Jase Bolger
From Ballotpedia
Jase Bolger
Prior offices
Michigan House of Representatives District 63
Education
James "Jase" Bolger is a former Republican member of the Michigan House of Representatives, representing District 63 from 2009 to 2014. Bolger served as Speaker of the House for the final four years of his tenure. Bolger did not seek re-election in 2014.
Bolger served as a Calhoun County commissioner.
Biography
Bolger earned his B.B.A. in Finance and Political Science from Western Michigan University.
Committee assignments
2013-2014
At the beginning of the 2013 legislative session, Bolger served on the following committees:
| Michigan committee assignments, 2012 |
|---|
2011-2012
In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Bolger served on the following committees:
| Michigan committee assignments, 2011 |
|---|
2009-2010
In the 2009-2010 legislative session, Bolger served on the following committees:
| Michigan committee assignments, 2009 |
|---|
| • New Economy and Quality of Life |
| • Oversight and Investigations, Vice chair |
| • Public Employee Health Care Reform |
| • Tourism, Outdoor Recreation and Natural Resources |
| • Transportation |
Campaign themes
2012
Bolger's website highlighted the following campaign themes:[1]
Working for Jobs
- Excerpt: "As a local small business owner, Jase Bolger understands the solutions we need to create jobs and make Michigan competitive. Representative Bolger has made working for jobs his top priority."
Putting Us First
- Excerpt: "Jase Bolger has demonstrated he has the courage to oppose special interests and work for us. State government is struggling because our families are hurting. He stood strong to control spending and make sure state government lives within its means."
Voting record
Key votes of 2009-2010
- Click below to see how this representative voted.
- Super Speedway, Lawmakers voting on whether TO EXTEND A SPECIAL TAX PERK for a super speedway.
- Driver Responsibility Fees, Lawmakers voting on whether TO IMPOSE 'driver responsibility fees.'
- Crony Capitalism, Lawmakers voting on whether TO RESTRICT THE RIGHT of shareholders to sell their own stock.
- Right to Work, Lawmakers voting on an amendment SUPPORTING RIGHT-TO-WORK zones.
- Dept. of State Cost-Saving, Lawmakers voting on whether TO SLOW DOWN PROGRESS ON THE SECRETARY OF STATE'S COST-SAVING CONSOLIDATION PLAN.
- Golf Carts, Lawmakers voting on whether TO SUBSIDIZE the production of electric vehicle batteries.
- Home Court Disadvantage, Lawmakers voting on whether TO GIVE MORE TAXING POWER to local government in Kalamazoo so it can finance a taxpayer-subsidized sports arena.
- Fire Safe Cigarettes, Lawmakers voting on whether TO BAN the sale of cigarettes that are not "fire safe."
- Balancing Act, Lawmakers voting on a budget to CUT REVENUE SHARING PAYMENTS to local governments as a way to balance the state budget without raising taxes.
- Balancing Act 2, Lawmakers voting on a cut of less than 3 percent to K-12 school aid payments so as to balance the state budget without tax increases.
- A Good Tax Gone Bad?, Lawmakers voting on the Michigan Business Tax.
- It’s From the Children, Lawmakers voting on whether to RAID $90 MILLION from the Michigan Higher Education Student Loan Authority.
- Left Behind, Lawmakers voting on whether TO FINANCE "No Worker Left Behind" with a 59.9 percent increase in general fund spending in the 2009 DELEG budget.
- First Class Schools, Lawmakers voting on whether to keep Detroit Public Schools' "first class" status even though the district no longer meets the population standard.
- Politically Correct Capitalism, Lawmakers voting on whether to INCREASE SUBSIDIES for plug-in traction battery packs used in electric cars.
- Politically Correct Capitalism 2, Lawmakers voting on whether to GIVE SUBSIDIES for Michigan film production.
- Politically Correct Capitalism 3, Lawmakers voting on whether to INCREASE ELECTRIC CAR SUBSIDIES for a subsidiary of a Korean battery company.
- Secret Ballot, Lawmakers voting on whether to keep a SECRET BALLOT for union elections.
- Property Taxes Assaulted Again, Lawmakers voting on whether to allow public schools to EXPAND THE USE OF SINKING FUND property tax spending.
- Sneak Attack, Lawmakers voting on whether to allow public schools to EXPAND THE USE OF SINKING FUND property tax spending.
- Grapes of Wrath, Lawmakers voting on whether TO BAN home shipment of beer and wine to Michigan consumers.
- Subsidize Manufacture of Electric Cars, Lawmakers voting on whether to authorize a refundable Michigan Business Tax credit for makers of plug-in traction battery packs used in electric cars.
- Authorize Special Tax Breaks for Ethanol Gas Stations, Lawmakers voting on whether to authorize a non-refundable Michigan Business Tax credit equal to 30 percent of the costs incurred by a gas station to convert existing pumps and tanks, or acquire new ones that deliver E85 ethanol or biodiesel fuel.
More voting record details
- List of all of James Bolger’s roll call votes, bills introduced, and floor amendments from MichiganVotes.org (use site’s “advanced search” to narrow by date range, issue category and/or keyword).
- List of James Bolger’s missed roll-call votes
Elections
2012
Bolger won re-election in the 2012 election for Michigan House of Representatives District 63. He was unopposed in the August 7 Republican primary and defeated Bill Farmer (R) in the general election, which took place on November 6, 2012.[2][3]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican |  James Bolger Incumbent |
50.9% | 22,196 | |
| Democratic | Bill Farmer | 49.1% | 21,440 | |
| Total Votes | 43,636 |
2010
Bolger won re-election to the District 63 seat in 2010. He had no primary opposition. He defeated Dave Morgan (D) in the general election on November 2, 2010.[4][5]
| Michigan House of Representatives, District 63 General election (2010) | |
|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes |
| James Bolger (R)
|
20,935 |
| Dave Morgan (D) | 12,408 |
2008
On November 4, 2008, James Bolger ran for District 63 of the Michigan House of Representatives, beating Phyllis Smith.[6]
James Bolger raised $192,377 for his campaign.[7]
| Michigan House of Representatives, District 63 | |
|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes |
| James Bolger (R)
|
27,641 |
| Phyllis Smith (D) | 21,188 |
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Scorecards
Tea Party Scorecard
The Independent Tea Party Patriots, a Michigan Tea Party group, grades the votes of this and every other Michigan legislator on “core tea party issues” in a regularly-updated scorecard. 100% is considered an ideal rating.[8]
January 2011 - March 2012
Jase Bolger received a 71% rating on the January 2011 - March 2012 Tea Party Scorecard.[8]
Presidential preference
2012
Jase Bolger endorsed Mitt Romney in the 2012 presidential election.[9]
Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Bolger and his wife, Molly, have two children.
Noteworthy events
Bolger accused of plan to tilt 2012 election
A press release from Kent County Prosecuting Attorney William Forsyth said that Bolger and incumbent Roy Schmidt were involved in a plan to tilt the 2012 election in Schmidt's favor. Schmidt had defected to the Republican Party just before the primary, and made an arrangement with Bolger to pay 22-year-old Matt Mojzak to run as a Democrat in the election, but not actually conduct a real campaign. On this move, Forsyth claimed, "it is clear that the only logical reason for his [Mojak's] recruitment was to prevent the Democratic Party from mounting a viable write-in candidacy."[10]
Forsyth deemed that no laws were broken, stating, "Although this scheme by Rep. Schmidt and Speaker Bolger was clearly designed to undermine the election and to perpetrate a ‘fraud’ on the electorate, it was nonetheless legal...While Mr. Mojak ill-advisedly agreed to participate in this misadventure, it is clear that he was duped into doing so and is the least culpable of anyone involved in this fiasco.”[11][12]
Bolger told mlive.com, "I encouraged a Democrat to be recruited, but the bottom line is that I have always encouraged the law to be followed. This is political gamesmanship and we lost sight that we ought to be focused on the people and bringing them results."[12]
Bolger's opponent, Bill Farmer, said of the incident, "Speaker Bolger knowingly attempted to deceive the voters by making shady deals behind the scenes with Roy Schmidt. This was a blatantly political move to benefit the Republican Party. This isn’t how our democracy was meant to work."[12]
On July 18, 2012, Democrats in the legislature called on Bolger to step down from the position of Speaker. In calling for a resignation, Senator Gretchen Whitmer said, "Regardless of whether charges are ultimately filed, we know that one of Michigan’s highest ranking leaders engaged in unethical and fraudulent behavior, putting personal politics above the good of Michigan... [Bolger and Schmidt] knew what they were doing. They knew it was wrong... And even now that it’s become public, they still refuse to accept the consequences."[13][14]
Recall efforts
In early May 2011, the Committee to Recall Rick Snyder took aim at Bolger in an attempt to recall him from office. It did not go to a vote.
On May 10, 2011, Autumn Smith submitted language to the Calhoun County Clerk citing Bolger's support for cutting school funding and legislation easing restrictions on voiding public employee contracts.[15]
The Election Commission rejected the petition on May 25, saying the language was unclear and relied too much on opinion.[16] Smith turned in six additional language submissions in June, one of which was to have been considered at a hearing on June 24. The day before it was to occur, Bolger's lawyers were granted a Temporary Restraining Order and Injunction against the election commission, effectively stopping the hearing.[17]
On August 30, 2011, Smith announced she was frustrated by the legal process and was ending her recall efforts against Bolger.[18] Just days later, Calhoun County Circuit Court Judge Conrad Sindt rejected Bolger's arguments, allowing the recall process to continue. Smith said she would continue to help if someone else led the campaign, but that she no longer had the time or resources to lead it herself.[19]
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term James + Bolger + Michigan + Legislature
See also
- Michigan State Legislature
- Michigan House of Representatives
- House Committees
- Michigan state legislative districts
External links
- Official campaign website
- Profile from Open States
- Legislative profile from Project Vote Smart
- Biography from Project Vote Smart
- Michigan Votes - James Bolger
- Campaign Contributions: 2008
- Campaign Facebook page
Footnotes
- ↑ electbolger, accessed October 12, 2012
- ↑ Michigan Department of State, "Election Results - Primary Election - August 07, 2012," accessed June 18, 2014
- ↑ Michigan Department of State, "Election Results - General Election - November 06, 2012," accessed November 29, 2014
- ↑ Michigan Secretary of State, "State Representative," accessed March 23, 2014
- ↑ Michigan Secretary of State, "State Representative," accessed March 23, 2014
- ↑ Michigan Secretary of State, "Election Results - General Election - November 04, 2008," accessed May 30, 2014
- ↑ Follow the Money, "Bolger, James," accessed May 30, 2014
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Michigan Votes, "Tea Party Scorecard Jan 2011-Mar 2012," accessed June 25, 2012
- ↑ Romney for President, "Mitt Romney Announces Support of Michigan Speaker of The House Jase Bolger and Additional Members of The Michigan Legislature," September 19, 2011 (Archived)
- ↑ MLive, "Prosecutor: Roy Schmidt tried to 'undermine' election, did not commit crime," accessed July 20, 2012
- ↑ Daily Kos, "Jaw-dropping election fraud by Michigan GOP House Speaker Jase Bolger," accessed July 20, 2012
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 MLive, "Democratic opponent calls on House Speaker Jase Bolger to apologize for role in election scandal," accessed July 20, 2012
- ↑ Michiganrado.org, "Rep. Roy Schmidt, GOP leader, apologize for recruiting fake Democrat in party switch," accessed July 23, 2012
- ↑ The Morning Sun, "Dems call for Bolger to step down as Michigan House speaker," accessed July 23, 2012
- ↑ MLive, "Recall drive for Michigan House's GOP speaker," May 10, 2011
- ↑ MLive, "Recall petition targeting House Speaker Jase Bolger rejected by Calhoun County Election Commission," May 25, 2011
- ↑ Daily Kos, "More on MI Spkr of the House Jase Bolger's cowardly attack on constituent Autumn Smith," June 25, 2011
- ↑ Battle Creek Inquirer, "Recall effort against Rep. Jase Bolger ends," August 31, 2011
- ↑ MLive, "Judge rejects Michigan House Speaker Jase Bolger's arguments against recall effort," September 1, 2011
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by - |
Michigan House of Representatives District 63 2009–2014 |
Succeeded by David Maturen (R) |
Leadership
Speaker of the House:Matt Hall
Minority Leader:Ranjeev Puri
Representatives
Republican Party (58)
Democratic Party (52)
