I will stand STRONG in support of the new Freedom to Work legislation that was recently passed in Michigan."
Religious Freedom
- Excerpt: "I will stand STRONG for religious freedom against any attacks that may come it's way."
Campaign finance summary
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Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
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Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
Below you can find the scorecards found for the Michigan State Legislature in 2025.
- Michigan AFL-CIO Advocates — Legislators are scored on labor issues.
- Michigan League of Conservation Voters — Legislators are scored on environmental issues.
Below you can find the scorecards found for the Michigan State Legislature in 2024.
- Michigan AFL-CIO Advocates — Legislators are scored on labor issues.
- Michigan Chamber of Commerce — Legislators are scored on business-related bills.
- Michigan Farm Bureau — Legislators are scored on agriculture-related bills.
- Michigan League of Conservation Voters — Legislators are scored on environmental issues.
- National Federation of Independent Business — Legislators are scored on business-related bills.
- The Freedom Index — Legislators are scored on their adherence to the limited government principles of the U.S. Constitution.
Below you can find the scorecards found for the Michigan State Legislature in 2023.
- Michigan AFL-CIO Advocates — Legislators are scored on labor issues.
- Michigan League of Conservation Voters — Legislators are scored on environmental issues.
- The American Conservative Union — Legislators are scored on conservative issues.
- The Freedom Index — Legislators are scored on their adherence to the limited government principles of the U.S. Constitution.
Below you can find the scorecards found for the Michigan State Legislature in 2022.
- Clean Water Action & Sierra Club — Legislators are scored on environmental issues.
- Michigan AFL-CIO — Legislators are scored on labor issues.
- Michigan Chamber of Commerce — Legislators are scored on business-related bills.
- Michigan Farm Bureau — Legislators are scored on agriculture-related bills.
- Michigan League of Conservation Voters — Legislators are scored on environmental issues.
- MIRS — Legislators are scored on bills selected by the MIRS editor.
- National Federation of Independent Business — Legislators are scored on business-related bills.
Below you can find the scorecards found for the Michigan State Legislature in 2021.
- Clean Water Action & Sierra Club — Legislators are scored on environmental issues.
- Michigan League of Conservation Voters — Legislators are scored on environmental issues.
- MIRS — Legislators are scored on bills selected by the MIRS editor.
- The American Conservative Union — Legislators are scored on conservative issues.
Below you can find the scorecards found for the Michigan State Legislature in 2020.
- Clean Water Action & Sierra Club — Legislators are scored on environmental issues.
- Michigan AFL-CIO — Legislators are scored on labor issues.
- Michigan Farm Bureau — Legislators are scored on agriculture-related bills.
- Michigan League of Conservation Voters — Legislators are scored on environmental issues.
- National Federation of Independent Business — Legislators are scored on business-related bills.
- The American Conservative Union — Legislators are scored on conservative issues.
Below you can find the scorecards found for the Michigan State Legislature in 2019.
- Clean Water Action & Sierra Club — Legislators are scored on environmental issues.
- Michigan AFL-CIO — Legislators are scored on labor issues.
- Michigan Farm Bureau — Legislators are scored on agriculture-related bills.
- Michigan League of Conservation Voters — Legislators are scored on environmental issues.
- National Federation of Independent Business — Legislators are scored on business-related bills.
- The American Conservative Union — Legislators are scored on conservative issues.
Below you can find the scorecards found for the Michigan State Legislature in 2018.
- Business Leaders for Michigan — Legislators and candidates are scored on economic policy views.
- Michigan Chamber of Commerce — Legislators are scored on business-related bills.
- Michigan Farm Bureau — Legislators are scored on agriculture-related bills.
- Michigan League of Conservation Voters — Legislators are scored on environmental issues.
- MIRS — Legislators are scored on bills selected by the MIRS editor.
- National Federation of Independent Business — Legislators are scored on small-business issues.
- Sierra Club Michigan — Legislators are scored on environmental issues.
- The American Conservative Union — Legislators are scored on conservative issues.
Below you can find the scorecards found for the Michigan State Legislature in 2017.
- Americans for Prosperity - Michigan — Legislators are scored on economic issues.
- Michigan Chamber of Commerce — Legislators are scored on business-related bills.
- Michigan Farm Bureau — Legislators are scored on agriculture-related bills.
- Michigan League of Conservation Voters — Legislators are scored on environmental issues.
- MIRS — Legislators are scored on bills selected by the MIRS editor.
- Sierra Club Michigan — Legislators are scored on environmental issues.
- The American Conservative Union — Legislators are scored on conservative issues.
Below you can find the scorecards found for the Michigan State Legislature in 2016.
- Americans for Prosperity - Michigan — Legislators are scored on economic issues.
- Michigan Chamber of Commerce — Legislators are scored on business-related bills.
- Michigan Farm Bureau — Legislators are scored on agriculture-related bills.
- Michigan League of Conservation Voters — Legislators are scored on environmental issues.
- MIRS — Legislators are scored on bills selected by the MIRS editor.
- National Federation of Independent Business — Legislators are scored on business-related bills.
- The American Conservative Union — Legislators are scored on conservative issues.
Below you can find the scorecards found for the Michigan State Legislature in 2015.
- The American Conservative Union — Legislators are scored on conservative issues.
Below you can find the scorecards found for the Michigan State Legislature in 2014.
- Clean Water Action — Legislators are scored on water-related bills.
- Michigan Chamber of Commerce — Legislators are scored on business-related bills.
- Michigan League of Conservation Voters — Legislators are scored on environmental issues.
- MIRS — Legislators are scored on bills selected by the MIRS editor.
- Sierra Club Michigan — Legislators are scored on environmental issues.
- The American Conservative Union — Legislators are scored on conservative issues.
Noteworthy events
Extramarital affair
On August 7, 2015, The Detroit News reported that Rep. Todd Courser distributed a fake email that suggested that he had sex with a male prostitute so he could hide his affair with Rep. Gamrat. Courser's former aide Ben Graham secretly made audio recordings of Courser asking him to help hide the affair.[12] After the affair was revealed, House Speaker Kevin Cotter (R-99) ordered an investigation into whether the representatives used their offices to cover up the affair.[13]
On August 24, 2015, House Speaker Cotter was presented with the findings of the investigation, but it was not until August 31 that the investigative report was revealed to the public.[14] The investigation found that Courser and Gamrat were guilty of misconduct in office.[15]
A House select committee began hearings on September 1.[15] Courser and Gamrat apologized for their actions before the committee and asked for censure.[16][17]
On September 10, 2015, the special committee voted 4-0 to recommend expulsion from the state House. The recommendation then went before the full state House and at 4:13 a.m. on Friday, September 11, 2015, the House voted 91-12 to expel Gamrat from office. Courser resigned at 3:12 a.m., shortly before the House made a third attempt to expel him.[18][3]
See also
- Michigan House of Representatives
- Michigan House of Representatives District 80
- Michigan House of Representatives elections, 2014
- State legislative special elections, 2016
- Michigan State Legislature
External links
- Candidate list
- Legislative Profile from Project Vote Smart
- Biography from Project Vote Smart
- Profile from Vote-USA
- Cindy Gamrat on Facebook
- Cindy Gamrat on Twitter
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Detroit Free Press, "Calley announces elections for Courser, Gamrat seats," accessed September 14, 2015
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Michigan Department of State, "2016 Unofficial Michigan Special Primary Candidate Listing," accessed September 21, 2015
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 The Detroit News, "House expels Gamrat; Courser resigns before vote," September 11, 2015
- ↑ Michigan Secretary of State, "2016 Michigan Election Results: General election," accessed March 28, 2016
- ↑ Michigan Secretary of State, "2016 Michigan Election Results: Primary election," accessed March 28, 2016
- ↑ Michigan Secretary of State, "Representative in State Legislature," accessed August 6, 2014
- ↑ Michigan Secretary of State, "Representative in State Legislature," accessed December 5, 2014
- ↑ Michigan Secretary of State, "2014 Official Michigan Primary Candidate Listing," accessed May 27, 2014
- ↑ Michigan Secretary of State, "2014 Official Michigan General Candidate Listing," accessed September 8, 2014
- ↑ Right to Life of Michigan, "Elections," accessed June 18, 2014
- ↑ cindygamrat.com, "Issues," accessed July 31, 2014
- ↑ detroitnews.com, "Recordings: State rep asked aide to hide relationship," August 7, 2015
- ↑ NY Daily News, "Michigan Rep. Todd Courser asks aide to cover up affair with House colleague, say he had gay sex with prostitute in leaked audio," August 7, 2015
- ↑ woodtv.com, "Speaker: Evidence of misconduct from Courser, Gamrat," accessed August 27, 2015
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 freep.com/, "House report: Courser, Gamrat guilty of misconduct," accessed August 31, 2015
- ↑ woodtv.com, "Rep. Gamrat admits to misconduct; asks for censure," accessed September 8, 2015
- ↑ mlive.com/, "Michigan Rep. Todd Courser, seeking censure, apologizes for bizarre email: 'I wanted to die'," accessed September 9, 2015
- ↑ Holland Sentinel, "UPDATE: Panel urges expulsion for Cindy Gamrat, Todd Courser for misconduct," accessed September 10, 2015
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Bob Genetski (R) |
Michigan House of Representatives District 80 Jan. 1, 2015–Sept. 11, 2015 |
Succeeded by Mary Whiteford (R) |
