2024 Voter Trends in Ludington (Compared with the Country and County)

[XLFD]

This article will look at voting statistics of this year's November presidential election for the city of Ludington and compare it with the statistics of the November 2016 election.  At the same time, we will be looking at statistics for other municipalities in the county, and the county itself over that period to see whether they trended similarly. 

We have used the November 2016 presidential campaign as a point of reference since it had many similarities with this year, with Donald Trump as an outsider, change-candidate running for the Republicans going up against a Democratic woman insider candidate with close connections to a prior administration.  Both times, the top of the ticket seemed to be the biggest motivator to get folks to the polls, and few if any 'exciting' down-ballot contests or propositions were on the ballot. 

In 2024, Mason County had over 17,000 people vote for either Trump or Kamala Harris, 10,830 chose the former, 6969 chose the latter, giving Trump about 61% of the vote.  Custer Township, with the Village of Custer in its center, went for Trump in a big way, with 194 votes cast for him, and only 60 cast for her (76%).  Scottville had 198 votes for him, and 87 for Kamala (a more modest 69%).

With our county's biggest village and second biggest city averaging over 72% in this election for Trump, one might expect Ludington to follow suit, but that assumption would be very incorrect.  The City of Ludington consists of six wards where votes are counted independently of each other.  In 2024, the two presidential candidates received the following vote totals:

Ward     Harris Votes      Trump Votes    

 1               297                   266                  

 2               334                   323

 3               319                   246

 4               228                   262

 5               275                   264

 6               249                   249

Total:       1702                  1610

Surprisingly, if Ludington decided the presidential race, Kamala Harris would have won with over 51% of the vote, losing only the Fourth Ward.  However, that is not the case, Trump would win the national popular vote by about the same percentage and handily win in the electoral college.  This move by Ludington to the left of center of what the entire country has become was unexpected when we look at what happened in 2016.  

In 2016, Mason County statistics were fairly similar to this year's.  Trump would trounce Clinton in the county 8505 to 5281, only 1% more than this year.  And while he would win Scottville by a modest 119 to 80 votes, and Custer Township by 179 to 60-- results notably less than his margin of victory in 2024, he would carry Ludington easily by nearly 300 votes eight years ago:  1911 to 1624.  He would not only carry all the city wards, but he would also win the waterfront wards, 1st and 3rd, 389 to 291 and 377 to 280 respectively.  

These two wards, featuring much of the most valuable property in the city and many of its wealthiest inhabitants, went from a victory margin for Trump of 195 in 2016 to a 105 margin of defeat in 2024, a massive swing when you're dealing with about 1200 votes total in each election.  They went from the two wards with the greatest differential for Trump votes in victory in 2016, then as the same in his citywide defeat in 2024.  

Has the city government's recent embrace of progressive values and gentrification procedures discouraged conservatives from living in the Ludington city limits and has it likewise attracted a more leftist and elitist crowd to settle in their wake?  If this election is any indication, that may be the case.  At the least, it's an interesting trend in our local demographics.

[Willy]

Thanks for the information. I had been wondering how the vote would tally in Ludington since much of the political leaders seem to have the same mindset as many other towns who are tilting left. This is not a good sign for Ludington and that has become apparent in how local politics has been mirroring the dark side of the Democrat way of doing business. The more lefties that move to Ludington the worse it's going to get. It's to bad there is no vaccine to prevent the spread of leftist ideology and to help people recognize the lies they are spreading in our schools and media. Thank goodness for the Torch.

 

[XLFD]

The start of the left turn began with the passing of the disastrous Rental Inspection Ordinance around 2016, which had a great impact.  In one measure they ruined the future of affordable housing in Ludington and encouraged the flight of working-class people into the county to be replaced by retiring people from urban cities and suburbs who are more in line of the progressive elite.  

Common-sense folks have two options now that they know that the other side is trying to make Ludington into the next Detroit or Chicago.  Continue the flight or stand and fight for a city that doesn't deserve to be ruined by failed ideology.