According to unofficial election results, Republican John Roth has kept Michigan’s 104th State House District red.
Roth won a clear victory for the GOP yesterday in a race that has been increasingly competitive in recent elections.
Roth’s Democratic opponent, Dan O’Neil, came within a point of winning the 104th race against a two-term incumbent back in 2018. O’Neil appeared poised to flip the open seat this year and the contest attracted attention from the political parties at the state and national levels. The 104th district includes all of Grand Traverse County and has been held by Republicans for decades.
Roth opened up a two to one lead early in the evening when the count consisted mainly of votes cast in person. Absentee ballots were heavy in Traverse City and favored O’Neil but not enough to make the race close.
As of Wednesday morning, Roth took 51 percent of the vote.
Guy Molnar voted for Dan O'Neil but was not optimistic.
“The whole district skews so heavily Republican,” he said. “I don't hold out much hope of switching that seat.”
Roth did as well as President Trump did in Grand Traverse County. Trump recieved more than 30,000 votes from the county, just over half of the vote.
IPR may update this story as more election results come in.
