Democratic incumbents Brianna Scott and Kelly Tebay Zemke have won reelection to Michigan State University's Board of Trustees, fending off a pair of Republican challengers in a race both parties fought hard to win. The two defeated Republicans Julie Maday and Roger Victory for the two open seats on the eight-member board, which oversees the university and controls how it spends its money.
According to MLive, the race drew ten total candidates competing for just two seats, a crowded field reflecting how much attention the board's recent turmoil has attracted. Scott and Tebay Zemke, both first elected to the board in 2018, were nominated by the Democratic Party for another term, according to Michigan Public, while Republicans put forward Victory and Maday as their nominees.
Trustees serve eight-year terms without pay, with two seats up for election every two years in a staggered cycle, the outlet notes. That structure means Scott and Tebay Zemke's wins secure Democratic control of both contested seats through the rest of the decade, while the board's broader composition remains split among members elected in earlier cycles.
A Board Still Shadowed by Turmoil
The newly elected trustees take their seats at a tense moment for Michigan State's governing board. The institution has spent recent years mired in ethics violations, alleged bullying and rapid turnover in the president's office, the same MLive report on the candidates found. That backdrop shaped much of the campaign, with candidates across the field emphasizing a need to restore trust in MSU's leadership, as the state news outlet statenews.com reported in its voter guide.
Adding to the instability, MSU President Kevin Guskiewicz announced in May that he planned to leave for Clemson, only to reverse course in July and say he would stay at Michigan State, per the mlive.com report on the candidates. The university has also been grappling with a $12 million budget deficit, which officials attributed largely to state appropriation cuts passed by the Republican-led state House over the summer, Michigan Public reported.
Affordability Was a Central Campaign Theme
On the trail, Scott and Tebay Zemke leaned heavily on the Spartan Tuition Advantage, a program that covers tuition for in-state students from families making $75,000 a year or less, according to Michigan Public's reporting. That pitch dovetailed with the broader affordability message both incumbents and their Republican opponents pressed as the university works through its budget strain.
Scott, who chairs the MSU Board of Trustees, earned her bachelor's degree from MSU's Eli Broad College of Business before going on to earn a juris doctor from Wayne State University Law School. She now owns and operates Brianna T. Scott & Associates, a law firm based in Muskegon. Tebay Zemke, meanwhile, holds a bachelor's degree in international relations with a specialization in Muslim studies from MSU, along with a master's degree in law enforcement intelligence and analysis from the university and certificates in homeland security and critical thinking. She currently serves as director of government and external relations at the Henry Ford in Dearborn.
The Republican Challengers' Backgrounds
Victory represents Michigan's 31st Senate District, which includes Ottawa and Allegan counties, and is term-limited in 2026. He previously served in the Michigan state House before moving to the Senate, where he advocated for agriculture issues throughout his legislative career, and he owns Victory Farms. Accounts differ on when his Senate tenure began: MLive's September report on the candidates stated he has served in the Senate since 2018, while Michigan Public's October report put the start date at 2019.
Maday, who is from Novi, graduated from the University of Michigan-Dearborn and has served on the Novi City Council and Planning Commission as well as the city's economic development committee. Her husband graduated from Michigan State, and her children are Spartans as well. It was Maday's second bid for a trustee seat; she ran in 2024 and lost by fewer than 5,000 votes, per Michigan Public's account of the candidates' backgrounds.
With the election now decided, Scott and Tebay Zemke will share responsibility for moving the board forward after years of turmoil, according to MLive's report on the results. The win keeps both Democratic incumbents in place as Michigan State continues working through its budget pressures and the leadership questions that have dogged the board in recent years.
