Alpena County Updated

Alpena County is the anchor county for the sunrise side of Northern Michigan. While Northwestern Michigan is more affluent (although less so with the economy), Northeastern Michigan is more working class and populist in its leanings. There is a union influence more in this part of the state compared to other areas up north, both among the workers and a large number retirees from downstate who like the lower cost of living due to land and housing.

For the previous Alpena County profile, Click here

Alpena County:
Location - Northeast Michigan
Population - 29,679 (2005-07)
Demographics (2000) – 98.21% White, .25% Black, .39% American Indian, .33% Asian, .12% Some other Race, .7% Two or more races, .58% Hispanic or Latino(of any race)
County Seat - Alpena (Population 11,201, 2000 estimate)

Local Elected Officials
Prosecutor - Ed Black - Democrat (won 56%-43%)
Sheriff - Steve Kieliszewski - Republican (unopposed)
Clerk - Bonnie Friedrichs - Republican (unopposed)
Treasurer - Jocelyn McCallum - Republican (unopposed)
Register of Deeds - Kathy J Matash - Republican
Drain Commissioner - Donald Bartosh - Republican (won by 14 votes)

County Commissioner:
District 1 - Dale Bell - Democrat (city of Alpena)
District 2 - Kathy Thomas - Democrat (city of Alpena)
District 3 - Thomas Mullaney - Republican (won 52-47%) (City of Alpena)
District 4 - Lyle Van Wormer - Republican  (Alpena Township)
District 5 - Gerald Fournier - Republican (won 51-48%) (Alpena Township)
District 6 - Mark Hall - Democrat (Alpena Twp, Long Rapids Twp, Maple Ridge Twp)
District 7 - Cameron Habermehl - Republican (Green, Long Rapids, Wellington, Wilson)
District 8 - Bill Estlak - Republican (Ossineke, Sanborn)

Alpena Township - 5 Democrats, 2 Republicans
Green Township - 5 Republicans
Long Rapids Township - 5 Republicans
Maple Ridge Township - 3 Democrats, 2 Republicans
Ossineke Township - 5 Republicans
Sanborn Township - 5 Democrats
Wellington Township - 3 Republicans, 1 Democrat
Wilson Township - 5 Republicans, 1 Democrat

I am surprised at the local republican strength in Alpena County, considering the top of the ticket results leaning democrat, as well as the congressional, state rep, and state senate results being almost a base county for the dems. The State Rep and State Senate districts are competitive here due to counties outside of Alpena, and so should the congressional seat if Stupak retires or runs for higher office.

1998:
This was the Engler v Fieger year, and the GOP did well.

Governor 98	Engler	Fieger	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	2605	1427	0	4032	1178	64.61%	35.39%	29.22%
Alpena Twp	2395	1256	0	3651	1139	65.60%	34.40%	31.20%
Green Twp	252	143	0	395	109	63.80%	36.20%	27.59%
Long Rapids Twp	227	135	0	362	92	62.71%	37.29%	25.41%
Maple Ridge Twp	361	215	0	576	146	62.67%	37.33%	25.35%
Ossineke Twp	396	180	0	576	216	68.75%	31.25%	37.50%
Sanborn Twp	507	244	0	751	263	67.51%	32.49%	35.02%
Wellington Twp	56	23	0	79	33	70.89%	29.11%	41.77%
Wilson Twp	468	166	1	635	302	73.70%	26.14%	47.56%
Total	7267	3789	1	11057	3478	65.72%	34.27%	31.46%

The Secretary of State race was also a blowout.

Sec of State 98	Miller	Parks	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	2554	1403	76	4033	1151	63.33%	34.79%	28.54%
Alpena Twp	2266	1108	39	3413	1158	66.39%	32.46%	33.93%
Green Twp	259	123	3	385	136	67.27%	31.95%	35.32%
Long Rapids Twp	241	113	4	358	128	67.32%	31.56%	35.75%
Maple Ridge Twp	332	199	8	539	133	61.60%	36.92%	24.68%
Ossineke Twp	388	155	5	548	233	70.80%	28.28%	42.52%
Sanborn Twp	466	226	7	699	240	66.67%	32.33%	34.33%
Wellington Twp	54	19	1	74	35	72.97%	25.68%	47.30%
Wilson Twp	446	141	4	591	305	75.47%	23.86%	51.61%
Total	7006	3487	147	10640	3519	65.85%	32.77%	33.07%

The AG's race however went narrowly democrat, here and statewide. The dems went all in for Granholm that year.

AG 98	Smietanka	Granholm	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	1894	2116	0	4010	-222	47.23%	52.77%	-5.54%
Alpena Twp	1648	1711	0	3359	-63	49.06%	50.94%	-1.88%
Green Twp	176	180	0	356	-4	49.44%	50.56%	-1.12%
Long Rapids Twp	182	149	0	331	33	54.98%	45.02%	9.97%
Maple Ridge Twp	257	275	0	532	-18	48.31%	51.69%	-3.38%
Ossineke Twp	302	220	0	522	82	57.85%	42.15%	15.71%
Sanborn Twp	334	330	0	664	4	50.30%	49.70%	0.60%
Wellington Twp	41	31	0	72	10	56.94%	43.06%	13.89%
Wilson Twp	339	235	0	574	104	59.06%	40.94%	18.12%
Total	5173	5247	0	10420	-74	49.64%	50.36%	-0.71%

Stupak showed his strength in 98 against arguably his toughest opponent in Michelle McManus. McManus landed on her feet after this race elected to state senate and now running for Secretary for State, but Stupak survived 94 (his weakest numbers as incumbent) and 98 (3rd weakest numbers - 2000 was weaker due to a gun vote) in a more republican 1st district than the current post 2002 boundaries.

Congress 1st 98	McManus	Stupak	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	1265	2785	59	4109	-1520	30.79%	67.78%	-36.99%
Alpena Twp	1242	2341	30	3613	-1099	34.38%	64.79%	-30.42%
Green Twp	153	232	4	389	-79	39.33%	59.64%	-20.31%
Long Rapids Twp	135	223	5	363	-88	37.19%	61.43%	-24.24%
Maple Ridge Twp	177	388	5	570	-211	31.05%	68.07%	-37.02%
Ossineke Twp	250	319	3	572	-69	43.71%	55.77%	-12.06%
Sanborn Twp	247	479	8	734	-232	33.65%	65.26%	-31.61%
Wellington Twp	28	50	0	78	-22	35.90%	64.10%	-28.21%
Wilson Twp	272	359	3	634	-87	42.90%	56.62%	-13.72%
Total	3769	7176	117	11062	-3407	34.07%	64.87%	-30.80%

The State Senate district was not as competitive as its geography suggested it could be. Walt North won easily. Redistricting changed this area heavily in 2002.

St. Senate 37th 98	North	Chase	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	2311	1689	0	4000	622	57.78%	42.23%	15.55%
Alpena Twp	2032	1317	0	3349	715	60.67%	39.33%	21.35%
Green Twp	216	149	0	365	67	59.18%	40.82%	18.36%
Long Rapids Twp	220	119	0	339	101	64.90%	35.10%	29.79%
Maple Ridge Twp	314	219	0	533	95	58.91%	41.09%	17.82%
Ossineke Twp	364	169	0	533	195	68.29%	31.71%	36.59%
Sanborn Twp	418	252	0	670	166	62.39%	37.61%	24.78%
Wellington Twp	54	21	0	75	33	72.00%	28.00%	44.00%
Wilson Twp	402	179	0	581	223	69.19%	30.81%	38.38%
Total	6331	4114	0	10445	2217	60.61%	39.39%	21.23%

The state rep district I believe was an open seat in 98 and a big win for the dems. Andy Neumann won the seat and held it in 98 and 00, before running for State Senate in 02. He later recaptured the redistricted seat in 08. This one wasn't close in the county, although it was fairly close overall. Ludlow only lost by 1500 votes total. Alpena made the difference for Neumann. (District included Presque Isle, Cheboygan, and Charlevoix Counties as well)

St. Rep 106th 98	Ludlow	Neumann	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	1662	2450	0	4112	-788	40.42%	59.58%	-19.16%
Alpena Twp	1580	2113	0	3693	-533	42.78%	57.22%	-14.43%
Green Twp	170	227	0	397	-57	42.82%	57.18%	-14.36%
Long Rapids Twp	145	215	0	360	-70	40.28%	59.72%	-19.44%
Maple Ridge Twp	243	334	0	577	-91	42.11%	57.89%	-15.77%
Ossineke Twp	274	303	0	577	-29	47.49%	52.51%	-5.03%
Sanborn Twp	305	444	0	749	-139	40.72%	59.28%	-18.56%
Wellington Twp	34	41	0	75	-7	45.33%	54.67%	-9.33%
Wilson Twp	314	323	0	637	-9	49.29%	50.71%	-1.41%
Total	4727	6450	0	11177	-1723	42.29%	57.71%	-15.42%

2000 was close at the top of the ticket in Alpena. Al Gore won by about 300 votes countywide, despite losing most municipalities. The City of Alpena, Alpena Township, and Maple Ridge Township went for Gore, with the rest going for Bush, but those three were enough, and really only the City of Alpena was needed. The three areas are grouped together in the East/Northeast section of the county. Alpena City and Township have most of the votes. Bush won the "red" areas with 56%, but it was 3825 votes. Gore won the blue areas with 53%, but it was 10302 votes.

POTUS	Bush	Gore	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	2081	2720	113	4914	-639	42.35%	55.35%	-13.00%
Alpena Twp	2179	2375	94	4648	-196	46.88%	51.10%	-4.22%
Green Twp	289	246	8	543	43	53.22%	45.30%	7.92%
Long Rapids Twp	256	216	13	485	40	52.78%	44.54%	8.25%
Maple Ridge Twp	349	370	21	740	-21	47.16%	50.00%	-2.84%
Ossineke Twp	479	292	19	790	187	60.63%	36.96%	23.67%
Sanborn Twp	534	424	22	980	110	54.49%	43.27%	11.22%
Wellington Twp	70	43	1	114	27	61.40%	37.72%	23.68%
Wilson Twp	532	367	14	913	165	58.27%	40.20%	18.07%
Total	6769	7053	305	14127	-284	47.92%	49.93%	-2.01%

The senate race surprised me here.

Senate 00	Abraham	Stabenow	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	2466	2269	121	4856	197	50.78%	46.73%	4.06%
Alpena Twp	2294	1992	79	4365	302	52.55%	45.64%	6.92%
Green Twp	298	219	15	532	79	56.02%	41.17%	14.85%
Long Rapids Twp	259	179	10	448	80	57.81%	39.96%	17.86%
Maple Ridge Twp	356	322	16	694	34	51.30%	46.40%	4.90%
Ossineke Twp	478	249	14	741	229	64.51%	33.60%	30.90%
Sanborn Twp	529	322	23	874	207	60.53%	36.84%	23.68%
Wellington Twp	69	38	3	110	31	62.73%	34.55%	28.18%
Wilson Twp	567	312	21	900	255	63.00%	34.67%	28.33%
Total	7316	5902	302	13520	1414	54.11%	43.65%	10.46%

Stupak won easily again as 2000, although Chuck Yob was the closest challenger since 1994 districtwide.

Congress 1st 00	Yob	Stupak	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	1361	3442	42	4845	-2081	28.09%	71.04%	-42.95%
Alpena Twp	1341	3053	22	4416	-1712	30.37%	69.13%	-38.77%
Green Twp	218	303	2	523	-85	41.68%	57.93%	-16.25%
Long Rapids Twp	200	262	1	463	-62	43.20%	56.59%	-13.39%
Maple Ridge Twp	245	457	5	707	-212	34.65%	64.64%	-29.99%
Ossineke Twp	331	412	3	746	-81	44.37%	55.23%	-10.86%
Sanborn Twp	331	597	7	935	-266	35.40%	63.85%	-28.45%
Wellington Twp	49	61	1	111	-12	44.14%	54.95%	-10.81%
Wilson Twp	378	522	9	909	-144	41.58%	57.43%	-15.84%
Total	4454	9109	92	13655	-4655	32.62%	66.71%	-34.09%

Neumann had an easy re-election in 2000.

St Rep 106	Flanders	Neumann	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	1002	3816	0	4818	-2814	20.80%	79.20%	-58.41%
Alpena Twp	950	3486	0	4436	-2536	21.42%	78.58%	-57.17%
Green Twp	153	363	0	516	-210	29.65%	70.35%	-40.70%
Long Rapids Twp	123	326	0	449	-203	27.39%	72.61%	-45.21%
Maple Ridge Twp	146	554	0	700	-408	20.86%	79.14%	-58.29%
Ossineke Twp	254	489	0	743	-235	34.19%	65.81%	-31.63%
Sanborn Twp	230	702	0	932	-472	24.68%	75.32%	-50.64%
Wellington Twp	32	77	0	109	-45	29.36%	70.64%	-41.28%
Wilson Twp	276	631	0	907	-355	30.43%	69.57%	-39.14%
Total	3166	10444	0	13610	-7278	23.26%	76.74%	-53.48%

2002 was good to Granholm in Alpena County. Many parts of Northern Michigan, especially on the sunrise side (Lake Huron) are state democrats and federal or local republicans. They are more social conservative, but often work for the state with the DNR or Corrections departments. For a good illustration of this, compare 2000, 2002 (Posthumus ran ahead of Bush statewide in 2002), and 2004.

Governor 02	Posthumus	Granholm	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	1459	2362	55	3876	-903	37.64%	60.94%	-23.30%
Alpena Twp	1559	2221	28	3808	-662	40.94%	58.32%	-17.38%
Green Twp	176	212	3	391	-36	45.01%	54.22%	-9.21%
Long Rapids Twp	169	216	2	387	-47	43.67%	55.81%	-12.14%
Maple Ridge Twp	248	347	5	600	-99	41.33%	57.83%	-16.50%
Ossineke Twp	314	262	5	581	52	54.04%	45.09%	8.95%
Sanborn Twp	365	375	2	742	-10	49.19%	50.54%	-1.35%
Wellington Twp	57	39	1	97	18	58.76%	40.21%	18.56%
Wilson Twp	375	357	9	741	18	50.61%	48.18%	2.43%
Total	4722	6391	110	11223	-1669	42.07%	56.95%	-14.87%

The Secretary of State race was closer in the county than it was statewide.

Sec of State 02	Land	Hollowell	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	1815	1829	121	3765	-14	48.21%	48.58%	-0.37%
Alpena Twp	1752	1611	39	3402	141	51.50%	47.35%	4.14%
Green Twp	194	171	4	369	23	52.57%	46.34%	6.23%
Long Rapids Twp	131	60	5	196	71	66.84%	30.61%	36.22%
Maple Ridge Twp	266	277	5	548	-11	48.54%	50.55%	-2.01%
Ossineke Twp	329	158	6	493	171	66.73%	32.05%	34.69%
Sanborn Twp	383	277	9	669	106	57.25%	41.41%	15.84%
Wellington Twp	65	27	1	93	38	69.89%	29.03%	40.86%
Wilson Twp	456	233	22	711	223	64.14%	32.77%	31.36%
Total	5391	4643	212	10246	748	52.62%	45.32%	7.30%

The Attorney General Race was the closest in the state.Peters won  Alpena County solidly, although not as much as Granholm did. Mike Cox won statewide by about 5000 votes.

Att. General 02	Cox	Peters	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	1539	2128	95	3762	-589	40.91%	56.57%	-15.66%
Alpena Twp	1472	1871	39	3382	-399	43.52%	55.32%	-11.80%
Green Twp	172	190	8	370	-18	46.49%	51.35%	-4.86%
Long Rapids Twp	157	179	6	342	-22	45.91%	52.34%	-6.43%
Maple Ridge Twp	218	317	9	544	-99	40.07%	58.27%	-18.20%
Ossineke Twp	290	221	7	518	69	55.98%	42.66%	13.32%
Sanborn Twp	319	335	6	660	-16	48.33%	50.76%	-2.42%
Wellington Twp	64	25	2	91	39	70.33%	27.47%	42.86%
Wilson Twp	390	304	22	716	86	54.47%	42.46%	12.01%
Total	4621	5570	194	10385	-949	44.50%	53.64%	-9.14%

The US Senate seat was a case of Rocky thrown to the wolves.

US Senate 02	Raczkowski	Lenin	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	1025	2795	60	3880	-1770	26.42%	72.04%	-45.62%
Alpena Twp	1070	2499	34	3603	-1429	29.70%	69.36%	-39.66%
Green Twp	131	241	4	376	-110	34.84%	64.10%	-29.26%
Long Rapids Twp	108	246	3	357	-138	30.25%	68.91%	-38.66%
Maple Ridge Twp	162	401	7	570	-239	28.42%	70.35%	-41.93%
Ossineke Twp	254	303	2	559	-49	45.44%	54.20%	-8.77%
Sanborn Twp	232	453	5	690	-221	33.62%	65.65%	-32.03%
Wellington Twp	41	53	1	95	-12	43.16%	55.79%	-12.63%
Wilson Twp	279	451	7	737	-172	37.86%	61.19%	-23.34%
Total	3302	7442	123	10867	-4140	30.39%	68.48%	-38.10%

Redistricting was friendly to Stupak giving him less of the Lake Michigan side and more of the sunrise side which has more Reagan Democrat type of voters that support someone like Stupak. That made the district just that much stronger for Stupak who ran about 10% higher districtwide than he did in the 90's.

Congress 1st 02	Hooper	Stupak	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	733	3122	38	3893	-2389	18.83%	80.20%	-61.37%
Alpena Twp	779	2840	17	3636	-2061	21.42%	78.11%	-56.68%
Green Twp	108	274	1	383	-166	28.20%	71.54%	-43.34%
Long Rapids Twp	85	276	2	363	-191	23.42%	76.03%	-52.62%
Maple Ridge Twp	122	454	3	579	-332	21.07%	78.41%	-57.34%
Ossineke Twp	200	356	1	557	-156	35.91%	63.91%	-28.01%
Sanborn Twp	164	517	8	689	-353	23.80%	75.04%	-51.23%
Wellington Twp	34	60	1	95	-26	35.79%	63.16%	-27.37%
Wilson Twp	221	508	5	734	-287	30.11%	69.21%	-39.10%
Total	2446	8407	76	10929	-5961	22.38%	76.92%	-54.54%

Redistricting significantly changed the state senate district. The old 37th District covered parts of Northern Lower Michigan and a couple of UP Counties. Alcona, Alger, Alpena, Charlevoix, Cheboygan, Chippewa, Emmet, Iosco, Luce, Mackinac, Montmorency, Oscoda, Presque Isle, and Schoolcraft Counties.

The post 2002 36th District covered Alcona, Alpena, Crawford, Gladwin, Iosco, Midland, Montmorency, Ogemaw, Oscoda, and Otsego Counties. It is mostly a different part of North Michigan, and Alpena over in the Saginaw Valley area. It's a tough district for either party due to local ties. Tony Stamas snuck out a victory over Andy Neumann in this open seat. Neumann did his job in Alpena however. Stamas did the same to Neumann in Midland however, and that made the difference in the district.

St Senate 36th 02	Stamas	Neumann	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	852	3080	0	3932	-2228	21.67%	78.33%	-56.66%
Alpena Twp	914	2876	0	3790	-1962	24.12%	75.88%	-51.77%
Green Twp	111	285	0	396	-174	28.03%	71.97%	-43.94%
Long Rapids Twp	97	290	0	387	-193	25.06%	74.94%	-49.87%
Maple Ridge Twp	125	458	0	583	-333	21.44%	78.56%	-57.12%
Ossineke Twp	226	355	0	581	-129	38.90%	61.10%	-22.20%
Sanborn Twp	196	538	0	734	-342	26.70%	73.30%	-46.59%
Wellington Twp	37	58	0	95	-21	38.95%	61.05%	-22.11%
Wilson Twp	291	451	0	742	-160	39.22%	60.78%	-21.56%
Total	2849	8391	0	11240	-5542	25.35%	74.65%	-49.31%

Stamas actually won that race. That left an opening for state rep.in the 106th District.

The old 106th District covered Alcona, Alpena, Charlevoix, Cheboygan, and Presque Isle counties. The post 2002 106th District covers Alcona, Alpena, Crawford, Montmorency, Oscoda, and Presque Isle. Matt Gillard won a close race districtwide by 500 votes, thanks to his strong showing in Alpena County, which he won by 2900 votes. Both districts are swing districts with a slight local democrat lean. The GOP I think last held the district in the 80's or maybe early 90's, and has been close but no cigar when they go all in for it.

St Rep 106th 02	Wyman	Gillard	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	1239	2650	0	3889	-1411	31.86%	68.14%	-36.28%
Alpena Twp	1311	2363	0	3674	-1052	35.68%	64.32%	-28.63%
Green Twp	157	226	0	383	-69	40.99%	59.01%	-18.02%
Long Rapids Twp	149	218	0	367	-69	40.60%	59.40%	-18.80%
Maple Ridge Twp	221	357	0	578	-136	38.24%	61.76%	-23.53%
Ossineke Twp	288	274	0	562	14	51.25%	48.75%	2.49%
Sanborn Twp	277	439	0	716	-162	38.69%	61.31%	-22.63%
Wellington Twp	51	44	0	95	7	53.68%	46.32%	7.37%
Wilson Twp	367	366	0	733	1	50.07%	49.93%	0.14%
Total	4060	6937	0	10997	-2877	36.92%	63.08%	-26.16%

In 2004, Bush somewhat suprisingly won Alpena County. Nothing flipped from 2000 in the municipalities that went red and blue, but Kerry won the same areas Gore won with 51% instead of 53%, and the Bush areas went with almost 58% instead of 56%.

POTUS	Bush	Kerry	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	2355	2746	54	5155	-391	45.68%	53.27%	-7.58%
Alpena Twp	2453	2494	40	4987	-41	49.19%	50.01%	-0.82%
Green Twp	345	278	7	630	67	54.76%	44.13%	10.63%
Long Rapids Twp	273	246	2	521	27	52.40%	47.22%	5.18%
Maple Ridge Twp	405	410	6	821	-5	49.33%	49.94%	-0.61%
Ossineke Twp	525	318	6	849	207	61.84%	37.46%	24.38%
Sanborn Twp	598	467	9	1074	131	55.68%	43.48%	12.20%
Wellington Twp	89	43	2	134	46	66.42%	32.09%	34.33%
Wilson Twp	622	405	13	1040	217	59.81%	38.94%	20.87%
Total	7665	7407	139	15211	258	50.39%	48.70%	1.70%

There wasn't coattails however. Stupak won easily, as did Gillard.

Congress 1st 04	Hooper	Stupak	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	1037	3972	74	5083	-2935	20.40%	78.14%	-57.74%
Alpena Twp	1073	3768	55	4896	-2695	21.92%	76.96%	-55.04%
Green Twp	168	434	6	608	-266	27.63%	71.38%	-43.75%
Long Rapids Twp	138	370	2	510	-232	27.06%	72.55%	-45.49%
Maple Ridge Twp	193	603	9	805	-410	23.98%	74.91%	-50.93%
Ossineke Twp	294	525	9	828	-231	35.51%	63.41%	-27.90%
Sanborn Twp	250	792	9	1051	-542	23.79%	75.36%	-51.57%
Wellington Twp	47	85	15	147	-38	31.97%	57.82%	-25.85%
Wilson Twp	335	679	10	1024	-344	32.71%	66.31%	-33.59%
Total	3535	11228	189	14952	-7693	23.64%	75.09%	-51.45%

St Rep 106th 04	Fortier	Gillard	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	1559	3530	0	5089	-1971	30.63%	69.37%	-38.73%
Alpena Twp	1573	3365	0	4938	-1792	31.86%	68.14%	-36.29%
Green Twp	249	361	0	610	-112	40.82%	59.18%	-18.36%
Long Rapids Twp	191	324	0	515	-133	37.09%	62.91%	-25.83%
Maple Ridge Twp	285	524	0	809	-239	35.23%	64.77%	-29.54%
Ossineke Twp	474	361	0	835	113	56.77%	43.23%	13.53%
Sanborn Twp	437	621	0	1058	-184	41.30%	58.70%	-17.39%
Wellington Twp	48	85	0	133	-37	36.09%	63.91%	-27.82%
Wilson Twp	504	530	0	1034	-26	48.74%	51.26%	-2.51%
Total	5320	9701	0	15021	-4381	35.42%	64.58%	-29.17%

2006 was a big dem year nationwide, and in Michigan, including Alpena. Granholm won easily.

Governor 06	DeVos	Granholm	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	1369	2511	48	3928	-1142	34.85%	63.93%	-29.07%
Alpena Twp	1443	2559	46	4048	-1116	35.65%	63.22%	-27.57%
Green Twp	209	270	8	487	-61	42.92%	55.44%	-12.53%
Long Rapids Twp	191	243	2	436	-52	43.81%	55.73%	-11.93%
Maple Ridge Twp	250	378	11	639	-128	39.12%	59.15%	-20.03%
Ossineke Twp	349	308	9	666	41	52.40%	46.25%	6.16%
Sanborn Twp	368	462	14	844	-94	43.60%	54.74%	-11.14%
Wellington Twp	64	41	0	105	23	60.95%	39.05%	21.90%
Wilson Twp	446	415	16	877	31	50.86%	47.32%	3.53%
Total	4689	7187	154	12030	-2498	38.98%	59.74%	-20.76%

However, there were two exceptions to the rule. Terri Land and Mike Cox.

Sec of State 06	Land	Sabaugh	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	2115	1663	90	3868	452	54.68%	42.99%	11.69%
Alpena Twp	2324	1539	52	3915	785	59.36%	39.31%	20.05%
Green Twp	299	171	8	478	128	62.55%	35.77%	26.78%
Long Rapids Twp	284	132	7	423	152	67.14%	31.21%	35.93%
Maple Ridge Twp	368	248	16	632	120	58.23%	39.24%	18.99%
Ossineke Twp	441	206	11	658	235	67.02%	31.31%	35.71%
Sanborn Twp	513	279	22	814	234	63.02%	34.28%	28.75%
Wellington Twp	79	21	1	101	58	78.22%	20.79%	57.43%
Wilson Twp	588	245	16	849	343	69.26%	28.86%	40.40%
Total	7011	4504	223	11738	2507	59.73%	38.37%	21.36%

Mike Cox flipped a county he lost in 02, and won every municipality.

Att. General 06	Cox	Williams	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	1857	1810	132	3799	47	48.88%	47.64%	1.24%
Alpena Twp	2015	1716	111	3842	299	52.45%	44.66%	7.78%
Green Twp	256	205	5	466	51	54.94%	43.99%	10.94%
Long Rapids Twp	253	154	13	420	99	60.24%	36.67%	23.57%
Maple Ridge Twp	319	266	23	608	53	52.47%	43.75%	8.72%
Ossineke Twp	390	226	29	645	164	60.47%	35.04%	25.43%
Sanborn Twp	449	329	27	805	120	55.78%	40.87%	14.91%
Wellington Twp	66	31	4	101	35	65.35%	30.69%	34.65%
Wilson Twp	513	292	28	833	221	61.58%	35.05%	26.53%
Total	6118	5029	372	11519	1089	53.11%	43.66%	9.45%

Unfortunately, Stabenow won easily.

US Senate 06	Bouchard	Stabenow	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	1145	2705	70	3920	-1560	29.21%	69.01%	-39.80%
Alpena Twp	1284	2700	41	4025	-1416	31.90%	67.08%	-35.18%
Green Twp	179	302	5	486	-123	36.83%	62.14%	-25.31%
Long Rapids Twp	159	275	2	436	-116	36.47%	63.07%	-26.61%
Maple Ridge Twp	202	423	10	635	-221	31.81%	66.61%	-34.80%
Ossineke Twp	292	357	17	666	-65	43.84%	53.60%	-9.76%
Sanborn Twp	296	529	14	839	-233	35.28%	63.05%	-27.77%
Wellington Twp	43	62	4	109	-19	39.45%	56.88%	-17.43%
Wilson Twp	371	479	16	866	-108	42.84%	55.31%	-12.47%
Total	3971	7832	179	11982	-3861	33.14%	65.36%	-32.22%

Stupak continued his winning ways in another rematch with Hooper.

Congress 1st 06	Hooper	Stupak	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	722	3127	59	3908	-2405	18.47%	80.02%	-61.54%
Alpena Twp	798	3142	58	3998	-2344	19.96%	78.59%	-58.63%
Green Twp	126	347	9	482	-221	26.14%	71.99%	-45.85%
Long Rapids Twp	115	315	3	433	-200	26.56%	72.75%	-46.19%
Maple Ridge Twp	143	480	15	638	-337	22.41%	75.24%	-52.82%
Ossineke Twp	201	454	12	667	-253	30.13%	68.07%	-37.93%
Sanborn Twp	173	646	14	833	-473	20.77%	77.55%	-56.78%
Wellington Twp	34	69	2	105	-35	32.38%	65.71%	-33.33%
Wilson Twp	225	598	14	837	-373	26.88%	71.45%	-44.56%
Total	2537	9178	186	11901	-6641	21.32%	77.12%	-55.80%

Stamas had a much easier time in 2006 as one of the bright spots. He flipped this county after his 2002 race.

St. Senate 36th	Stamas	Reid	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	2387	1484	0	3871	903	61.66%	38.34%	23.33%
Alpena Twp	2532	1416	0	3948	1116	64.13%	35.87%	28.27%
Green Twp	317	182	0	499	135	63.53%	36.47%	27.05%
Long Rapids Twp	303	124	0	427	179	70.96%	29.04%	41.92%
Maple Ridge Twp	386	241	0	627	145	61.56%	38.44%	23.13%
Ossineke Twp	459	200	0	659	259	69.65%	30.35%	39.30%
Sanborn Twp	561	265	0	826	296	67.92%	32.08%	35.84%
Wellington Twp	77	27	0	104	50	74.04%	25.96%	48.08%
Wilson Twp	605	257	0	862	348	70.19%	29.81%	40.37%
Total	7627	4196	0	11823	3431	64.51%	35.49%	29.02%

Gillard easily won his 3rd term.

St Rep 106th 06	Viegelahn	Gillard	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	916	2974	0	3890	-2058	23.55%	76.45%	-52.90%
Alpena Twp	991	2974	0	3965	-1983	24.99%	75.01%	-50.01%
Green Twp	163	311	0	474	-148	34.39%	65.61%	-31.22%
Long Rapids Twp	152	270	0	422	-118	36.02%	63.98%	-27.96%
Maple Ridge Twp	191	443	0	634	-252	30.13%	69.87%	-39.75%
Ossineke Twp	251	406	0	657	-155	38.20%	61.80%	-23.59%
Sanborn Twp	217	610	0	827	-393	26.24%	73.76%	-47.52%
Wellington Twp	49	53	0	102	-4	48.04%	51.96%	-3.92%
Wilson Twp	324	539	0	863	-215	37.54%	62.46%	-24.91%
Total	3254	8580	0	11834	-5326	27.50%	72.50%	-45.01%

2008 was when the other one dropped. Obama took Alpena County, although narrowly. It was an improvement over 2006, but there's still no points for 2nd place. In order to win the state, Republicans need to win big in the north, and win in places with a lot of conservative democrats and ticket splitters like Alpena County.

POTUS	McCain	Obama	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	2143	2853	71	5067	-710	42.29%	56.31%	-14.01%
Alpena Twp	2300	2619	87	5006	-319	45.94%	52.32%	-6.37%
Green Twp	337	278	14	629	59	53.58%	44.20%	9.38%
Long Rapids Twp	276	259	7	542	17	50.92%	47.79%	3.14%
Maple Ridge Twp	388	395	20	803	-7	48.32%	49.19%	-0.87%
Ossineke Twp	487	335	11	833	152	58.46%	40.22%	18.25%
Sanborn Twp	534	506	15	1055	28	50.62%	47.96%	2.65%
Wellington Twp	70	57	2	129	13	54.26%	44.19%	10.08%
Wilson Twp	590	403	28	1021	187	57.79%	39.47%	18.32%
Total	7125	7705	255	15085	-580	47.23%	51.08%	-3.84%

The senate race shows what happens when candidates are thrown to the wolves.

US Senate 08	Hoogendyk	Levin	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	1256	3556	154	4966	-2300	25.29%	71.61%	-46.31%
Alpena Twp	1321	3447	156	4924	-2126	26.83%	70.00%	-43.18%
Green Twp	219	373	21	613	-154	35.73%	60.85%	-25.12%
Long Rapids Twp	170	342	12	524	-172	32.44%	65.27%	-32.82%
Maple Ridge Twp	217	535	29	781	-318	27.78%	68.50%	-40.72%
Ossineke Twp	345	455	22	822	-110	41.97%	55.35%	-13.38%
Sanborn Twp	324	671	39	1034	-347	31.33%	64.89%	-33.56%
Wellington Twp	54	69	4	127	-15	42.52%	54.33%	-11.81%
Wilson Twp	372	589	39	1000	-217	37.20%	58.90%	-21.70%
Total	4278	10037	476	14791	-5759	28.92%	67.86%	-38.94%

Stupak had his toughest opponent since 98 with fellow Yooper and State Rep Tom Casperson, but it did not make a difference. Casperson didn't get the help he needed, and it probably would not have mattered anyway. Stupak is probably the most popular politician up north who isn't the ghost of Dominic Jacobetti.

Congress 1st 08	Casperson	Stupak	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	1214	3718	91	5023	-2504	24.17%	74.02%	-49.85%
Alpena Twp	1301	3601	80	4982	-2300	26.11%	72.28%	-46.17%
Green Twp	201	408	13	622	-207	32.32%	65.59%	-33.28%
Long Rapids Twp	164	364	9	537	-200	30.54%	67.78%	-37.24%
Maple Ridge Twp	212	566	15	793	-354	26.73%	71.37%	-44.64%
Ossineke Twp	327	491	12	830	-164	39.40%	59.16%	-19.76%
Sanborn Twp	292	734	21	1047	-442	27.89%	70.11%	-42.22%
Wellington Twp	45	78	3	126	-33	35.71%	61.90%	-26.19%
Wilson Twp	339	653	24	1016	-314	33.37%	64.27%	-30.91%
Total	4095	10613	268	14976	-6518	27.34%	70.87%	-43.52%

Andy Neumann had one term left as state rep, and ran for it. I think he's setting himself up for another shot at the state senate seat in 2010.Neumann had a tougher race in Alpena County than he did in even 98 for his first term, but still won.

St. Rep 106th 08	Pettalia	Neumann	3rd party	Total	Diff.	GOP%	Dem%	Diff%
Alpena City	2188	2737	101	5026	-549	43.53%	54.46%	-10.92%
Alpena Twp	2222	2639	113	4974	-417	44.67%	53.06%	-8.38%
Green Twp	278	324	18	620	-46	44.84%	52.26%	-7.42%
Long Rapids Twp	257	268	8	533	-11	48.22%	50.28%	-2.06%
Maple Ridge Twp	334	441	14	789	-107	42.33%	55.89%	-13.56%
Ossineke Twp	444	362	19	825	82	53.82%	43.88%	9.94%
Sanborn Twp	501	526	25	1052	-25	47.62%	50.00%	-2.38%
Wellington Twp	68	54	4	126	14	53.97%	42.86%	11.11%
Wilson Twp	532	458	22	1012	74	52.57%	45.26%	7.31%
Total	6824	7809	324	14957	-985	45.62%	52.21%	-6.59%

2010 will be interesting in Alpena County. Neumann is termed out, as is Stamas. Two seats with an anchor in Alpena County are open. Both are competitive. Bush won both districts, and I think McCain won the state rep district, and possibly the state senate district, although I'm less sure about that one. They are both legitimate swing districts. If Stupak steps down from Congress, that seat is also a swing district.

What surprised me the most with Alpena County is the number of local republicans holding office, even in Maple Ridge and Alpena Townships. The ticket splitting there goes deeper than I thought. This county needs to be contested strongly to keep control of the state senate and to regain control of the state house and district boundaries for 2012.