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Michael Lahti
Michael Lahti was a Democratic member of the Michigan House of Representatives, representing District 110 from 2007 to 2011.
Rep. Lahti was born in Hancock, Michigan on October 10, 1945 and graduated from Hancock High School. He graduated from Northern Michigan University in 1967. A year after he graduated, Lahti opened a State Farm Insurance agency in Hancock. Lahti was a small business owner and real-estate developer, owning private and commercial lands all across the Keweenaw Peninsula. Lahti lives in Hancock with his wife, Sharon Lahti. He has six children and eight grandchildren.
Previous offices held
Lahti was elected to the Hancock area School Board in 1994. He served for seven years. Also in 1994, he was appointed to the Finlandia University board of trustees, where he served for 13 years. In 2000, Lahti was elected to the Houghton County Commission as a Democrat. He served as chairman of the Commission for 6 years, until 2006. In 2006 he announced his intention to run for the State House seat District 110, being vacated by Democrat Rich Brown. The 110th District is located in the western portion of the Upper Peninsula and is one of the largest in the state. It is overwhelmingly Democrat. Lahti easily won the Democratic Primary, and went on to face Republican Dave Schmidt in the General Election. He won 64% to 34%. He was easily re-elected in 2008.
Political campaign history
- 2006 election for State House
- Mike Lahti (D), 64%
- Dave Schmidt (R), 34%
Voting record
Key votes of 2009-2010
- Click below to see how this representative voted.
- Super Speedway, Lawmakers voting on whether TO EXTEND A SPECIAL TAX PERK for a super speedway.
- Driver Responsibility Fees, Lawmakers voting on whether TO IMPOSE 'driver responsibility fees.'
- Crony Capitalism, Lawmakers voting on whether TO RESTRICT THE RIGHT of shareholders to sell their own stock.
- Right to Work, Lawmakers voting on an amendment SUPPORTING RIGHT-TO-WORK zones.
- Dept. of State Cost-Saving, Lawmakers voting on whether TO SLOW DOWN PROGRESS ON THE SECRETARY OF STATE'S COST-SAVING CONSOLIDATION PLAN.
- Golf Carts, Lawmakers voting on whether TO SUBSIDIZE the production of electric vehicle batteries.
- Home Court Disadvantage, Lawmakers voting on whether TO GIVE MORE TAXING POWER to local government in Kalamazoo so it can finance a taxpayer-subsidized sports arena.
- Fire Safe Cigarettes, Lawmakers voting on whether TO BAN the sale of cigarettes that are not "fire safe."
- Balancing Act, Lawmakers voting on a budget to CUT REVENUE SHARING PAYMENTS to local governments as a way to balance the state budget without raising taxes.
- Balancing Act 2, Lawmakers voting on a cut of less than 3 percent to K-12 school aid payments so as to balance the state budget without tax increases.
- A Good Tax Gone Bad?, Lawmakers voting on the Michigan Business Tax.
- It’s From the Children, Lawmakers voting on whether to RAID $90 MILLION from the Michigan Higher Education Student Loan Authority.
- Left Behind, Lawmakers voting on whether TO FINANCE "No Worker Left Behind" with a 59.9 percent increase in general fund spending in the 2009 DELEG budget.
- First Class Schools, Lawmakers voting on whether to keep Detroit Public Schools' "first class" status even though the district no longer meets the population standard.
- Politically Correct Capitalism, Lawmakers voting on whether to INCREASE SUBSIDIES for plug-in traction battery packs used in electric cars.
- Politically Correct Capitalism 2, Lawmakers voting on whether to GIVE SUBSIDIES for Michigan film production.
- Politically Correct Capitalism 3, Lawmakers voting on whether to INCREASE ELECTRIC CAR SUBSIDIES for a subsidiary of a Korean battery company.
- Secret Ballot, Lawmakers voting on whether to keep a SECRET BALLOT for union elections.
- Property Taxes Assaulted Again, Lawmakers voting on whether to allow public schools to EXPAND THE USE OF SINKING FUND property tax spending.
- Sneak Attack, Lawmakers voting on whether to allow public schools to EXPAND THE USE OF SINKING FUND property tax spending.
- Grapes of Wrath, Lawmakers voting on whether TO BAN home shipment of beer and wine to Michigan consumers.
- Subsidize Manufacture of Electric Cars, Lawmakers voting on whether to authorize a refundable Michigan Business Tax credit for makers of plug-in traction battery packs used in electric cars.
- Authorize Special Tax Breaks for Ethanol Gas Stations, Lawmakers voting on whether to authorize a non-refundable Michigan Business Tax credit equal to 30 percent of the costs incurred by a gas station to convert existing pumps and tanks, or acquire new ones that deliver E85 ethanol or biodiesel fuel.
More voting record details
- List of all of Michael Lahti’s roll call votes, bills introduced, and floor amendments from MichiganVotes.org (use site’s “advanced search” to narrow by date range, issue category and/or keyword).
- List of Michael Lahti’s 21 missed roll-call votes
Committee Assignments, 2009-2010
Elections
2010
Lahti did not run for re-election in 2010.
2008
On November 4, 2008, Michael Lahti ran for District 110 of the Michigan House of Representatives, beating John Larson.[1]
Michael Lahti raised $48,859 for his campaign.[2]
| Michigan House of Representatives, District 110 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | |||
 Michael Lahti (D)
|
26,995 | |||
| John Larson (R) | 11,302 | |||
Campaign finance summary
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Campaign contributions
Contributions Report from Michigan Secretary of State
Contact
Rep. Michael Lahti
S1489 House Office Building
P.O. Box 30014
Lansing, MI 48909-7514
517) 373-0850
mikelahti@house.mi.gov
External links
- Michael Lahti's campaign website
- Michigan House Democrats - Michael Lahti
- Legislative Profile from Project Vote Smart
- Biography from Project Vote Smart
- Michigan Votes - Michael Lahti
- Campaign Contributions: 2008, 2006
- Michael Lahti on Facebook
Footnotes
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by - |
Michigan House of Representatives District 110 2007–2011 |
Succeeded by Matt Huuki |
