Michigan: Ottawa County Commissioner ousted in recall vote

Ottawa County Commissioner Lucy Ebel (R) has been ousted in a recall vote, losing to Christian Kleinjans (D) 2502-1665.

The recall was over her vote to reverse the hiring of the county health officer. Ebel is a member of Ottawa Impact, a fundamentalist Christian group who have elected a number of officials in the county. Some of Ebel's supporters claim the recall is because of her Latino heritage, though the recall proponents deny this charge.

Recall efforts against Ottawa County Commissioner Doug Zylstra (D) and Roger Bergman (R) failed. The petitions has been pushed by the Ottawa Impact over the two commissioners opposition to a bill that claiming to protect "childhood innocence."  Zylstra noted that the bill lacked any specificity for staffers to follow. Petitioners would need 2620 signatures for Zylstra and 3717 for Bergman.