Republican Shaun Young runs on cutting taxes and stopping data centers for Kalamazoo’s open state Senate seat against Rep. Julie Rogers

KALAMAZOO — Kalamazoo-area voters will fill an open state Senate seat and an open state House seat on Nov. 3. In the 19th state Senate District, which covers parts of Kalamazoo and Van Buren counties, Republican Shaun Young faces Democratic state Rep. Julie Rogers, according to the Kalamazoo County clerk’s official candidate list and The Gist. The seat is open because Democratic Sen. Sean McCann is running for Congress in the 4th District against Republican U.S. Rep. Bill Huizenga. All 38 state Senate seats are on the ballot this year.

Young: stop state taxes, audit for fraud. Young is a retired professional hockey player who spent 17 years in the minor leagues, according to The Ballot Brief, citing his campaign site, and MLive described him as a GOP newcomer. His campaign site says he is running on “fiscal responsibility, community growth, and upholding traditional principles.” “Having experienced several tax hikes without improvement, I propose stopping state taxes and lowering property taxes to alleviate financial burdens on families and businesses,” he wrote. He pairs the tax pitch with a promise to “conduct thorough audits to identify and halt payments linked to fraud,” with the recovered money “reinvested into our budget to offset tax cuts.” His site does not say which state taxes he would end or how much the audits would recover. He writes that living paycheck to paycheck and choosing “between bills, food, and essential medications” drives his campaign.

Data centers are his top issue. “I aim to prevent data centers from establishing here, as they significantly raise energy costs, consume vast resources, and can lead to health concerns for our communities,” Young’s site says. In a Planet Detroit candidate survey, he called it “the top priority for my campaign” and said he would go through data center contracts “with a fine tooth comb” to look for loopholes and challenge them in court, put projects “on the ballot for everyone to vote,” and deal with local governments in person. Rate increases tied to the centers “should not affect regular people,” he wrote. The issue is already live here: Kalamazoo city commissioners approved a one-year moratorium on data centers this month while the city writes zoning rules.

Line 5, crime and food stamps. Young told Planet Detroit that the Line 5 pipeline “needs to be replaced” rather than shut down, warning that a shutdown would push up gas prices. “I don’t want my community to have to worry about paying more for gas as it is,” he wrote. His policy page, as quoted by The Gist, proposes a registry for people convicted of domestic abuse with five years of mandatory therapy, and a life sentence for a third child sexual assault offense. On one point he breaks with most Republicans: he wants single mothers with more than one child exempted from food stamp work requirements, so they don’t face “the impossible choice between childcare costs and feeding their children.”

Rogers runs on her House record. Rogers, a physical therapist, is in her third term representing the 41st House District and chaired the Kalamazoo County Commission before that. Her campaign site, as summarized by The Gist, leads with health care and social policy. She writes that in 2023 she “proudly voted to repeal a 1931 law that criminalized abortion,” helped secure free breakfast and lunch for every student “regardless of family income,” and sponsored bills requiring insurers to cover a 12-month supply of birth control. She also lists writing parts of the Affordable Care Act into state law, a 2023 law requiring training for mandatory child-abuse reporters, and helping secure $26 million for the U.S. 131 Business interchange in Kalamazoo. As county commission chair, she voted to put the “Homes for All” housing initiative before voters.

The open 41st House seat. Rogers’ Senate run leaves her House seat open. In the 41st District, which includes parts of Kalamazoo and Portage and portions of Kalamazoo and Comstock townships, Republican Nicole Sabel faces Democrat Jen Strebs and Libertarian Rafael Wolf, MLive reported. Sabel, 47, is a Realtor who studied computer science and English at the University of Portland. She ran for county commissioner in 2022 and lost the 2024 Republican primary for the seat to Terry Haines, according to MLive. Strebs beat Jessica Swartz by 11 points in August’s Democratic primary; Sabel and Wolf were unopposed.

The rest of the Republican slate. The Kalamazoo County Republican Committee’s voter guide backs Young and Sabel, along with Thomas Albert in the 18th Senate District, Robert Sitarski in the 40th House District, House Speaker Matt Hall in the 42nd and Sarah Lightner in the 45th. Their Democratic opponents on the county’s official candidate list are Anthony Pennock in the 18th Senate District, Matt Longjohn in the 40th, Nick Rowe in the 42nd and Randy Davis in the 45th. Kalamazoo County voters also face a first-ever Cooper Township fire tax, a Comstock deputy levy and two school bonds.

How to vote. Monday, Oct. 19, was the last day to register to vote online or by mail. After that, residents can still register in person at their city or township clerk’s office with proof of residency, through 8 p.m. on Election Day. Statewide early in-person voting runs Oct. 24 through Nov. 1; check with your city or township clerk for early voting sites and hours. Absentee ballot applications are due by 5 p.m. Oct. 30 by mail or online, or by 4 p.m. Nov. 2 in person at the clerk’s office. Polls are open 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 3. County canvasses must finish by Nov. 17, and the Board of State Canvassers certifies statewide results by Nov. 23. Voters can check their registration and see their sample ballot at Michigan.gov/Vote.

Updated Oct. 20, 2026: The Oct. 19 deadline to register to vote online or by mail has passed, so the voting details now say so. Residents can still register in person at their city or township clerk’s office with proof of residency through 8 p.m. on Election Day.

Sources:
Shaun for State Senate, campaign home page, https://shaun-for-state-senate.com, and “My stances,” https://shaun-for-state-senate.com/stances
Planet Detroit, 2026 voter guide, “Shaun Young — State Senate District 19” (candidate survey), https://voterguide.planetdetroit.org/candidates/shaun-young
The Gist, “State Senator, 19th District · Michigan 2026 General Election” (candidate positions with campaign-site quotes), https://thegist.vote/race/2026-general-mi/mi-senate-19
The Ballot Brief, “Michigan Senate District 19 2026: Julie M. Rogers vs. Shaun Young” (Young biography; open seat), https://theballotbrief.com/state/michigan/kalamazoo-county/michigan-senate-district-19
MLive, “Three candidates vie for open state house seat in Kalamazoo County,” Oct. 12, 2026, https://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/2026/10/three-candidates-vie-for-open-state-house-seat-in-kalamazoo-county.html
MLive, “Democratic lawmaker, GOP newcomer compete for Kalamazoo’s state senate seat,” October 2026, https://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/2026/10/democratic-lawmaker-gop-newcomer-compete-for-kalamazoos-state-senate-seat.html
Kalamazoo County Clerk, Official Candidate List, November 3, 2026 General Election, https://www.kalcounty.gov/DocumentCenter/View/6469/Unofficial-November-2026-Candidate-List?bidId=
Kalamazoo County Republican Committee, “2026 KGOP Kalamazoo County Voter Guide,” Sept. 22, 2026, https://kgop.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/Final-KGOP-Voter-Guide-Nov.-2026-1.pdf
Michigan Department of State, “Absentee voting” and election calendar (registration, early voting and absentee deadlines), https://www.michigan.gov/sos/elections/voting/absentee-voting
Photo: Antony-22, “Michigan Senate Chamber 2025b.jpg,” 2025, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0), cropped and resized; derivative shared under the same license, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Michigan_Senate_Chamber_2025b.jpg

Kalamazoo · Election 2026 coverage

Tags: Kalamazoo · Election 2026 · State Senate · State House · Taxes · Data Centers