CENTRAL MICHIGAN — Voters in central Michigan's State Senate District 35 will hold a special election on May 4, 2026, to fill a vacant seat that will determine control of the state Senate chamber. The district has been without representation for 16 months.

Democrats hold a 19-18 majority in the state Senate, and a Republican victory would split the chamber 19-19. The chamber requires 20 votes to pass legislation, and the Michigan constitution allows Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II to break tie votes.

The seat was last held by Democrat Kristen McDonald Rivet, who vacated it in January 2025 following her election to Congress. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced in August 2025 that the special primary would be held on Feb. 3, 2026, and the general special election on May 4, 2026. The winner will serve the remaining eight months of the term.

Three candidates are on the ballot: Democrat Chedrick Greene, Republican Jason Tunney, and Libertarian Ali Sledz. Write-in votes are not permitted. Greene is a firefighter and a former state Senate aide to McDonald Rivet who received 60% of the vote in the Feb. 3, 2026 Democratic special primary. Tunney is an attorney and a former executive at his family's roofing company who won the Republican special primary with 51%. Sledz, a graduate student and Army spouse, received the Libertarian Party nomination at a local party convention in January 2026. Greene and Tunney have also filed to run in the Aug. 4, 2026 primaries for nomination to a full term.

The district includes parts of Bay, Midland, and Saginaw counties and borders Lake Huron. McDonald Rivet won the seat in the 2022 general election with 53% of the vote, when about 116,000 ballots were cast. In the 2024 presidential election, Kamala Harris received 49.7% of the vote in the district and Donald Trump received 48.9%, with Harris carrying the Saginaw portion by 17 percentage points. Trump carried Bay, Midland, and Saginaw counties overall in 2024. Michigan Democrats gained control of the governorship and both chambers of the state Legislature in 2022 but lost the state House in 2024.

Nearly 46,000 voters cast ballots in the Feb. 3, 2026 special primaries, including roughly 17,000 in Saginaw County, just under 17,000 in Bay County, and about 11,000 in Midland County. As of the Friday before the May 4 special election, about 32,000 ballots had been cast. Polls close at 8 p.m. ET, and voters may register on Election Day.