Tickets Now Available for Spring Fling 2023

In this Email

MAY 9 2023

• Party News

  • NEW: Tickets Now Available for Spring Fling 2023

  • NEW: State Dems Get Positive Ratings

  • NEW: Results of Last Week's Election

  • NEW: More Good Things Happening in Lansing

• Upcoming Events

  • NEW: Save the Date - Upcoming HCDP Events

  • NEW: Community Events

Party News

This year's Spring Fling will be held June 10th, just a little over a month away. Our annual get together and fund raiser will be held at Bonfire Grill @ the Continental Fire Co. on Montezuma Avenue in Houghton.
 
Tickets are now available online. The cost is $50 per person, with Seniors and Student tickets available at $40.
 

Lansing's TV6 has reported that Democrats at the state level are polling well, and "looking good compared to Republican counterparts." The poll, conducted by pollster Bernie Porn of Lansing-based EPIC MRA, surveyed 800 voters across the state seeking opinions about each party over the last three months.
 
Democrats had a 42% positive rating, a nine-point advantage over their state Republican counterparts at 33% positive.
 
54% of those polled like Governor Whitmer, and 52% give her at least a "good" rating on her job performance.
 
Polls like this help drive home the point that the Democrats in Lansing are pursuing effective policies like the recently passed packages of gun reform legislation, that are in fact popular with voters.

Here in Houghton County, local millage proposals on last week's ballots throughout the county, including a proposal to renew the operating and maintance millage of the County Road Commission, all passed.
 
Elsewhere in the state, in a vote that made national headlines - in Hillsdale County, a predominately Republican county, voters in Adams Township ousted the election-denying township clerk Stephanie Scott. The recall election came about after Scott was stripped of her duties running township elections in October 2021 after a state investigation. Scott is one of a number of local clerks who have been credibly accused of " mishandling voting equipment in their zeal to uncover fraud." This is good news for democracy in our state.

What's happened in Lansing in the past week:

• A package of eight bills to strengthen penalties for sexual assaults passed the state Senate almost unanimously on Thursday. The bills now move to the House. The bills, sponsored by Detroit Democrat Stephanie Chang, were first introduced in reaction to the conviction of Larry Nassar, a former US Women's Gymnastics team doctor who sexually assaulted hundreds under the guise of medical care. The bills are among a number of bills that have been stalled since 2017.

• Governor Whitmer signed into law Senate Bill 259, which expands access to absentee voting for Michigan members of the armed services, and their spouses and dependents, while serving overseas. The bill allows a grace period after the polls close during which such absentee ballots will still be counted. In the November 2020 election "because of issues like mail delays, 4.6% of Michigan military and overseas ballots were rejected."

Upcoming Events

 Here are dates to hold for upcoming HCDP activities:  

• June 16th: Bridgefest Parade and vendor booth

• July 4th: Independence Day Parades (Participation TBD, but likely Lake Linden & South Range)

• July 8th: Strawberry Festival Parade in Chassell

• August 24th: Pasty Fest Parade in Calumet

• August 24 thru 27th: Booth at Houghton County Fair

Tue 5/9

• This month's regular meeting of the Houghton County Board of Commissioners is Tuesday (today) at 4 PM in the Conference Room on the fifth floor of the Houghton County Courthouse. Find more information on the Board's webpage (find the Zoom link to the meeting in the Agenda).

Wed 5/10

• The Houghton City Council meets at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday. The Meeting Agenda can be found in the Searchable Document Center of the Council's website.

Thur 5/11

• Thursday is the 129th anniversary of the start of the Pullman Strike, which lasted from May 11th through July 20th, 1894. It was because of this strike that President Grover Cleveland instituted Labor Day. Learn more about the impact of the Pullman Strike here. For a more in-depth understanding of the strike and the early struggles of labor in America, visit the entry on the Pullman Strike at the Digital Library of Northern Illinois University.

Sun 5/14

• Sunday is Mother's Day. Mother's Day in the United States is annually held on the second Sunday of May. Remember your mother, and all the moms and grandmoms in your life this Sunday.

 Month of May
 
In May, we celebrate a number of different communities and raise awareness on a number of topics. We'll highlight one month long May celebration and/or commemoration each week during the month.

• Governor Whitmer has proclaimed May as Military Appreciation Month in Michigan, a time to honor military members and their families by recognizing their sacrifices and celebrating their successes. The Governor's proclamation continues a tradition first started by Congress in 1999 when Sen. John McCain proposed the month-long observance.