With as much of a two-year waiting period for decisions, candidates for 4th District Court of Appeals judgeships said they are hoping to increase court efficiency.
Three candidates - a judge, a senator and a lawyer are vying for the position in the Aug. 6 primaries.
The six-year position vacancy is left by Donald Holbrook Jr., who cannot be re-elected because of the age limit.
The district encompasses 58 counties, including Ingham County, Northern Michigan, and the Saginaw and St. Clair area.
Thomas Brennan Jr., 50, lives in Meridian Township with his wife and two sons. Brennan is in his 22nd year as a judge at 55th District Court, 700 Buhl Ave., in Mason.
Brennan also has served on the Ingham County Board of Commissioners. If elected, Brennan said he hopes to help continue the court’s initiative to shorten the two-year delay of cases at the court.
“Whoever gets elected should be committed to cutting the delay,” he said. “I’m asking the public who they would like to see - a Republican senator, a Democratic lobbyist or a nonpartisan judge. That’s where I’m distinctly apart from the other candidates.”
James Cavanagh, 49, is a Lansing resident and has one son. He’s been an attorney for more than 20 years.
Bill Schuette, 48, is married with two sons and resides in Midland. Schuette served as a Republican state senator for Midland for the past 12 years and was a U.S. Representative for the previous six years. If elected, Schuette also hopes to solve the efficiency issue at the 4th district court.
“I hope to be part of that effort to increase the speed,” Schuette said. “And to be thoughtful and wise on the judgments I make on the court of appeals.”
Bill Ballenger, editor and publisher of Inside Michigan Politics predicts Schuette as the winner of the race, calling him “the anointed Republican candidate even though it is a nonpartisan race.”
And though Brennan is a judge and Cavanagh is a known name in the Democratic Party, Ballenger said Schuette still has the edge in money, politics and credentials.
“The impact of being an elected judge is mitigated in a district this big.”
