Election 2026 · Petoskey
107th House District: Rep. Parker Fairbairn runs on storm-day relief and an ethics bill as Melissa Perron campaigns on prison staffing
PETOSKEY — Voters from Petoskey and Charlevoix to the Straits and the eastern Upper Peninsula decide Tuesday, Nov. 3, whether to give Republican state Rep. Parker Fairbairn of Harbor Springs a second two-year term in the Michigan House or replace him with Democrat Melissa Perron of Sault Ste. Marie.
The 107th District takes in all of Emmet and Charlevoix counties and parts of Mackinac, Chippewa and Cheboygan counties. Fairbairn and Perron are the only two candidates for the seat on Emmet County’s official candidate list.
Fairbairn, a business owner, ousted then-Rep. Neil Friske in the 2024 Republican primary, 9&10 News reported, and won the seat that November. Perron won the Democratic nomination in August over Brendan Ryan, according to ICT.
The incumbent’s record
Fairbairn’s most visible win this term came in May, when Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed his House Bill 5797. For the 2025-26 school year only, it lets qualifying districts in counties hit by this year’s storms and flooding count up to four more canceled days as instruction days, on top of the six “snow days” state law already forgives. It covers closures on March 12, 13, 16 and 17, after a mid-March storm buried much of Northern Michigan and the U.P.
“Unpredictable and extreme winter weather across Northern Michigan and the U.P. this year created a problematic situation for schools that required quick action from lawmakers,” Fairbairn said when the bill was signed. He said it gives “local school boards a little leeway in managing their calendar after a second straight year of extreme weather.”
In September, Fairbairn led House passage of House Bill 6282. It would bar former legislators, for two years after they leave office, from taking a job with any organization that gets grants from the Utility Consumer Participation Board, a state board funded through utility bills. Violations would be a misdemeanor punishable by up to 90 days in jail, a $1,000 fine or both. The bill passed 88-15 on Sept. 23 and has been in the Senate Government Operations Committee since Oct. 1, legislative records show.
Fairbairn called it “a good-government bill to strengthen ethics laws and protect Michiganders from unnecessary increases in energy bills.” House Republicans say Democrats in 2023 raised the grant money drawn from utility bills from $650,000 to $2 million a year.
The challenger
Perron describes herself on her campaign website as a mother of five, a Sault Tribe member and a lifelong Northern Michigan resident. “I’m not a politician,” she writes. She says she founded an advocacy group during the Michigan Department of Corrections staffing crisis and wants to improve staffing and officer retention in state prisons.
Her site also lists closer-to-home health care and mental health services, rural health care, public safety, education funding and tribal sovereignty among her priorities.
Also on Petoskey-area ballots
Emmet County voters also choose between Republican Sen. John Damoose and Democrat Kate Gallup in the 37th Senate District race, and decide North Central Michigan College’s request to renew its operating millage and restore the part lost to Headlee rollbacks, as laid out in our earlier Petoskey voting guide.
Five candidates — Traci Wong, Jason D. Kromm, Keith A. Pretty, Mark E. Sommers and Thomas S. Adams — are running for three seats on the North Central board of trustees. Four — Allison Karman, Carolyn Tebeau, Elizabeth Flynn and Jennifer H. Attie — are running for three seats on the Petoskey Public Schools board. In the city, John Murphy is the only candidate listed for mayor, and Tina DeMoore (Ward 1) and Joe Nachtrab (Ward 3) are unopposed for council.
Polls are open 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday. Early in-person voting runs through Sunday, Nov. 1. Michigan residents can still register and vote in person at their city or township clerk’s office with proof of residency through 8 p.m. on Election Day, according to the Michigan Department of State.
Sources:
Emmet County Clerk, official candidate list, Nov. 3, 2026 general election (107th District, 37th District, NCMC trustees, Petoskey mayor, council and school board), https://petosega.emmetcounty.org/Documents/Government/Election%20Info/New%20Election%20Info%202024/Candidate%20Listing%20(27).pdf
Emmet County, elections page, https://petosega.emmetcounty.org/government/elections.php
Office of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, “Governor Whitmer Signs Bipartisan Bill Forgiving Makeup Days for Schools…,” May 26, 2026 (Fairbairn quote, HB 5797), https://www.michigan.gov/whitmer/news/press-releases/2026/05/26/whitmer-signs-bill-forgiving-makeup-days-for-schools-after-unpredictable-weather
Michigan House Republicans, “Governor signs Fairbairn plan to forgive missed school for extreme winter weather,” May 26, 2026, https://gophouse.org/posts/governor-signs-fairbairn-plan-to-forgive-missed-school-for-extreme-winter-weather
House Fiscal Agency, HB 5797 summary as enacted (Public Act 15 of 2026), https://legislature.mi.gov/documents/2025-2026/billanalysis/House/pdf/2026-HLA-5797-1D62WST8.pdf
Michigan House Republicans, “Rep. Fairbairn leads effort to strengthen legislative ethics standards,” Sept. 23, 2026 (HB 6282, penalties, grant figures, quote), https://gophouse.org/posts/rep-fairbairn-leads-effort-to-strengthen-legislative-ethics-standards
Michigan Legislature, House Bill 6282 of 2026, history and votes, https://legislature.mi.gov/Bills/Bill?ObjectName=2026-HB-6282
WBUP/WJMN, “Michigan House votes to mandate two-year wait for lawmakers seeking utility jobs,” Sept. 2026, https://www.myupnow.com/news/michigan-house-votes-to-mandate-two-year-wait-for-lawmakers-seeking-utility-jobs/article_5f919c58-8220-4840-a4bc-695215d9fe72.html
9&10 News, “Fairbairn and Decker discuss housing, education in 107th District forum,” Sept. 30, 2024 (district, 2024 primary), https://www.9and10news.com/2024/09/30/fairbairn-and-decker-discuss-housing-education-in-107th-district-forum/
ICT, “Natives notch wins in Tuesday primaries,” Aug. 2026 (Perron primary), https://ictnews.org/politics/election-2026/natives-notch-wins-in-tuesday-primaries/
Melissa Perron campaign website (biography, priorities), https://perronformichigan.com/
Michigan Department of State, elections (voting hours, Election Day registration), https://www.michigan.gov/sos/elections
Photo: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2009-0619-Petoskey-CityHall.JPG
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