Kevin Hertel

Kevin Hertel

Democratic Party

Michigan State Senate District 12

Tenure

2023 - Present

Term ends

2027

Years in position

2

Predecessor

Rosemary Bayer

Prior offices

Michigan House of Representatives District 18

Successor: Jason Hoskins

Predecessor: Sarah Roberts

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Compensation

Base salary

$71,685/year

Per diem

No per diem is paid. Legislators receive an expense allowance of $10,800/year for session and interim.

Elections and appointments

Last elected

November 8, 2022

Education

High school

Notre Dame High School

Bachelor's

Michigan State University

Personal

Profession

Analyst

Contact

Official website

Official Facebook

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Campaign Twitter

Campaign YouTube

Personal Facebook

Personal LinkedIn

Kevin Hertel (Democratic Party) is a member of the Michigan State Senate, representing District 12. He assumed office on January 1, 2023. His current term ends on January 1, 2027.

Hertel (Democratic Party) ran for election to the Michigan State Senate to represent District 12. He won in the general election on November 8, 2022.

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

Biography

Kevin Hertel lives in St. Clair Shores, Michigan, part of metropolitan Detroit. Hertel graduated from Notre Dame High School. Hertel earned a bachelor's degree in political science from Michigan State University. His career experience includes working as a legislative analyst and a special assistant to the office of the president for Blue Cross Blue Shield Michigan.

Committee assignments

Note: This membership information was last updated in September 2023. Ballotpedia completes biannual updates of committee membership. If you would like to send us an update, email us at: editor@ballotpedia.org.

2023-2024

Hertel was assigned to the following committees:

• Senate Appropriations Committee
• Energy and Technology Committee (decommissioned)
• Health Policy Committee, Chair
• Senate Regulatory Reform Committee
• Transportation and Infrastructure Committee
• Families, Seniors, and Veterans Committee_(decommissioned), Majority Vice Chair

2021-2022

Hertel was assigned to the following committees:

• House Regulatory Reform Committee, Minority vice-chair
• Rules and Competitiveness Committee

2019-2020

Hertel was assigned to the following committees:

• Ways and Means Committee

2017 legislative session

At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:

Michigan committee assignments, 2017
• Communications and Technology
• Health Policy
• Oversight, Vice chair

Sponsored legislation

The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.

Elections

2022

See also: Michigan State Senate elections, 2022

General election

General election for Michigan State Senate District 12

Kevin Hertel defeated Pamela Hornberger in the general election for Michigan State Senate District 12 on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Kevin Hertel (D)	50.2	62,772
		Pamela Hornberger (R)	49.8	62,368

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 125,140
= 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 12

Kevin Hertel advanced from the Democratic primary for Michigan State Senate District 12 on August 2, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Kevin Hertel	100.0	25,728

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 25,728
= 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 12

Pamela Hornberger defeated Michael D. Williams in the Republican primary for Michigan State Senate District 12 on August 2, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Pamela Hornberger	64.5	19,198
	Submit photo	Michael D. Williams	35.5	10,547

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 29,745
= 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.

Endorsements

To view Hertel's endorsements in the 2022 election, please click here.

2020

See also: Michigan House of Representatives elections, 2020

General election

General election for Michigan House of Representatives District 18

Incumbent Kevin Hertel defeated Michael Babat and Christine Timmon in the general election for Michigan House of Representatives District 18 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Kevin Hertel (D)	60.3	32,569
		Michael Babat (R)	39.7	21,462
	Submit photo	Christine Timmon (R) (Write-in)	0.0	7

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 54,038
= 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.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Michigan House of Representatives District 18

Incumbent Kevin Hertel defeated Christopher Jeffery and Patrick Biange in the Democratic primary for Michigan House of Representatives District 18 on August 4, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Kevin Hertel	72.6	9,715
		Christopher Jeffery	15.0	2,007
		Patrick Biange	12.4	1,655

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 13,377
= 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 House of Representatives District 18

Michael Babat defeated Christine Timmon and Brian Hakola in the Republican primary for Michigan House of Representatives District 18 on August 4, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Michael Babat	37.1	2,775
	Submit photo	Christine Timmon	37.1	2,771
	Submit photo	Brian Hakola	25.8	1,933

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 7,479
= 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.

2018

See also: Michigan House of Representatives elections, 2018

General election

General election for Michigan House of Representatives District 18

Incumbent Kevin Hertel defeated Kyle McKee in the general election for Michigan House of Representatives District 18 on November 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Kevin Hertel (D)	62.6	25,820
	Submit photo	Kyle McKee (R)	37.4	15,394

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 41,214 (100.00% precincts reporting)
= 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.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Michigan House of Representatives District 18

Incumbent Kevin Hertel advanced from the Democratic primary for Michigan House of Representatives District 18 on August 7, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Kevin Hertel	100.0	11,129

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 11,129
= 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 House of Representatives District 18

Kyle McKee advanced from the Republican primary for Michigan House of Representatives District 18 on August 7, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Kyle McKee	100.0	6,552

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 6,552
= 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.

2016

See also: Michigan House of Representatives elections, 2016

Elections for the Michigan House of Representatives took place in 2016. The primary election was held on August 2, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was April 19, 2016. Incumbent Sarah Roberts (D) did not seek re-election.

Kevin Hertel defeated Renata Polonaise in the Michigan House of Representatives District 18 general election.

Michigan House of Representatives, District 18 General Election, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Kevin Hertel	63.31%	29,247
	Republican	Renata Polonaise	36.69%	16,953
Total Votes				46,200
Source: Michigan Secretary of State

Kevin Hertel defeated Steven Fleck and Paul Francis in the Michigan House of Representatives District 18 Democratic primary.

Michigan House of Representatives, District 18 Democratic Primary, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Kevin Hertel	76.31%	5,454
	Democratic	Steven Fleck	7.12%	509
	Democratic	Paul Francis	16.57%	1,184
Total Votes				7,147

Renata Polonaise ran unopposed in the Michigan House of Representatives District 18 Republican primary.

Michigan House of Representatives, District 18 Republican Primary, 2016
Party		Candidate
	Republican	Renata Polonaise  (unopposed)

Endorsements

In 2016, Hertel's endorsements included the following:

Elected officials

• Sander Levin, United States Congressman
• Steven Bieda, State Senator
• Sarah Roberts, State Representative
• Mark Hackel, Macomb County Executive
• Derek Miller, Macomb County Treasurer
• Dave Flynn, Macomb County Board of Commissioners Chairman
• Veronica Klinefelt, Macomb County Commissioner
• Ron Frederick, St. Clair Shores City Councilman
• Peter Accica, St. Clair Shores City Councilman
• Cardi DeMonaco Jr., Eastpointe City Councilman
• Dennis Olshove, Former State Senator

Organizations

• St. Clair Shores Police Officers Association
• St. Clair Shores Professional Firefighters – IAFF Local 1744
• Michigan Association of Police
• Michigan League of Conservation Voters
• Michigan Building and Construction Trades
• Laborers' Local 1191
• Pipefitters Local 636
• Sheet Metal Workers' Local 80
• Michigan Regional Council of Carpenters
• Michigan Teamsters Joint Council No. 43
• Unite Here Local 24
• Michigan Education Association, Macomb PAC

Campaign themes

2022

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Kevin Hertel completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Hertel'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.

Kevin is a pragmatic leader who is focused on getting things done for the communities he represents. He is focused on improving public education, protecting our Great Lakes and investing in our infrastructure.

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?

• The pandemic caused significant economic hardship, and many in our community are still feeling its effects today. Rising costs, high fuel prices, and supply chain issues are still hitting families hard. That’s why I am fighting for policies that will provide relief to families, bring good-paying jobs back to Michigan, and set up our state for continued economic success.
• Providing quality education to all students is what will propel our state forward. While others push culture wars and attempt to politicize our classrooms, I am laser focused on improving educational outcomes for our children.
• Investing in our infrastructure to provide safe roads and clean drinking water. I have worked to bring resources back to our community to make sure our families have access to infrastructure that allows us to get to work and school safely. I have also worked to update out sewer infrastructure to protect Lake St. Clair and our drinking water systems to ensure everyone has access to clean, safe drinking water.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Kevin recognizes the pride and dedication that Michiganders hold for their public schools. That’s why he:

Advocated for historic investments in students, setting the next generation up for expanded educational opportunities.

Fought tirelessly in support of special education, increased state aid for local school districts and, during the pandemic, for nutrition assistance for children whose primary source of nutrition is in-school meals.

Championed the Michigan Education Savings Program (MESP), allowing parents, grandparents and other family members to help defray the cost of higher education with a 529 savings account, which are free from federal taxation.

Tirelessly fights to protect our children, championing legislation which would require schools to adopt a policy on how to handle disclosures of sexual abuse from students.

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.

2020

Kevin Hertel did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.

2016

Hertel's campaign website highlighted the following issues:

Environment

• Excerpt: "I will fight to ensure that outdated sewage systems in our area are replaced or repaired in order to end the dumping of sewage into our waterways. We must pass legislation to hold communities that dump sewage into our waterways accountable."

Public education

• Excerpt: "I will work every day to ensure our teachers, local school boards and staff have the resources necessary to educate our children. A vibrant Michigan economy begins with a strong public education system."

Higher education

• Excerpt: "We must adequately fund Michigan’s public universities and community colleges to ensure we have the most talented workforce in the country."

Public safety

• Excerpt: "Police officers, firefighters, and EMS workers are vital to our communities. To keep our communities safe, I will work tirelessly to ensure proper revenue sharing is in place to keep police and first responders on our streets."

Senior citizens

• Excerpt: "I will fight to repeal the pension tax and work hard every day to ensure seniors in Michigan receive the respect they have earned."

Roads

• Excerpt: "As a state, we must responsibly maintain our infrastructure. I will work hard to ensure we don’t ignore this issue and will fight to bring road funding to the 18th District."

Campaign finance summary

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Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.

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Kevin Hertel campaign contribution history

Year	Office	Status	Contributions	Expenditures
2022	Michigan State Senate District 12	Won general	$1,819,555	$0
2020	Michigan House of Representatives District 18	Won general	$114,741	N/A**
2018	Michigan House of Representatives District 18	Won general	$90,493	N/A**
2016	Michigan House of Representatives, District 18	Won	$90,007	N/A**
Grand total			$2,114,796	N/A**
Sources: OpenSecrets,  Federal Elections Commission ***This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
** Data on expenditures is not available for this election cycle
Note: Totals above reflect only available data.

Scorecards

See also: State legislative scorecards and State legislative scorecards in Michigan

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.

Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.

Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states.  To contribute to the list of Michigan scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.

2024

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2024, click [show].

In 2024, the Michigan State Legislature was in session from January 10 to December 23. Michigan AFL-CIO Legislators are scored on labor issues. Michigan Chamber Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. Michigan Farm Bureau Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to agriculture. Michigan League of Conservation Voters Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. National Federation of Independent Business Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.

2023

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2023, click [show].
In 2023, the Michigan State Legislature was in session from January 11 to November 14. Michigan AFL-CIO Advocates Legislators are scored on labor issues. Michigan League of Conservation Voters Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

2022

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2022, click [show].

In 2022, the Michigan State Legislature was in session from January 12 to December 28. Clean Water Action & Sierra Club Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. Michigan AFL-CIO Legislators are scored on labor issues. Michigan Chamber Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. Michigan Farm Bureau Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to agriculture. Michigan League of Conservation Voters Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. MIRS: Senate and House Legislators are scored on a number of bills selected by the editor of MIRS, a state capitol newsletter. National Federation of Independent Business Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.

2021

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2021, click [show].

In 2021, the Michigan State Legislature was in session from January 13 to December 31. Clean Water Action & Sierra Club Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. Michigan AFL-CIO Legislators are scored on labor issues. Michigan Farm Bureau Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to agriculture. Michigan League of Conservation Voters Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. MIRS: Senate and House Legislators are scored on a number of bills selected by the editor of MIRS, a state capitol newsletter. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

2020

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2020, click [show].

In 2020, the Michigan State Legislature was in session from January 8 to December 31. Clean Water Action & Sierra Club Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. Michigan AFL-CIO Legislators are scored on labor issues. Michigan Farm Bureau Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to agriculture. Michigan League of Conservation Voters Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. National Federation of Independent Business Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

2019

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2019, click [show].

In 2019, the Michigan State Legislature was in session from January 9 through December 31. Clean Water Action & Sierra Club Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. Michigan AFL-CIO Legislators are scored on labor issues. Michigan Farm Bureau Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to agriculture. Michigan League of Conservation Voters Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. National Federation of Independent Business Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

2018

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2018, click [show].

In 2018, the Michigan State Legislature was in session from January 10 through December 31. Business Leaders for Michigan Legislators and candidates are scored on their economy policy views. Michigan Chamber of Commerce: Senate and House Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. Michigan Farm Bureau Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to agriculture. Michigan League of Conservation Voters Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. Michigan Sierra Club Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. MIRS: Senate and House Legislators are scored on a number of bills selected by the editor of MIRS, a state capitol newsletter. Right Michigan Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to conservative issues. National Federation of Independent Business in Michigan: 2017-2018 voting record Legislators are scored based on their votes on small business issues. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

2017

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2017, click [show].

In 2017, the Michigan State Legislature was in session from January 11 through December 31. Americans for Prosperity: Senate and House Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to economic issues. Michigan Chamber of Commerce: Senate and House Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. Michigan Farm Bureau Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to agriculture. Michigan League of Conservation Voters Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. Michigan Sierra Club Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. MIRS: Senate and House Legislators are scored on a number of bills selected by the editor of MIRS, a state capitol newsletter. Right Michigan Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to conservative issues. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

2016

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2016, click [show].

In 2016, the Michigan State Legislature was in session from January 13 through December 31. Americans for Prosperity Michigan Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to economic issues. Michigan Chamber of Commerce: House Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. Michigan Farm Bureau Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to agriculture. Michigan League of Conservation Voters Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. Michigan Sierra Club Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues. MIRS: Senate and House Legislators are scored on a number of bills selected by the editor of MIRS, a state capitol newsletter. National Federation of Independent Business Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

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Michigan State Senate District 12

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Footnotes

Political offices
Preceded by Rosemary Bayer (D)	Michigan State Senate District 12 2023-Present	Succeeded by -
Preceded by Sarah Roberts (D)	Michigan House of Representatives District 18 2017-2023	Succeeded by Jason Hoskins (D)

[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)