Oakland County Commissioners Sworn In, Democratic Majority Begins
(Crystal A. Proxmire, Jan. 9, 2019)
Pontiac, MI- “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed it’s the only thing that ever has.” The quote from Margaret Mead graced the back of the program for the Inaugural Ceremony for the Oakland County Board of Commissioners, the group of 21 people who will make decisions that impact over 1.25 million residents.
The ceremony took place Wednesday evening at the County Commission Auditorium, with an invocation by Judge Shalina Kumar of Oakland County Circuit Court, and the Oath of Office being administered by County Clerk Lisa Brown.
The 2019-2020 board has 11 Democrats and 10 Republicans, giving the Democrats a majority for the first time in decades.
Commissioner David T. Woodward took over as Board Chairman and Commissioner Marcia Gershenson as Board Vice Chairwoman. The Majority Caucus Chair is now Gary McGillvray and the Vice Chair is Janet Jackson. The Minority Caucus Chair is Michael Gingell, who was previously the Board Chairman, and Shelley Taub is the Minority Caucus Vice Chair.
The Board welcomed six new members, including Thomas Kuhn, Penny Luebs, Gwen Markham, William Miller, Kristen Nelson and Angela Powell.
Here is the full list of Commissioners:
District 1: Michael J. Gingell (R-Lake Orion)
District 2: Robert Hoffman (R-Highland Township)
District 3: Michael Spisz (R-Oxford)
District 4: Thomas F. Middleton (R-Clarkston)
District 5: Kristen Nelson (D-Waterford)
District 6: Eileen Kowall (R-White Lake)
District 7: Christine Long (R-Commerce Township)
District 8: Philip J. Weipert (R-South Lyon)
District 9: Gwen Markham (D-Novi)
District 10: Angela Powell (D-Pontiac)
District 11: Thomas Kuhn (R-Troy)
District 12: Shelley Goodman Taub (R-Bloomfield Township)
District 13: Marcia Gershenson (D-Bloomfield Township)
District 14: William Miller (D-Farmington)
District 15: Adam Kochenderfer (R-Rochester Hills)
District 16: Penny Luebs (D-Clawson)
District 17: Nancy Quarles (D-Southfield)
District 18: Helaine Zack (D-Huntington Woods)
District 19: David T. Woodward (D-Royal Oak)
District 20: Gary R. McGillivray (D-Madison Heights)
District 21: Janet Jackson (D-Southfield)
Commissioner David T. Woodward will serve as Board Chairman and Commissioner Marcia Gershenson will serve as Board Vice Chairwoman. Commissioner Gary R. McGillivray and Commissioner Janet Jackson will serve as chairperson and vice chairperson, respectively, of the Board’s Democratic Caucus.
Learn more about the County Commission here.
Previous stories: County Commission Goes Blue for First Time in Decades (Nov. 7, 2018)
County Commission Leadership Selected, Dave Woodward to Serve as Chair (Nov. 19, 2018)