Michigan House Speaker Matt Hall narrowly fended off a challenge from Democratic newcomer Nick Rowe to win a fifth term representing House District 42, even as his own party lost control of the chamber he has led. The Associated Press called the race at 12:30 p.m. Wednesday, with unofficial returns showing Hall ahead by 1,488 votes, a margin of 3.2 percentage points, with 97% of the district's vote counted.
The tight finish marks a sharp swing from Hall's past two victories in the district, which covers parts of Kalamazoo and Allegan counties, including Oshtemo Township, Galesburg, Parchment and the townships of Alamo, Brady, Comstock, Cooper, Pavilion, Prairie Ronde, Richland, Ross and Schoolcraft. In 2024, Hall beat Democrat Austin Marsman by 15 percentage points, and in the 2022 midterms he defeated Justin Mendoza by 10 points, according to MLive. That 2024 win, which MLive reported at the time gave Hall 57.4% of the vote to Marsman's 42.6% with 29,928 votes to 22,217 counted, secured him his fourth two-year term in the Legislature.
Hall and Rowe both call Kalamazoo County's Richland Township home, a shared hometown detail that underscored just how local this race was, as MLive reported in its October profile of the contest. Hall holds a business degree from Western Michigan University's Haworth College of Business and a law degree from WMU-Cooley Law School, while Rowe is a retired U.S. Air Force lieutenant colonel and combat veteran who teaches aviation at Western Michigan University. Rowe also earned a bachelor's degree in computer engineering from the Air Force Academy and a master's in business administration from Webster University.
A Campaign Built Around Affordability and Oversight
Hall ran unopposed in the Republican primary, while Rowe won his own party's nod with 58.8% of the vote over fellow Democrat Bill Korb, per the same MLive account. On the campaign trail, Hall said his priorities included lowering utility and housing costs, cutting property taxes, boosting health care price transparency, helping patients navigate medical bills and banning large corporations from buying up single-family homes.
Rowe, for his part, said he backed policies that strengthen collective bargaining, grow union jobs, expand affordable childcare, increase housing supply and invest in workforce training tied to real employer needs. He also staked out a position on immigration enforcement, saying federal agents carrying out enforcement actions in Michigan should be clearly identifiable and that local authorities should receive appropriate notification of major operations.
Democrats Reclaim the Trifecta Even as Hall Hangs On
Hall's narrow survival came against the backdrop of a broader Republican collapse in Lansing. Republicans had held a 58-to-52 House majority for the past two years after taking control from Democrats in the 2024 presidential election, but they lost at least seven seats in this year's midterms, with Democrats securing at least 59 House seats and seven races still uncalled as of Wednesday. Statewide, unofficial returns reported by the Associated Press and cited by Michigan Advance showed Democrats securing 51 state House seats to Republicans' 43, along with 19 state Senate seats to the GOP's 14.
With Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson also elected governor, Michigan Advance reported Democrats were positioned to reclaim full control of state government, flipping the House, Senate and governor's office. As a result, Hall will lose his speakership when the new Legislature is sworn in, with Ranjeev Puri described as the likely pick to replace him if elected by the Democratic caucus as expected, according to the same outlet.
Hall first joined the House in 2019, according to MI House Republicans, and his win over Rowe gives him a fifth term even as his party heads into the minority. As the Michigan Secretary of State's office notes, election-night returns like these remain unofficial until certified by county and state boards of canvassers, meaning the final HD-42 margin could still shift before it is official.
