# Michigan's 21st Senate district

Michigan's 21st Senate district is one of 38 districts in the Michigan Senate. The 21st district was created by the 1850 Michigan Constitution, as the 1835 constitution only permitted a maximum of eight senate districts. It has been represented by Democrat Sarah Anthony since 2023.

## Geography

District 21 encompasses all of Eaton County, as well as part of Ingham County.

### 2011 Apportionment Plan

District 21, as dictated by the 2011 Apportionment Plan, covered Berrien, Cass, and St. Joseph Counties in far southwest Michigan. Communities in the district included Benton Harbor, Niles, St. Joseph, Buchanan, Benton Heights, Fair Plain, Paw Paw Lake, Dowagiac, Sturgis, Three Rivers, Benton Township, Lincoln Township, Niles Township, and St. Joseph Township.
The district was located entirely within Michigan's 6th congressional district, and overlapped with the 59th, 78th, and 79th districts of the Michigan House of Representatives. It bordered the state of Indiana, as well as Lake Michigan.

## List of senators

| Senator | Party | Dates | Residence | Notes |
| Frederick W. Curtenius | Whig | 1853–1854 | Kalamazoo | |
| Ebenezer Lakin Brown | Republican | 1855–1856 | Schoolcraft | |
| John Roberts | Republican | 1857–1858 | Hastings | |
| Harvey Williams | Republican | 1859–1860 | Charlotte | |
| Norman Bailey | Republican | 1861–1862 | Hastings | |
| Smith W. Fowler | Republican | 1863–1864 | Charlotte | |
| John M. Nevins | Republican | 1865–1866 | Hastings | |
| James Turner | Republican | 1867–1868 | Lansing | |
| Stephen Pearl | Republican | 1869–1870 | Duplain | |
| Isaac M. Cravath | Republican | 1871–1872 | Lansing | Died in office. |
| John N. Mellen | Republican | 1873–1876 | Romeo | |
| Crockett McElroy | Republican | 1877–1880 | St. Clair | |
| James R. McGurk | Republican | 1881–1882 | Capac | |
| James William Belknap | Republican | 1883–1886 | Greenville | |
| John W. Moon | Republican | 1887–1888 | Muskegon | |
| Jacob Den Herder | Republican | 1889–1890 | Zeeland | |
| George Ford Porter | Democratic | 1891–1892 | Gooding | |
| Edwin G. Fox | Republican | 1893–1894 | Mayville | |
| John L. Preston | Republican | 1895–1898 | Columbiaville | |
| Theron W. Atwood | Republican | 1899–1902 | Caro | |
| William E. Brown | Republican | 1903–1906 | Lapeer | |
| William McKay | Republican | 1907–1908 | Caro | Died in office. |
| Edwin G. Fox | Republican | 1909–1910 | Mayville | Died in office. |
| John Conley | Democratic | 1911–1912 | Lapeer | |
| Terry T. Corliss | Republican | 1913–1916 | Mayville | |
| Charles B. Scully | Republican | 1917–1920 | Almont | |
| Burney E. Brower | Republican | 1921–1926 | Jackson | |
| Ari H. Woodruff | Republican | 1927–1932 | Wyandotte | |
| John Nichczynski | Democratic | 1933–1934 | Detroit | Died in office. |
| Sidney C. Gray | Democratic | 1935–1936 | Detroit | |
| Joseph C. Roosevelt | Democratic | 1937–1938 | Detroit | |
| Stanley Nowak | Democratic | 1939–1948 | Detroit | |
| Robert A. Haggerty | Democratic | 1949–1954 | Detroit | |
| Patrick J. Doyle | Democratic | 1955–1962 | Dearborn | |
| William D. Ford | Republican | 1963–1964 | Taylor | |
| Garry E. Brown | Republican | 1965–1966 | Schoolcraft | |
| Anthony Stamm | Republican | 1967–1974 | Kalamazoo | Died in office. |
| Jack Welborn | Republican | 1974–1982 | Kalamazoo | |
| Harmon G. Cropsey | Republican | 1983–1990 | Decatur | |
| Paul Wartner | Republican | 1991–1994 | Portage | |
| Dale L. Shugars | Republican | 1995–2002 | Portage | |
| Ron Jelinek | Republican | 2003–2010 | Three Oaks | |
| John Proos | Republican | 2011–2018 | St. Joseph | |
| Kim LaSata | Republican | 2019–2022 | Bainbridge Township | |
| Sarah Anthony | Democratic | 2023–present | Lansing | |

## Recent election results
### 2018

2018 Michigan Senate election, District 21 :
| Primary election |||||
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Kim LaSata | 15,344 | 54.6 |
| | Republican | Dave Pagel | 12,761 | 45.4 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 28,105 | 100 |
| General election |||||
| | Republican | Kim LaSata | 58,164 | 58.1 |
| | Democratic | Ian Haight | 41,897 | 41.9 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 100,061 | 100 |
| | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold |

### 2014

2014 Michigan Senate election, District 21 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | John Proos (incumbent) | 45,586 | 64.5 |
| | Democratic | Bette Pierman | 25,090 | 35.5 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 70,676 | 100 |
| | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold |

### Federal and statewide results

| Year | Office | Results |
| 2020 | President | Trump 57.3 – 40.8% |
| 2018 | Senate | James 56.5 – 41.0% |
| 2018 | Governor | Schuette 54.6 – 41.9% |
| 2016 | President | Trump 57.3 – 37.5% |
| 2014 | Senate | Land 57.1 – 39.2% |
| 2014 | Governor | Snyder 56.9 – 40.1% |
| 2012 | President | Romney 54.1 – 45.0% |
| 2012 | Senate | Hoekstra 50.6 – 45.8% |

## Historical district boundaries

| Description | Apportionment Plan |
| Barry County (part) Barry Township Carlton Township Hope Township Irving Township Orangeville Township Prairieville Township Rutland Township Thornapple Township Kalamazoo County St. Joseph County (part) Burr Oak Township Colon Township Fawn River Township Florence Township Leonidas Township Mendon Township Nottawa Township Sherman Township Sturgis Sturgis Township | 1964 Apportionment Plan |
| Cass County (part) Porter Township (part) Kalamazoo County (part) Excluding Alamo Township Charleston Township St. Joseph County (part) Constantine Township Fabius Township Florence Township Flowerfield Township Lockport Township Mendon Township Mottville Township Nottawa Township Park Township Sherman Township Sturgis Township White Pigeon Township Van Buren County (part) Almena Township Pine Grove Township Waverly Township | 1972 Apportionment Plan |
| Cass County Kalamazoo County (part) Alamo Township Brady Township Charleston Township Climax Township Comstock Township Galesburg Kalamazoo Township (part) Oshtemo Township Parchment Pavilion Township Portage Prairie Ronde Township Ross Township Schoolcraft Township Texas Township Wakeshma Township St. Joseph County | 1982 Apportionment Plan |
| Kalamazoo County St. Joseph County (part) Mendon Township Park Township | 1992 Apportionment Plan |
| Berrien County Cass County Van Buren County (part) Almena Township Arlington Township Bangor Bangor Township Bloomingdale Township Columbia Township Covert Township Decatur Township Geneva Township Gobles Hamilton Township Hartford Hartford Township Keeler Township Lawrence Township Grove Township Porter Township South Haven (part) South Haven Township Waverly Township | 2001 Apportionment Plan |
| Berrien County Cass County St. Joseph County | 2011 Apportionment Plan |