Two new faces are set to join the Leelanau County Commission – though the tightness of one race is likely to trigger a recount.

Republican Rick Robbins received 1,183 votes in District 1 to Democrat George Bowers' 1,181 votes – a difference of just two votes.

Republicans Deb Rushton (District 2), William Bunek (District 3), and Melinda Lautner (District 7) won commission seats by more comfortable margins, as did Democrats Ty Wessel (District 4), Patricia Soutas-Little (District 5), and Gwenne Allgaier (District 6).

Allgaier was the other newcomer elected to the board along with Robbins; both ran in districts where the current incumbents did not seek reelection.

In other notable county election news, Northport voters asked to repeal Ordinance 125 said no to the proposal that would have prohibited recreational marijuana businesses in the village. A citizen group called Citizens Against Weed Shops tried to overturn a village ordinance that allows recreational marijuana businesses after developer Daniel Caudill was approved by the township planning commission to open a dispensary on Mill Street. Voters’ decision to uphold the ordinance paves the way for Caudill's project to move forward. 

Keep track of how Leelanau County voted in every race for the November 3, 2020, General Election, as the unofficial results are reported to County Clerk Michelle Crocker by each precinct.

See the results as they come in here: https://www.leelanau.gov/electionresults.asp

Election canvassing will begin at 9am on Thursday, November 5, 2020.

Overall in Michigan, record turnout leaves many races still undecided as of Election Night. Nearly 3.3 million absentee ballots combined with an estimated 2 to 2.5 million in-person votes cast in Michigan, with Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson saying she expected that the state’s results could be fully tabulated by Wednesday night. Our sister publication The Ticker has a look at results and projections in other key local and state races as of press time early Wednesday morning.

Pictured: Voting lines in Bingham Township on Election Day.