Lagging results slow calls on filling university boards

Two seats on the Wayne State University Board of Governors remained open late Tuesday as results were still trickling in Tuesday night.

In an era when elected officials are trying to keep college affordable, eleven candidates vied for the two spots with the retirement of two Democrats, WSU Board of Governors chaiman Gary Pollard and vice chairman Paul Massaron. Among the candidates: Republicans Michael Busuito and Kimberly Shmina; Democrats Yvette McElroy Anderson and Mark Gaffney; Libertarians Bhagwan Dashairya and Al Seder; U.S. Taypayers candidates Marc Joseph Sosnowski and Robert Gale; Green Party candidates Margaret Guttshall and Fran Shor and Natural Law Party candidate Wendy Goossen.

Meanwhile, the four incumbent board members of the governing boards of the University of Michigan and Michigan State University were hoping to win reelection to their posts in a competition where eighteen challengers were jockeying for their seats.

UM Regent Denise Ilitch and Regent Laurence Deitch, both Democrats,were facing Republicans Carl Meyers and Ron Weiser, along with Libertarians James Lewis Hudler, John Jascob, U.S. Taxpayers Party members Audra Driscoll and Richard Hewer, Green Party candidate Latham Redding and Natural Law Party candidate Bridgette Abraham-Guzman.

For the Michigan State University Board of Trustees, incumbent Democratic trustees Dianne Byrum and Diann Woodard had their sights set on regaining their seats to maintain the 5-3 Democratic majority.

Six candidates were challenging them including Republicans William Deary and Dan Kelly; Libertarians Justin Burns and Gregory Scott Stempfle; U.S. Taypayers candidate Angela Grandy, and Green Party candidate Will Tyler White.