Vote for me and I’ll set you free!

Joe Writes . . . 

Michigan’s Grand River runs through seven counties.  Those counties – listed in order from the river’s source to its terminus – are Jackson, Ingham, Eaton, Clinton, Ionia, Kent and Ottawa Counties.

In the Presidential Election of 2016, Donald Trump won six of those seven counties.  Trump received 50% of the votes in the counties along the Grand, as opposed to the 48% he received while winning statewide.  Hillary Clinton, on the other hand, received 44% of the votes cast in counties along the Grand; statewide, Clinton received 47% of the votes cast.  Third-party candidates did slightly better along the Grand than statewide, 6% vs. 5%.

The only county on the river to give the majority of its votes to Hillary Clinton was Ingham – home to Lansing, Michigan’s capital – where Clinton garnered 61% of the vote.  Trump drew 33% of Ingham County’s vote while other candidates, largely the Libertarian and Green Parties, registered 6% of the total votes.

Both Ionia and Ottawa Counties gave Trump 62% of the vote for President, his best showings along the river.

Sharing a name with a county did not translate into increased votes.  In Clinton County, Hillary Clinton received only 41% of the votes cast for President.  Clinton County is named for DeWitt Clinton (1769 – 1829).  DeWitt Clinton was a United States Senator from New York and also served as Governor of that state.  He is credited with being the driving force behind the construction of the Erie Canal.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DeWitt_Clinton

DeWitt Clinton, no doubt puzzling over some aspect of the Erie Canal.

Source for vote totals: http://www.politico.com/2016-election/results/map/president/michigan/