Mary Buzuma

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

Mary Buzuma

Libertarian Party

Elections and appointments

Last election

November 8, 2022

Education

Bachelor's

Kalamazoo College, 1978

Personal

Birthplace

Grand Haven, MI

Religion

Catholic

Contact

Campaign website

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Mary Buzuma (Libertarian Party) ran for election for Governor of Michigan. She lost in the general election on November 8, 2022.

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

Biography

Mary Buzuma was born in Grand Haven, Michigan. She earned a bachelor's degree from Kalamazoo College in 1978.

Elections

2022

See also: Michigan gubernatorial and lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2022

General election

General election for Governor of Michigan

The following candidates ran in the general election for Governor of Michigan on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Gretchen Whitmer (D)	54.5	2,430,505
		Tudor Dixon (R)	43.9	1,960,635
		Mary Buzuma (L)	0.9	38,800
		Donna Brandenburg (U.S. Taxpayers Party)	0.4	16,246
		Kevin Hogan (G)	0.2	10,766
		Daryl Simpson (Natural Law Party)	0.1	4,973
		Evan Space (Independent) (Write-in)	0.0	26
		Other/Write-in votes	0.0	21

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 4,461,972
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Governor of Michigan

Incumbent Gretchen Whitmer advanced from the Democratic primary for Governor of Michigan on August 2, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Gretchen Whitmer	100.0	938,382

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 938,382
= 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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Articia Bomer (D)

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Governor of Michigan

The following candidates ran in the Republican primary for Governor of Michigan on August 2, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Tudor Dixon	39.7	436,350
		Kevin Rinke	21.5	236,306
		Garrett Soldano	17.5	192,442
		Ryan Kelley	15.1	165,587
		Ralph Rebandt	4.1	45,046
		James Craig (Write-in)	2.1	23,521
		Elizabeth Adkisson (Write-in)	0.0	11
	Submit photo	Justin Blackburn (Write-in)	0.0	10

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,099,273
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Perry Johnson (R)
• Michael Markey Jr. (R)
• Bob Scott (R)
• Austin Chenge (R)
• Michael Brown (R)
• Donna Brandenburg (R)

Green convention

Green convention for Governor of Michigan

Kevin Hogan advanced from the Green convention for Governor of Michigan on April 23, 2022.

		Candidate
✔		Kevin Hogan (G)

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source
= 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.

Libertarian convention

Libertarian convention for Governor of Michigan

Mary Buzuma advanced from the Libertarian convention for Governor of Michigan on July 10, 2022.

		Candidate
✔		Mary Buzuma (L)

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source
= 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.

U.S. Taxpayers Party convention

U.S. Taxpayers Party convention for Governor of Michigan

Donna Brandenburg advanced from the U.S. Taxpayers Party convention for Governor of Michigan on July 23, 2022.

		Candidate
✔		Donna Brandenburg (U.S. Taxpayers Party)

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source
= 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 State Senate elections, 2018

General election

General election for Michigan State Senate District 30

Roger Victory defeated Jeanette Schipper and Mary Buzuma in the general election for Michigan State Senate District 30 on November 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Roger Victory (R)	63.2	79,323
	Submit photo	Jeanette Schipper (D)	34.2	42,904
		Mary Buzuma (L)	2.5	3,189

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 125,416 (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 State Senate District 30

Jeanette Schipper advanced from the Democratic primary for Michigan State Senate District 30 on August 7, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Jeanette Schipper	100.0	17,119

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 17,119
= 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 30

Roger Victory defeated Daniela Garcia, Joe Haveman, and Rett DeBoer in the Republican primary for Michigan State Senate District 30 on August 7, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Roger Victory	41.7	16,895
		Daniela Garcia	26.3	10,647
		Joe Haveman	26.1	10,585
	Submit photo	Rett DeBoer	5.9	2,399

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 40,526
= 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.

Libertarian primary election

Libertarian primary for Michigan State Senate District 30

Mary Buzuma advanced from the Libertarian primary for Michigan State Senate District 30 on August 7, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Mary Buzuma	100.0	188

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 188
= 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 Amanda Price (R) did not seek re-election because of term-limits.

Jim Lilly defeated Tim Meyer and Mary Buzuma in the Michigan House of Representatives District 89 general election.

Michigan House of Representatives, District 89 General Election, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Jim Lilly	61.14%	30,340
	Democratic	Tim Meyer	34.36%	17,051
	Libertarian	Mary Buzuma	4.50%	2,231
Total Votes				49,622
Source: Michigan Secretary of State

Tim Meyer ran unopposed in the Michigan House of Representatives District 89 Democratic primary.

Michigan House of Representatives, District 89 Democratic Primary, 2016
Party		Candidate
	Democratic	Tim Meyer  (unopposed)

Jim Lilly defeated Brandon Hall and Tracy Stille-Mulligan in the Michigan House of Representatives District 89 Republican primary.

Michigan House of Representatives, District 89 Republican Primary, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Jim Lilly	61.50%	6,720
	Republican	Brandon Hall	7.98%	872
	Republican	Tracy Stille-Mulligan	30.52%	3,335
Total Votes				10,927

2014

See also: Michigan gubernatorial election, 2014

Buzuma ran for election as Governor of Michigan in 2014. She faced incumbent Rick Snyder (R), Mark Schauer (D), Mark McFarlin (I) and Paul Homeniuk (G) in the general election. The general election took place on November 4, 2014.

Results

Governor and Lieutenant Governor of Michigan, 2014
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Rick Snyder/Brian Calley Incumbent	50.9%	1,607,399
	Democratic	Mark Schauer/Lisa Brown	46.9%	1,479,057
	Libertarian	Mary Buzuma/Scott Boman	1.1%	35,723
	U.S. Taxpayers	Mark McFarlin/Richard Mendoza	0.6%	19,368
	Green	Paul Homeniuk/Candace R. Caveny	0.5%	14,934
	Nonpartisan	Write-in votes	0%	50
Total Votes				3,156,531
Election results via Michigan Department of State

2012

See also: Michigan's 2nd Congressional District elections, 2012

Buzuma lost to incumbent Bill Huizenga. Buzuma ran in the 2012 election for the U.S. House to represent Michigan's 2nd District. Buzuma ran as a Libertarian candidate. She faced Democratic write-in Willie German, Jr., Republican incumbent Bill Huizenga, William Opalicky (G) and Ronald Graeser in the general election on November 6, 2012.

U.S. House, Michigan District 2 General Election, 2012

Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Willie German, Jr.	34.2%	108,973
	Republican	Bill Huizenga Incumbent	61.2%	194,653
	Libertarian	Mary Buzuma	2.7%	8,750
	Green	William Opalicky	0.9%	2,715
	UST	Ronald Graeser	1%	3,176
Total Votes				318,267
Source: Michigan Secretary of State "Official Election Results, 2012 General Election"

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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Mary Buzuma campaign contribution history

Year	Office	Status	Contributions	Expenditures
2022	Governor of Michigan	Lost general	$4,178	$0
2018	Michigan State Senate District 30	Lost general	$1,643	N/A**
2014	Michigan Governor/Lt. Governor	Lost	$4,295	N/A**
Grand total			$10,115	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.

Campaign themes

2022

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Mary Buzuma completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Buzuma'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’ve lived a life of service. After graduating from Kalamazoo College, I enlisted in the US Navy where I served for 26 years in Naval intelligence. In the Navy I learned leadership and became a team player. I developed a deeper appreciation of the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; because in the Navy I lived and traveled to where these rights do not exist. Our current two party system is a threat to liberty. As a Libertarian this is a problem that is very troubling. The two major parties have partisan incentives that undermine things that we the people care deeply about: constitutional limits on government power, checks and balances, liberal norms, and a disgust to the tyranny of the majority. You know how to live your life and you don’t need politicians or bureaucrats to tell you how to live it.

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?

• Support a parent's right to choose how to educate their children.
• Support the taxpayer's right to choose how to spend their hard earned money.
• Support the right to choose how to best take care of your medical needs.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Education. A good education floats all boats. It helps people make better choices or to get a good job. No where am I more disappointed in the two major parties than in education. Every year for decades the taxpayer is forced to forego larger and larger portions of their tax money to public education and yet education hasn’t improved. Every year students, particularly those with special needs or from lower income families fall farther and farther behind. Throwing more money at public education will not improve it – competition will. Competition through schools of choice. Home schools, charter schools, private schools, virtual schools, learning pods, micro schools, etc. However, every parent who chooses these options is punished. Why? Because state law and rules are entrenched in a one-size fits all, brick and mortar approach to schooling that continue to thwart innovation and creativity. I support a student opportunity scholarship program. This program is not a voucher. It is private money donated to non-profit organizations that distribute scholarships to children with parents controlling the funds. The scholarships would help parents meet their children’s unique academic needs with instruction, materials and services which may not available to them in the public school system. Donors would receive a dollar per dollar state income tax credit, until the $500 million cap is reached.

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

My father. He was an architect. He was talented, hard working, intelligent and he loved his family. He was a Navy man and inspired my career in the Navy. He instilled in me a life long love of reading, that learning doesn't always come from a classroom and to always do my best. Although we didn't always agree on things there's one thing I've come to appreciate: The older I got the smarter he became. He also had a very dry sense of humor that I inherited.

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

Honesty, transparency, integrity, open to new ideas, humility and a sense of humor.

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

"Sheena Is A Punk Rocker" by the Ramones,

What is something that has been a struggle in your life?

For the past 3 years I was the principal caregiver to my mother who was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Dementia (AD). The isolation imposed by the lockdown made it even more difficult as outside help was shutdown. It’s said that memory loss is a kind of death and AD is a slow death. To watch someone who was vibrant, intelligent and social slowly fade away was the hardest thing I have ever had to deal with. God took mercy and called her home in January of this year.

Governors have many responsibilities, which vary from state to state. Which of those do you personally consider the most important in your state?

Providing leadership for all state agencies and departments. Submit an annual budget. Influencing the legislative agenda, particularly the budget deliberations

In most states, governors have the power to make line-item vetoes. If that is true in your state, what would be your philosophy for how and when to use this power?

In Michigan the governor’s power to line-item veto is for appropriation bills. Michigan needs sound economic policies that benefit everyone not just the politically well connected. I would line-item veto everything that involves corporate welfare. Our politicians’ bipartisan schemes to pick winners and losers for the benefit of all harms the economic freedom of the people who elected it.

Under what circumstances should the governor of your state be able to use emergency powers?

Mostly during natural disasters. Calling a state of emergency directs assistance from state agencies, federal agencies and national guard to the affected area. They are limited in scope and do not present a threat to civil liberties or constitutional separation of powers. A key lesson from the COVID-19 response that I learned is that public officials will stretch these emergency powers as far as they can. I will work with the legislature in reforming these laws and placing guardrails around them.

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.

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