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Roy Schmidt
Roy Schmidt was a Republican member of the Michigan House of Representatives, representing District 76 from 2009 until 2013. He previously served as a Democrat, but switched parties just before the 2012 filing deadline.[1][2]
Rep. Schmidt received his bachelor's degree from Aquinas College. Schmidt and his wife, Donna, live in Grand Rapids. They have three sons, Eric (and his wife, Kim), Ryan (and his wife, Lisa) and Tyler.
Campaign themes
Schmidt's website highlighted the following campaign themes:[3]
Jobs
- Excerpt: "Job creation is the number one issue facing our state right now. We need more jobs, and Roy Schmidt has voted for several new bills designed to create a stronger environment for jobs."
End Youth Violence
- Excerpt: "Children are the key to our future, and creating a safe environment for them to learn and grow is the key to theirs. We have an alarming rate of violent crimes against children, all too often committed by other children."
Education for All
- Excerpt: "We must dig deeper into the education status quo to end the disparity between children from Grand Rapids and their counterparts in the surrounding area. Schools must receive the support they need to succeed."
One City – One Voice
- Excerpt: "Because of the way the 76th District is now configured, we have a tremendous opportunity to unite people throughout the city. The new boundaries of the district appear to divide the city, but Roy believes he can bring people together."
Previous offices held
He was elected to four consecutive terms as Grand Rapids City Commissioner, where he served for 16 years. He was elected president of the City Commission in 1994, 1998, 2002, 2003, 2005 and 2007.
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 Roy Schmidt’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 Roy Schmidt’s 2 missed roll-call votes
Committee assignments
2013-2014
At the beginning of the 2013 legislative session, Schmidt served on the following committees:
| Michigan committee assignments, 2012 |
|---|
2011-2012
In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Schmidt served on these committees:
| Michigan committee assignments, 2011 |
|---|
| • Energy and Technology, Vice chair |
| • Insurance |
| • Transportation |
2009-2010
In the 2009-2010 legislative session, Schmidt served on these committees:
| Michigan committee assignments, 2009 |
|---|
| • Commerce |
| • Health Policy |
| • Military and Veterans Affairs and Homeland Security |
| • Transportation |
Elections
2012
Schmidt was initially unopposed in the Republican primary on August 7 in District 76, but was eventually challenged by write in candidate Bing Goei. Schmidt narrowly defeated Goei.[4] He had initially filed as a Democrat, but withdrew and filed again as a Republican candidate and was defeated by Winnie Brinks (D) in the general election, which took place on November 6, 2012.[5]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic |  Winnie Brinks |
52.1% | 23,530 | |
| Republican | Roy Schmidt Incumbent | 27.3% | 12,337 | |
| Write-in | Bing Goei | 12.1% | 5,484 | |
| Independent | Keith Allard | 3.1% | 1,398 | |
| U.S. Taxpayers | William Mohr | 3% | 1,362 | |
| Libertarian | Patricia Steinport | 2.4% | 1,085 | |
| Total Votes | 45,196 | |||
2010
Schmidt won re-election to the District 76 seat in 2010. He had no primary opposition. He defeated Marc Tonnemacher in the general election on November 2, 2010.[6][7]
| Michigan House of Representatives, District 76 General election (2010) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | |||
| Roy Schmidt (R)
|
11,678 | |||
| Marc Tonnemacher (D) | 5,929 | |||
| Matthew Friar (L) | 389 | |||
| Bill Mohr (U.S. Taxpayers Party of Michigan) | 352 | |||
2008
On November 4, 2008, Roy Schmidt ran for District 76 of the Michigan House of Representatives, beating Marc Tonnemacher, Bill Mohr, and Matthew Friar.[8]
Roy Schmidt raised $109,751 for his campaign.[9]
| Michigan House of Representatives, District 76 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | |||
| Roy Schmidt (D)
|
23,416 | |||
| Marc Tonnemacher (R) | 7,049 | |||
| Bill Mohr (UST) | 1,340 | |||
| Matthew Friar (L) | 1,022 | |||
Campaign finance summary
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Campaign contributions
Contributions Report from Michigan Secretary of State
Contact
Rep. Roy Schmidt
N1095 House Office Building
P.O. Box 30014
Lansing, MI 48909-7514
(517) 373-0822
RoySchmidt@house.mi.gov
Noteworthy events
2012 election scandal
A press release from Kent County Prosecuting Attorney William Forsyth said that incumbent Schmidt and Michigan House of Representatives Speaker Jase Bolger were involved in a plan to tilt the 2012 election in Schmidt's favor. Schmidt had defected to the Republican Party just before the primary, and allegedly made an arrangement with Bolger to pay 22-year-old Matt Mojzak to run as a Democrat in the election, but not actually conduct a real campaign. On this move, Forsyth claimed, "it is clear that the only logical reason for his [Mojak's] recruitment was to prevent the Democratic Party from mounting a viable write-in candidacy."[10]
Forsyth deemed that no laws were broken, stating, "Although this scheme by Rep. Schmidt and Speaker Bolger was clearly designed to undermine the election and to perpetrate a ‘fraud’ on the electorate, it was nonetheless legal...While Mr. Mojak ill-advisedly agreed to participate in this misadventure, it is clear that he was duped into doing so and is the least culpable of anyone involved in this fiasco.”[11][1]
Bolger told mlive.com, "I encouraged a Democrat to be recruited, but the bottom line is that I have always encouraged the law to be followed. This is political gamesmanship and we lost sight that we ought to be focused on the people and bringing them results."[1]
Bolger's opponent, Bill Farmer, said of the incident, "Speaker Bolger knowingly attempted to deceive the voters by making shady deals behind the scenes with Roy Schmidt. This was a blatantly political move to benefit the Republican Party. This isn’t how our democracy was meant to work."[1]
On July 18, 2012, Democrats in the legislature called on Bolger to step down from the position of Speaker. In calling for a resignation, Senator Gretchen Whitmer said, "Regardless of whether charges are ultimately filed, we know that one of Michigan’s highest ranking leaders engaged in unethical and fraudulent behavior, putting personal politics above the good of Michigan... [Bolger and Schmidt] knew what they were doing. They knew it was wrong... And even now that it’s become public, they still refuse to accept the consequences."[12][13]
In an apology to the people of the district, Schmidt stated, "It’s something that’s been digging in my mind and my heart for over two months. I should’ve consulted. I should’ve said something. In hindsight, I think about it every day, about every hour – why I did this. It was a mistake. It was a poor political decision."[14]
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term Roy + Schmidt + Michigan + Legislature
Scorecards
Tea Party Scorecard
The Independent Tea Party Patriots, a Michigan Tea Party group, grades the votes of this and every other Michigan legislator on “core tea party issues” in a regularly-updated scorecard. 100% is considered an ideal rating.[15]
January 2011 - March 2012
Roy Schmidt received a 24% rating on the January 2011 - March 2012 Tea Party Scorecard.[15]
External links
- Roy Schmidt's personal website
- Michigan Legislature - Representative Roy Schmidt official government website
- Legislative profile from Project Vote Smart
- Biography from Project Vote Smart
- Michigan Votes - Roy Schmidt
- Campaign Contributions: 2008
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 MLive, "Democratic opponent calls on House Speaker Jase Bolger to apologize for role in election scandal," accessed July 20, 2012
- ↑ MLive, "Bill Forsyth: Roy Schmidt election scheme is a ‘travesty’," accessed July 20, 2012
- ↑ "royschmidt," Official Campaign Website
- ↑ Michigan Department of State, "Election Results - Primary Election - August 07, 2012," accessed January 3, 2015
- ↑ Freep.com, "Grand Rapids state rep in party-switching furor wins GOP primary," accessed August 16, 2012
- ↑ Michigan Secretary of State, "State Representative," accessed March 23, 2014
- ↑ Michigan Secretary of State, "State Representative," accessed March 23, 2014
- ↑ Michigan Secretary of State, "Election Results - General Election - November 04, 2008," accessed May 30, 2014
- ↑ Follow the Money's report on Schmidt's 2008 campaign contributions
- ↑ MLive, "Prosecutor: Roy Schmidt tried to 'undermine' election, did not commit crime," accessed July 20, 2012
- ↑ Daily Kos, "Jaw-dropping election fraud by Michigan GOP House Speaker Jase Bolger," accessed July 20, 2012
- ↑ Michiganrado.org, "Rep. Roy Schmidt, GOP leader, apologize for recruiting fake Democrat in party switch," accessed July 23, 2012
- ↑ The Morning Sun, "Dems call for Bolger to step down as Michigan House speaker," accessed July 23, 2012
- ↑ [http://www.michiganradio.org/post/rep-roy-schmidt-gop-leader-apologize-recruiting-fake-democrat-party-switch Michiganrado.org, "Rep. Roy Schmidt, GOP leader, apologize for recruiting fake Democrat in party switch," accessed July 23, 2012
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 Michigan Votes, "Tea Party Scorecard Jan 2011-Mar 2012," accessed June 25, 2012
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by - |
Michigan House of Representatives District 76 2009–2013 |
Succeeded by Winnie Brinks (D) |
