One Hundred and TwenTy Five years OF ediTOrial FreedOm
Thursday, August 4, 2016
Ann Arbor, MI
Weekly Summer Edition
MichiganDaily.com
ARTS
In the room
where it happens
Experiencing the “Hamilton”
phenomenon in the
greatest city in the world
>> SEE PAGE 6
NEWS
In memory of Kellie
Halushka
LSA senior passed away in
July is remembered
>> SEE PAGE 9
NEWS
Profiles of Ross
faculty research
Sustainable enterprise is
highlighted in interviews
>> SEE PAGE 3
OPINION
For the girls
Columnist Madeline
Nowicki reflects on Hillary
Clinton’s speech at the
DNC in Philadelphia
>> SEE PAGE 5
SPORTS
Nike era begins
The M Den unveiled its
new Nike and Jordan Brand
apparel for the Wolverines
>> SEE PAGE 10
inside
INDEX
NEWS ....................................
SUDOKU................................
OPINION ...............................
ARTS ......................................
CLASSIFIEDS.........................
SPORTS.................................
2
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4
6
8
10
Vol. CXXVI, No. 126 | © 2016 The Michigan Daily
michigandaily.com
City Council primary
reaffirms status quo
Yousef Rabhi
wins race for
State House of
Representatives
All contested
incumbents win
re-election Tuesday
By BRIAN KUANG, KEVIN
LINDER, ISHI MORI
Daily Summer News Editor, Daily
Staff Reporters
Of
the
five
City
Council
members up for re-election this
year, only three were challenged
in the Democratic primary. In the
Tuesday primary election, all three
prevailed, and, because Ann Arbor
traditionally votes overwhelmingly
Democratic, Councilmembers Sumi
Kailasapathy (D–Ward 1), Graydon
Krapohl (D–Ward 4) and Chuck
Warpehoski (D–Ward 5) will most
likely be re-elected in November.
In
an
interview
following
the final tally, Warpehoski said
Tuesday’s results are an affirmation
of the present state of affairs in local
government.
“When three of the six seats are
uncontested, and those three seats
are won by the incumbent, I think
that shows there’s a high level of
satisfaction with the direction the
city’s headed in,” Warpehoski said,
also noting Mayor Christopher
Taylor was also unchallenged for
re-election. “I think the voters have
said that they want a continuation
of the policies that they’ve been
seeing.”
In addition to all incumbents
being
re-elected,
Warpehoski
noted that voting along the lines
of specific issues also fell along
the status quo of Ann Arbor. For
example, Warpehoski pointed out
that Kailasapathy has been more
skeptical of new development in
the city than her colleagues on
the council, as well as her two
challengers.
Though
she
was
ultimately re-elected, her more
development-friendly
challengers
Jason Frenzel and Will Leaf
collectively secured 55 percent of
the vote.
“It shows that there’s a sense
that having a diversified economy
is something that’s valued in this
city,” Warpehoski said, referring
to the election results. “And people
recognize that means we need to
add housing capacity and office
capacity to support the diversified
economy.”
This was also the pattern in
the Ward 4 and Ward 5 races,
Warpehoski
noted.
Incumbent
Krapohl and his challenger Diane
Giannola were more friendly to
further expansions in downtown
than the third candidate, Eric
Lipson,
and,
collectively,
they
received 63 percent of the vote.
In Warpehoski’s own re-election
race, his challenger — Kevin Leeser
— had been vocally opposed to the
construction of high-rise student
housing and was defeated by 1,304
votes.
Leeser told the Daily after the
results were released he intends to
continue to advocate for improved
pedestrian safety — his signature
campaign issue — as a private citizen
and reiterated that he is unhappy
with the city’s current level of safety.
Of the three incumbents, only
Kailasapathy — who has frequently
been a dissenting voice against the
majority on the council — was not
endorsed by Mayor Taylor, who
opted to endorse her opponent,
Jason Frenzel. The Ward 4 race was
particularly close, with Kailasapthy
and Frenzel neck-and-neck for votes
until the final precinct reported.
In an interview after the results
Candidate vows to
fight for Democratic
majority in legislature
By BRIAN KUANG
Daily Summer News Editor
Yousef Rabhi has been announced
as the winner of the Democratic
primary for the Michigan House of
Representatives’ 53rd District seat
with 16 precints reporting, edging
out his opponent Steven Kwasny.
With
all
but
four
precints
reporting, Rabhi recieved 7,237 votes
to his opponents’ 1,225 with a voter
turnout of at least 14 percent.
Washtenaw
County
Commissioner Yousef Rabhi declared
his candidacy when incumbent State
Representative Jeff Irwin (D–Ann
Arbor) was barred from running for
re-election due to term limits.
Rabhi had widely been considered
the favorite to succeed Irwin,
receiving
Irwin’s
endorsement.
Rabhi also earned endorsements
from the majority of local elected
officials
in
Washtenaw
County
— including Mayor Christopher
Taylor and the entire Ann Arbor
City Council — as well as statewide
advocacy
groups
including
the
American Federation of Teachers
Michigan and the local chapter of
United Automobile Workers, which
represents Ann Arbor.
Rabhi was challenged in the
Democratic
Primary
by
Steven
Kwasny,
a
28-year-old
Eastern
Michigan University student, whose
central issue was campaign finance
reform. Kwasny explicitly refused to
accept financial contributions to his
campaign and relied solely on web
advertising and volunteers.
Addressing
supporters
at
a
restaurant in Downtown Ann Arbor,
Rabhi criticized the Republican
GOVERNMENT
See CITY, Page 8
See COUNCIL, Page 8