Kai De Graaf

This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.

Kai De Graaf

Democratic Party

Elections and appointments

Last election

November 8, 2022

Education

Bachelor's

University of Michigan, 1983

Law

Seton Hall University Law School, 1993

Personal

Birthplace

Grand Rapids, Mich.

Religion

Non-practicing Catholic

Profession

Attorney

Contact

Campaign website

Personal Facebook

Personal Twitter

Kai De Graaf (Democratic Party) ran for election to the Michigan State Senate to represent District 18. He lost in the general election on November 8, 2022.

De Graaf completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Kai De Graaf was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan. De Graaf earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Michigan in 1983 and a J.D. from the Seton Hall University Law School in 1993. His career experience includes working as an attorney and government contract supervisor for community services in the South Bronx. De Graaf also worked in community services with the Roman Catholic dioceses of Grand Rapids, Detroit, and Brooklyn and in legal services for migrant farm workers. He has been affiliated with the National Lawyers Guild, American Immigration Lawyers Association, and Democratic Party.

Elections

2022

See also: Michigan State Senate elections, 2022

General election

General election for Michigan State Senate District 18

Thomas Albert defeated Kai De Graaf in the general election for Michigan State Senate District 18 on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Thomas Albert (R)	62.0	72,027
		Kai De Graaf (D)	38.0	44,223

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 116,250
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Michigan State Senate District 18

Kai De Graaf advanced from the Democratic primary for Michigan State Senate District 18 on August 2, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Kai De Graaf	100.0	14,002

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 14,002
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Michigan State Senate District 18

Thomas Albert defeated Ryan Mancinelli in the Republican primary for Michigan State Senate District 18 on August 2, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Thomas Albert	69.8	25,181
	Submit photo	Ryan Mancinelli	30.2	10,912

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 36,093
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Campaign themes

2022

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Kai De Graaf completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by De Graaf's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I was born in West Michigan, and raised in the Eastown neighborhood of Grand Rapids. At the age of 64, and even in my most recent 25 years in private practice as an attorney at law, I have dedicated my life to public service. I care about clean water and good food for all of us. I and dedicated to criminal Justice reform. education; I care about our young people; and I care about continuing a positive growth economy in Western Michigan so that everyone has jobs and access to vital services, particularly health care (!) I have never run for political office, but want an opportunity to be of service to the people of West Michigan as state senator for District 18. Thank you for this opportunity.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• Clean Water
• Health Care
• Equal Justice

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

WATER - Michigan has been blessed with an abundance of water. We in Michigan are very fortunate to have such a resource but we need to take care of our water for future generations, otherwise we will be drinking contaminated water that is beyond repair. What are we leaving our children and our grandchildren. ? Resources should be allocated in our state, making clean water for all our citizens a top priority.

HEALTH CARE - In the USA we spend more on healthcare than most other nations; however, we probably spend less on public sector healthcare than many other nations. This is just shameful. Everyone in this country and in the state of Michigan should receive healthcare whether it is provided by a publicly supported means, a private means or a combination of both.

ABORTION - However anyone feels about using abortion as a means to terminate an unwanted or life-threatening pregnancy, A woman should nonetheless have a right to choose whether or not a utilize that means. While abortion is better left as a last choice, it should always be a woman's choice.

POLICE AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM - We need to support our law enforcement personnel and we also need to make sure that police officers are properly hired, properly trained and properly educated to do the right thing when it comes to making critical decisions on the street. One innocent death by a police bullet is one too many and there's just no excuse for it.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

To be a good listener It is important also to be thorough in analyzing all of the factors that go into a piece of legislation

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

I can work with everyone who I come into contact with

What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?

Do the right thing while representing the interests of all of the people who live in your district.

What legacy would you like to leave?

Laws that benefit all people of our state

What is your favorite book? Why?

"One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
The book is a virtual masterpiece for all ages

What was the last song that got stuck in your head?

Really? OK
"Plastic 100c" by Sampha

What do you believe is the ideal relationship between the governor and state legislature?

While executing the laws passed by our state government, the governor should provide compassionate, yet firm leadership to all, I believe Governor Gretchen Whitmer, has provided such leadership in the State of Michigan.

What do you perceive to be your state's greatest challenges over the next decade?

Make our water, food and fish cleaner everywhere and every day in our state.

Michigan needs to continuously reinvent itself by adopting new technologies to build a green future that is all encompassing, utilizing multiple forms of energy to attain optimal efficiency in both production and in consumerism throughout the whole economy and among all sectors of the state population.

What are the benefits and drawbacks of a unicameral state legislature, in your opinion?

Unicameral state legislature may be more efficient, but it is not as representative of the peoples' goals and objectives, wants and needs.

Do you believe that it’s beneficial for state legislators to have previous experience in government or politics?

Yes, beneficial but not necessary

Do you believe it’s beneficial to build relationships with other legislators? Please explain your answer.

Yes, without relationships between legislators, there is no compromise; and without compromise one cannot get things done in star or federal government.

What process do you favor for redistricting?

Any redistricting process should be attempt to achieve equal representation throughout the district.

If you are not a current legislator, are there certain committees that you would want to be a part of?

Environmental
Appropriations

If you are a current legislator, what appealed to you about your current committees?

N/A

Are you interested in running for a different political office (for example, the U.S. Congress or governor) in the future?

Perhaps

Both sitting legislators and candidates for office hear many personal stories from the residents of their district. Is there a story that you’ve heard that you found particularly touching, memorable, or impactful?

I hear so many stories all the time, but one thing that resonates throughout the population is that people really need healthcare--- affordable healthcare; good quality healthcare. Our system is just not working the way it should.

Should the legislature oversee or grant the use of emergency powers?

Yes. There should be oversight of emergency powers however, the legislature's ability to curtail executive power should itself be limited

Do you believe that compromise is necessary or desirable for policymaking?

Yes, compromise is always necessary

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

See also

2022 Elections

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Government

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Newsletters

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External links

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Candidate

Michigan State Senate District 18

Website

Personal

Facebook

Twitter

Footnotes

[show]

Current members of the Michigan State Senate

Senators

District 1

Erika Geiss (D)

District 2

Sylvia Santana (D)

District 3

Stephanie Chang (D)

District 4

Darrin Camilleri (D)

District 5

Dayna Polehanki (D)

District 6

Mary Cavanagh (D)

District 7

Jeremy Moss (D)

District 8

Mallory McMorrow (D)

District 9

Michael Webber (R)

District 10

Paul Wojno (D)

District 11

Veronica Klinefelt (D)

District 12

Kevin Hertel (D)

District 13

Rosemary Bayer (D)

District 14

Sue Shink (D)

District 15

Jeff Irwin (D)

District 16

Joseph Bellino (R)

District 17

Jonathan Lindsey (R)

District 18

Thomas Albert (R)

District 19

Sean McCann (D)

District 20

Aric Nesbitt (R)

District 21

Sarah Anthony (D)

District 22

Lana Theis (R)

District 23

Jim Runestad (R)

District 24

Ruth Johnson (R)

District 25

Dan Lauwers (R)

District 26

Kevin Daley (R)

District 27

John Cherry (D)

District 28

Sam Singh (D)

District 29

Winnie Brinks (D)

District 30

Mark Huizenga (R)

District 31

Roger Victory (R)

District 32

Jon Bumstead (R)

District 33

Rick Outman (R)

District 34

Roger Hauck (R)

District 35

Vacant

District 36

Michele Hoitenga (R)

District 37

John Damoose (R)

District 38

Ed McBroom (R)

Democratic Party (19)

Republican Party (18)

Vacancies (1)