Livingston County clerk reverses decision, puts Bezotte back on Michigan House primary ballot
Rep. Bob Bezotte | House GOP photo
After requesting reconsideration of a decision to disqualify him from the ballot, as well as threatening legal action, state Rep. Bob Bezotte (R-Howell) will get a chance to seek a third term.
Bezotte, the 50th District incumbent, had been ruled ineligible for the ballot earlier this month by Livingston County Clerk Elizabeth Hundley following a filing made April 24 by Brighton attorney Dan Wholihan alleging the legislator did not use the correct address on his affidavit of identity (AOI).
That changed after Bezotte’s attorney, Michael J. Pattwell with the Lansing-based Clark Hill law firm, sent Hundley a letter saying her office “committed clear factual and legal error in making its erroneous finding” and laid out details demonstrating that the Marion Township address he listed as his residence was still legally considered so, despite his estranged wife changing the locks while he was away visiting family.
Sheila Bezotte filed for a divorce last November, alleging “mental, emotional and physical abuse throughout the years of marriage.” Rep. Bezotte has denied there was any abuse.
Bezotte listed that address as his residence on his AOI, and the address of his daughter as his mailing address. An affidavit by Sheila Bezotte that was filed with Wholihan’s complaint stated Rep. Bezotte had moved out of the home he shared with his wife in December and was residing at their daughter’s home nearby. Both residences are within the 50th District.
Pattwell cited both an 1876 ruling by the Michigan Supreme Court and a 1976 opinion from former Michigan Attorney General Frank Kelley, which determined that one’s residence was defined as “the place where a person has his or her permanent home” and “[t]hat place continues to be the domicile of a person unless he or she renounces it and takes up another domicile in its stead.”
On Wednesday, Hundley responded by saying that because Pattwell’s letter contained “critical information not previously provided,” she was reversing her decision and Bezotte’s name would be certified to the Livingston County Election Commission and returned to the August primary ballot.
“I’m glad this distraction is over and we can all get back to talking about the issues that really matter to the people of this community,” said Bezotte after the reversal. “The people I represent don’t want arguments over paperwork and competing legal maneuvers — they want solutions to the high cost of living and violent crime. That’s what I’m fighting for every day.”
The decision means the Republican nomination in the 50th District will now be a four-way race between Bezotte, Jason Woolford, Kristina Lyke and Dominic Restuccia. Wholihan, who filed the complaint, is married to Lyke. He is also the chair of the 7th District GOP.
Austin Breuer is the lone Democrat seeking the seat. The primary election is Aug. 6.
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