The two Democratic nominees will face Republicans Julie Maday and State Sen. Roger Victory, R-Georgetown Township in the November general election.

The upcoming convention marks a rare occasion when the statewide Democratic party interacts with the board, and coincides with renewed public tension among the university’s overseers — which itself was partly spurred by lingering consternations over one of the most volatile periods of strife between trustees. 

The party convention, then, may serve as an opportunity for relative outsiders with regards to university matters to weigh in on the board’s governance and its on-again, off-again spats. It could also give delegates the chance to replace one of the incumbents with a new voice, Santana, who once defended a sitting board member when she was referred to the governor for potential removal from office. One political consultant said, however, that it’s more likely that traditional political loyalties will define the outcome Sunday.

“​​Both Kelly and I respect the process and have worked diligently over the past three months to meet with Dem Party members across the state of Michigan,” Scott wrote in a text message to The State News. “We’ve shared our views and answered questions with folks who will be voting. Now it’s up to them.”

“Nonetheless, we’ll continue with meeting members and answering questions about their university and its governance because it's their investment that we’re sworn to protect as we see to the mission of serving our students at MSU,” Scott continued. 

Vassar, Tebay Zemke and Santana did not respond to requests for comment.

Simmering tensions on the board burst into public view in October 2023 when a letter by Scott, alleging widespread misconduct by Trustee Rema Vassar, who was then the board chair, leaked to The State News.

The letter prompted MSU to hire an outside law firm to investigate the allegations, which ultimately produced a report corroborating many of Scott’s claims, including that Vassar overstepped her authority in negotiating a settlement to a lawsuit against MSU, and that she improperly accepted flights on a donor’s private jet. Not included in Scott’s letter but nonetheless uncovered by the investigation was that Vassar and her ally on the board, Trustee Dennis Denno, had been using students to orchestrate attacks on their opponents at the university.

In the aftermath of the findings, Vassar stepped down as board chair, she and Denno were stripped of their duties by the board and they were referred to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to consider removing them from office. 

Santana, who had been elected to a second term as state senator the year prior, questioned the decision to censure Vassar, writing in a 2024 letter to the state general attorney that she believed referring Vassar for potential removal “further disenfranchises voters from marginalized communities” and was “an attempt to silence strong Black leadership and marginalized communities.” (Whitmer ultimately decided not to remove either trustee.)

A period of relative stability arrived when MSU President Kevin Guskiewicz took office, in part spurred by his making the board pledge to not meddle in the administration before taking the job.

But now, Vassar once again finds herself on the opposite side of the coin to Scott and Tebay Zemke, after a State News report revealed that a faction of trustees, composed of Vassar, Denno and Trustee Mike Balow, have endeavored against the institution’s top lawyer. The five remaining trustees signed a letter voicing support for the general counsel, which in a previous version specifically condemned ”our colleagues.”

Whether those conflicts sway delegates to cast their votes in either direction is yet to be seen.

Adrian Hemond, a Lansing-based political consultant, said that delegates will most likely vote in line with the endorsements of two powerful unions, United Auto Workers and the Michigan Education Association, which tend to endorse the same candidates as Whitmer. The governor elected to endorse Scott and Tebay Zemke in March.  

“Those two unions essentially control the convention floor, and when they are in agreement about who the candidates should be, those candidates win every single time,” Hemond said. 

Neither union has made public endorsement yet, and if the unions are split in their endorsement, unaffiliated delegates or delegates belonging to smaller unions may have more sway in determining the nominees, Hemond said. 

To gain an endorsement by the Democratic party, the nominees will need close to 900 signatures from Michigan delegates.