HB 4588 Michigan House · 2025-2026 Regular Session

Elections: school; school district board member candidates; require to have a partisan affiliation. Amends secs. 303, 697 & 699 of 1954 PA 116 (MCL 168.303 et seq.).

HB 4588 would require candidates for school district board positions in Michigan to declare a partisan political affiliation (e.g., Democrat, Republican) on their nomination papers. This change directly affects individuals running for local school board seats by adding a new requirement to their candidacy. The bill amends sections of Michigan's election law (MCL 168.303, 168.697, and 168.699) to implement this declaration requirement. The proposal is currently pending in the Committee on Election Integrity after its second reading referral.

Bill status in committee 1 of 4 stages cleared

Introduction

Jun 2025

Committee Review

Floor Vote

Governor

Introduced Jun 10, 2025 Last action Oct 28, 2025

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What changed between versions

House Introduced Bill → Substitute (H-1) · 5 edits

MODERATE

The bill was amended to add a new section requiring candidates for school board in local districts to file partisan nominating petitions for the August primary, while maintaining nonpartisan filing for other districts. This change introduces a new filing deadline (August primary) and requires candidates to declare their political party affiliation on the ballot, fundamentally altering how local school board elections are conducted in Michigan.

Scope change

The bill now applies to candidates for school board member of a local school district for the August primary election, whereas the original version only covered general school board elections without specifying a partisan primary process.

REQUIREMENT

Added a new requirement for local school district candidates to file a partisan nominating petition for the August primary.

Added a requirement for the petition to include the phrase 'and candidate of the ___________ party' to indicate political affiliation.

Added a requirement for the petition opening paragraph to specify the candidate is running for the board of education.

ADDED

Added a new deadline of 4 p.m. on the fifteenth Tuesday before the August primary for filing petitions in local districts.

TIMELINE

Changed the filing deadline context from a general election date to a specific August primary date for local districts.

Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Oct 28, 2025

Committee

referred to second reading

lower

Oct 28, 2025

Lower · Passed

reported with recommendation with substitute (H-1)

lower

Jun 10, 2025

Committee

referred to Committee on Election Integrity

lower

Jun 10, 2025

Introduced

introduced by Representative Rep. Jason Woolford

lower

1 primary · 2 co-sponsors