Klint Kesto

This page was current at the end of the official's last term in office covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.

Klint Kesto

Republican Party

Prior offices:

Michigan House of Representatives District 39

Years in office: 2013 - 2019

Successor: Ryan Berman (R)

Elections and appointments

Last election

August 2, 2022

Education

Bachelor's

University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, 2002

Law

Wayne State University, 2006

Personal

Profession

Attorney

Contact

Personal website

Klint Kesto (Republican Party) was a member of the Michigan House of Representatives, representing District 39. He assumed office on January 1, 2013. He left office on January 1, 2019.

Kesto (Republican Party) ran for election to the Michigan State Senate to represent District 13. He did not appear on the ballot for the Republican primary on August 2, 2022.

Biography

Email editor@ballotpedia.org to notify us of updates to this biography.

Kesto earned his B.A. in political science from the University of Michigan in 2002, and his J.D. from the Wayne State University Law School in 2006. When he served in the state House, his professional experience included working as a small business owner and attorney, including as an assistant prosecutor for Wayne County. He also previously worked for the United States Department of Energy and the United States Department of Justice.

Committee assignments

2017 legislative session

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

Michigan committee assignments, 2017
• Commerce and Trade
• Elections and Ethics
• Law and Justice, Chair
• Tax Policy

2015 legislative session

At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Kesto served on the following committees:

Michigan committee assignments, 2015
• Elections
• Health Policy
• Judiciary
• Regulatory Reform

2013-2014

At the beginning of the 2013 legislative session, Kesto served on the following committees:

Michigan committee assignments, 2012
• Families, Children, and Seniors
• Health Policy
• Judiciary, Vice chair
• Regulatory Reform

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 13

Incumbent Rosemary Bayer defeated Jason Rhines in the general election for Michigan State Senate District 13 on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Rosemary Bayer (D)	57.2	78,098
		Jason Rhines (R)	42.8	58,513

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 136,611
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Michigan State Senate District 13

Incumbent Rosemary Bayer advanced from the Democratic primary for Michigan State Senate District 13 on August 2, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Rosemary Bayer	100.0	34,304

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 34,304
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Michigan State Senate District 13

Jason Rhines defeated Brian Williams in the Republican primary for Michigan State Senate District 13 on August 2, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Jason Rhines	66.4	15,478
	Submit photo	Brian Williams	33.6	7,833

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 23,311
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Klint Kesto (R)

2018

See also: Michigan's 11th Congressional District election, 2018

General election

Haley Stevens defeated Lena Epstein, Leonard Schwartz, and Cooper Nye in the general election for U.S. House Michigan District 11 on November 6, 2018.

General election

General election for U.S. House Michigan District 11

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Haley Stevens (D)	51.8	181,912
		Lena Epstein (R)	45.2	158,463
		Leonard Schwartz (L)	1.7	5,799
		Cooper Nye (Independent)	1.3	4,727

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 350,901 (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.
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Democratic primary election

Haley Stevens defeated Tim Greimel, Suneel Gupta, Fayrouz Saad, and Nancy Skinner in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Michigan District 11 on August 7, 2018.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House Michigan District 11

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Haley Stevens	27.0	24,309
		Tim Greimel	21.8	19,673
		Suneel Gupta	21.4	19,250
		Fayrouz Saad	19.4	17,499
		Nancy Skinner	10.4	9,407

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 90,138
= 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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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Dan Haberman (D)

Republican primary election

Lena Epstein defeated Rocky Raczkowski, Mike Kowall, Klint Kesto, and Kerry Bentivolio in the Republican primary for U.S. House Michigan District 11 on August 7, 2018.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House Michigan District 11

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Lena Epstein	30.9	26,925
		Rocky Raczkowski	25.5	22,216
		Mike Kowall	18.4	16,011
		Klint Kesto	14.0	12,213
		Kerry Bentivolio	11.3	9,831

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 87,196
= 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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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Kurt Heise (R)
• Kristine Bonds (R)

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 Klint Kesto defeated Michael Stack and Beth McGrath in the Michigan House of Representatives District 39 general election.

Michigan House of Representatives, District 39 General Election, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Klint Kesto Incumbent	50.41%	25,024
	Democratic	Michael Stack	42.25%	20,975
	Unaffiliated	Beth McGrath	7.34%	3,643
Total Votes				49,642
Source: Michigan Secretary of State

Michael Stack ran unopposed in the Michigan House of Representatives District 39 Democratic primary.

Michigan House of Representatives, District 39 Democratic Primary, 2016
Party		Candidate
	Democratic	Michael Stack  (unopposed)

Incumbent Klint Kesto ran unopposed in the Michigan House of Representatives District 39 Republican primary.

Michigan House of Representatives, District 39 Republican Primary, 2016
Party		Candidate
	Republican	Klint Kesto Incumbent (unopposed)

2014

See also: Michigan House of Representatives elections, 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. Sandy Colvin defeated Michael Saari in the Democratic primary. Incumbent Klint Kesto defeated Deb O'Hagan and Alan Stephens in the Republican primary. Kesto defeated Colvin in the general election.

Michigan House of Representatives, District 39 General Election, 2014

Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Klint Kesto Incumbent	52.2%	16,740
	Democratic	Sandy Colvin	47.8%	15,300
Total Votes				32,040

Michigan House of Representatives, District 39 Democratic Primary, 2014

Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Sandy Colvin	85.7%	3,758
Michael Saari	14.3%	626
Total Votes		4,384

Michigan House of Representatives, District 39 Republican Primary, 2014

Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Klint Kesto Incumbent	55%	4,500
Deb O'Hagan	39.4%	3,222
Alan Stephens	5.7%	466
Total Votes		8,188

Endorsements

In 2014, Kesto's endorsements included the following:

• Associated Builders and Contractors of Michigan
• Chaldean Chamber of Commerce
• Commerce Township Clerk Vanessa Magner
• Commerce Township Trustee David Law
• Commerce Township Trustee Rick Sovel
• Detroit News
• Executive L. Brooks Patterson
• Michigan Chamber of Commerce
• Michigan Coalition of Responsible Gun Owner
• Michigan Manufacturers Assocation
• Michigan Realtors Association
• National Rifle Association
• Sheriff Michael Bouchard
• Small Business Association of Michigan
• Wixom City Councilman Nick Kennedy
• Right to Life of Michigan

2012

See also: Michigan House of Representatives elections, 2012

Kesto won election in the 2012 election for Michigan House of Representatives District 39. He defeated Albert Clawson, Nicholas Kennedy, Brad Hantler, Bubba Urdan, and Kristine Zrinyi in the August 7 Republican primary and defeated Pam Jackson (D) in the general election, which took place on November 6, 2012.

Michigan House of Representatives, District 39, General Election, 2012

Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Klint Kesto Incumbent	53.3%	24,382
	Democratic	Pam Jackson	46.7%	21,403
Total Votes				45,785

Michigan House of Representatives, District 39 Republican Primary, 2012

Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Klint Kesto	28.2%	2,626
Brad Hantler	21.6%	2,012
Kristine Zrinyi	17.1%	1,590
Nicholas Kennedy	17%	1,578
Bubba Urdan	14.3%	1,327
Albert Clawson	1.8%	172
Total Votes		9,305

Campaign themes

2022

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Klint Kesto did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.

2018

Kesto’s campaign website stated the following:

“	Conservative Change Conservative change means repealing Obamacare, defunding Planned Parenthood, securing the border while ending Sanctuary Cities, protecting the Second Amendment, and delivering tax reform that is long overdue. Conservative change means supporting small businesses, ending corporate welfare, and no more picking winners and losers from Washington, D.C. Conservative change means crushing ISIS, standing up for Israel, funding a strong military to protect us, and standing up for our veterans who’ve sacrificed so much for us. Four things to know about Klint Kesto Klint has met Right to Life of Michigan’s endorsement criteria in every single campaign because he’s 100% committed to protecting innocent life. Klint has the guts to tackle the issues others are too politically correct to take on, like welfare reform, banning Sanctuary Cities, and protecting religious freedom Klint has been doing some swamp-draining of his own in Lansing by handcuffing unaccountable bureaucrats and reining in out-of-control judges. The son of Christian immigrants who fled religious persecution in the Middle East, Klint would be the first ever Christian Chaldean American elected to Congress, and would work to crush ISIS and radical terrorists while protecting freedom and democracy in our country and across the world. Tax Reform I cut tax rates as a State Representative, and I’ll cut tax rates as a Congressman. Entitlement Reform People who are able to work should do so; welfare in the form of food stamps and Medicaid should be for those who are unable to work. With regards to Social Security, I have proposed allowing people to stop paying into social security after age 62, and stop paying federal taxes on income after 65, thereby allowing people to work as long as they want. This would allow them to keep more of what they earn and keep working as long as they want and not be penalized for working. Healthcare The current Affordable Care Act is unaffordable. They need to repeal it and go back to the drawing board and allow individuals to decide what healthcare plan they want. There certainly should be coverage for preexisting conditions. I am a father, a husband, and my first wife passed away from cancer. I know it is important to have accessible health care, but the federal government should not be dictating to the people what they should buy. Immigration Reform We cannot continue with the program as it is because it is an incentive for people to continue to break the law and cross our borders illegally. We need complete reform that includes having secure borders by building the wall and filling the tunnels. The Department of Homeland Security needs to be allowed extreme vetting individuals who are coming into our country and be allowed to keep track of the status of those who have received visas. We also need to use technology more efficiently to ensure that the individuals we are allowing through our borders as residents are going to be productive members of society. One way would be to go back to the requirement that immigrants have a sponsor. This would create a safety net with family and friends which would be more effective. As for DACA and pathways to citizenship, these individuals came here not through their own choice; they were just children. Yet they still entered the country illegally. There should not be a pathway to citizenship for these individuals, but rather a different, legal, permanent status. Foreign Affairs U.S. Military Involvement Around the World When there is an immediate military threat, the President should be allowed to defend us. But when the President wants to make a declaration of war, Congress should decide. The military should also be allowed to be sent by the President into areas to help with disasters and humanitarian efforts when it is in our national interest to do so. Iran The Iran Nuclear deal was a terrible deal from the start because one result of lifting sanctions on Iran resulted in the increase of Iran’s military presence in Syria, the sunset provisions on uranium enrichment and other key components of nuclear arms development will result in Iran ultimately being able to develop nuclear weapons. That would be disastrous for Israel and the entire region. The larger regional issues with Iran continue to be one of the greatest challenges to the national security of the United States and Israel. Paris Climate Accord The Paris Climate Accord was bad for American businesses and families that rely on affordable energy. The Accord will have a very minimal impact on climate change, especially when foreign countries do not abide by the terms of the agreement. Trade We must ensure that our trade agreements put Americans first and America first. If these agreements are unfair and the leverage is all on the other side, they need to be renegotiated. We should negotiate from a position of power so that American workers can benefit. Opioid Crisis The opioid crisis in the United States needs to be addressed from a number of directions: 1) More incentives and better electronic record management needs to be encouraged and available across state lines; 2) Comprehensive treatment facilities that will address the addiction, and physical and mental health issues that contribute to the use and dependency on these drugs; 3) Ensuring that our pharmacists have more control over prescribing these drugs, where fraud is suspected; 4) Making sure that people have a variety of ways available to dispose of unused medicines; 5) Swift and immediate prosecution of professionals who abuse their licenses and illegally provide opioids to patients they know do not need them medically; 6) Incentivizing the FDA to continue research and approval of alternative medicines for pain management. Transportation and Infrastructure Having two bridges is critical for Michigan, because of where we are geographically located. I just supported legislation to allow import and export from our port authorities. We also need to look at our roads and bridges and water lines. Our nation and state have fallen behind other countries with crumbling infrastructure. Funding has been allocated inefficiently and repairs and improvements that were critical were ignored. I believe that the federal government should provide block grants to states to address these repairs. We should continue the President’s goal of streamlining the permit process and ensure that individuals are ready to be employed on these projects by investing in skilled trades.	”
—Klint Kesto’s campaign website (2018)

2014

Kesto's website highlighted the following campaign themes:

Get Michigan Working

• Excerpt: "Michigan’s economy has a brighter future. We have been working hard to ensure better job growth within our great state, and we have delivered results. However, responsibility to you never stops."

Get Michigan Moving

• Excerpt: "Inadequate roads and bridges are unacceptable for Michigan residents to have to endure. That is why we are working to address infrastructure issues that are plaguing our state."

A Government of the People

• Excerpt: "It is important our government operates with little, if any, duplicative and unnecessary rules to make it more effective for Michiganders."

A Government for the People

• Excerpt: "It is critical our state government remains efficient and effective."

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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Klint Kesto campaign contribution history

Year	Office	Status	Contributions	Expenditures
2018	U.S. House Michigan District 11	Lost primary	$649,799	$649,799
2016	Michigan House of Representatives, District 39	Won	$412,365	N/A**
2014	Michigan State House, District 39	Won	$438,992	N/A**
2012	Michigan State House, District 39	Won	$248,254	N/A**
Grand total			$1,749,410	$649,799
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.

2018

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.

2015

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2015, click [show].
In 2015, the Michigan State Legislature was in session from January 14 through December 17. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

2014

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2014, click [show].

In 2014, the Michigan State Legislature was in session from January 8 through December 31. Clean Water Action Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to water issues. Michigan Chamber of Commerce: Senate and House Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. 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. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

2013

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2013, click [show].

In 2013, the Michigan State Legislature was in session from January 9 to December 31. Clean Water Action Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to water issues. Independents for Responsible Government Legislators are scored by the organization on "votes deemed to be on core tea party issues - fiscal responsibility, limited government, and private sector job creation." Michigan Chamber of Commerce: Senate and House Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. 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. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

See also

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Personal

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Footnotes

Political offices
Preceded by Lisa Brown (D)	Michigan House of Representatives District 39 2013–2018	Succeeded by Ryan Berman (R)

[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)