Kalkaska, MI is a small town with an estimated population of 2,230 people according to the 2010 US census. It is located in the northwestern region of Michigan and is part of Kalkaska County. The town is governed by a mayor-council form of government, which consists of a mayor and seven council members who are elected by the people to represent their interests. The current mayor is Brian Sipe, who was elected in 2016 and has served three terms as mayor. The town also holds regular elections for various county offices such as school board members and commissioners. Local politics in Kalkaska generally focuses around issues related to economic development, public safety, infrastructure improvements, and education funding. The town's residents have recently been vocal about the need for improved services in these areas, especially in regards to infrastructure improvements such as updating roads and sewers. Additionally, Kalkaska has become increasingly involved in regional initiatives related to economic growth and job creation. Ultimately, local political candidates must demonstrate an understanding of the needs of this small town if they hope to be successful at the ballot box.
The political climate in Kalkaska, MI is strongly conservative.
Kalkaska County, MI is very conservative. In Kalkaska County, MI 28.2% of the people voted Democrat in the last presidential election, 69.9% voted for the Republican Party, and the remaining 1.8% voted Independent.
In the last Presidential election, Kalkaska county remained overwhelmingly Republican, 69.9% to 28.2%.
Kalkaska county voted Republican in every Presidential election since 2000.
The BestPlaces liberal/conservative index
Kalkaska, MI is strongly conservative.
Kalkaska County, Michigan is very conservative.
Traverse City Metro Area is leaning conservative.
Michigan is leaning liberal.
The BestPlaces liberal/conservative index is based on recent voting in national elections, federal campaign contributions by local residents, and consumer personality profiles.
VoteWord™
Displaying 20 years of Presidential voting, visualized in one word.
Kalkaska, Michigan: R R r R R R
How It Works:
Here at BestPlaces, we were looking at the voting patterns since the 2000 election and realized that we could express the results of each election as one letter. R if the Republican Party candidate won, D if the Democratic Party candidate won and I if the Independent Party candidate won. The six elections (2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020) would be expressed as six-letter word (R R D R R).
Then we went a little further and added the dimension of magnitude. If the difference of victory was greater than 10 percent, the letter is upper case, and lower case if the difference was less than 10 percent. This allows us to see interesting voting patterns at just a glance.
Here's the VoteWord for Iowa d r d d r. In the last six elections the state has been closely contested, voting narrowly for the Republican Party candidate in 2016 and 2020 after voting for the Democratic Party in 2008 and 2012. Virginia (r r d d d D) has voted for the Democratic Party in the last three elections.
Individual Campaign Contributions in Kalkaska, MI
In the last 4 years (2018-2021), there were 431 contributions totaling $28,237 to the Democratic Party and liberal campaigns, averaging $66 per contribution.
In the last 4 years, there were 48 contributions totaling $4,359 to the Republican Party and conservative campaigns, averaging $91 per contribution.
(source: Federal Election Commission)