Wards and Precincts of Grand Rapids

Welcome to the first official post here on the Blue Bridge Blog! As the title suggests this post will be focusing on the differences between wards and precincts and detailing why knowing which is which is important if you want to be an informed and participating member of your community.

Grand Rapids is a city of just about 200,000 people which makes it the second largest city in the state of Michigan. With that being sad, that is a lot of people who fall under the jurisdiction of the city government. So just how does the government of the city of Grand Rapids manage to govern such a large group of people in an effective manner?

Well if you’ve ever wondered about that or had questions regarding just what a “precinct” or a “ward” is then allow me to help shed some light on the subject!

The city of Grand Rapids is divided into three distinct wards which are simply defined areas that divide the population of Grand Rapids into electoral districts for local elections. Each of the three Grand Rapids wards have two elected ‘Ward Commissioners’ who serve 4 year terms before coming up for reelection. The 1st Ward is currently being represented by Jon O’Connor and Kurt Reppart; the 2nd Ward is represented by Joseph D. Jones and Milinda Ysasi, and finally 3rd Ward is represented by both Senita Lenear and Nathaniel Moody. Below is a map of the three Grand Rapids wards and the areas that they represent.

So what the heck is a precinct then? Put simply a precinct is a subdivision of a ward where polling stations are located for citizens to use on election day. People living in each precinct vote at the same location on election day and a full list of the 77 Grand Rapids precincts can be found on the Kent County website at.. https://www.accesskent.com/Departments/Elections/Polling_Locations/grand_rapids.htm

Most precinct’s designated voting locations are placed at public spots that have some sort of significance to the community; such as a church, schools, or community centers. Voters living in the same precinct all use the same location to vote when election day comes around each year.

So in short that sums up what the main differences between the Grand Rapids wards and precincts and why knowing where you live with respect to each is important when attempting to be an informed member of your local community. Be on the look out for a detailed breakdown of your local elected officials written by Grayson coming soon and be sure to subscribe so you never miss a post!