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By Allison Scarbrough, News Editor
Democrat Rebecca Amidon and Republican Kim Cole will face each other in the Nov. 3 general election for Michigan’s 32nd Senate District.
The district includes all of Benzie, Mason and Oceana counties and portions of Manistee and Muskegon counties.
Mason County Press and Oceana County Press reached out to both candidates and asked them to provide information about themselves, identify what they believe are the key issues facing the district and explain their policy plans to address those issues.
Their responses, presented alphabetically by last name, follow.
Rebecca Amidon
Rebecca Amidon
Rebecca Amidon, 38, lives in Manistee County with her husband, Ryan, and their two children, Ace, 6, and Indigo, 3.
Amidon has worked in higher education for more than 10 years and is currently an adjunct communication professor at Mid Michigan College. She earned a master’s degree in organizational leadership from Trine University and a bachelor’s degree in media and public communication from Purdue University Fort Wayne.
Amidon serves on the Michigan Northwest Regional Child Care Planning Coalition and the Early On Steering Committee. In 2024, she and her family traveled to Washington, D.C., to participate in Strolling Thunder, where they met with Michigan lawmakers to discuss child care issues.
She served as vice chair of the Manistee County Democratic Party from 2021 to 2024 and is currently vice president of NoMi Forest Explorers, a nonprofit organization that offers nature-based educational experiences for children in Manistee County.
Amidon identified child care, education and health care as key issues.
Child care
Amidon said child care issues result in an estimated $2.88 billion annual loss to Michigan’s economy while creating financial challenges and missed opportunities for working parents.
“Children deserve a safe, nurturing environment to learn and grow,” Amidon said. “Every parent deserves the opportunity to work or pursue education without being held back by the high cost or inaccessibility of quality child care.”
Amidon said she supports expanding child care subsidies and tax credits for low- and middle-income families and increasing employer participation in MI Tri-Share, a program that divides child care costs among participating employers, employees and the state.
She also supports investing in new child care centers in areas with limited access; providing grants, licensing assistance and professional development for home-based child care providers; improving wages and benefits for child care workers; and funding credentialing and continuing education programs.
Amidon said she would support incentives to recruit and retain early childhood workers, establish dedicated long-term public funding for early childhood education and encourage employers to establish on-site or cooperative child care programs.
Education
Amidon said she would work to maintain funding for public schools and opposes directing public education funding to private and for-profit schools.
She criticized Republican leadership in the Michigan House over its school aid budget proposal, saying it would negatively affect special education services and rural school districts.
“These cuts are devastating to rural families and students with special needs, stripping them of the tools they need to thrive,” Amidon said. “I oppose this dangerous direction and will work to restore and expand funding where it’s needed most.”
Amidon said her education priorities include ensuring educators have adequate pay, classroom resources and support. She also supports continuing free breakfast and lunch programs for students and protecting and expanding free preschool.
She said she would also invest in rural school transportation to help ensure students who live farther from their schools have reliable transportation.
Health care
Amidon said access to health care is a growing concern in the 32nd District, particularly in rural areas where people may have to travel significant distances for basic medical services.
She supports expanding access to primary care, urgent care and mental health services and providing support for rural hospitals and clinics.
Amidon also supports using state funding to strengthen Medicare and Medicaid delivery, increasing access to treatment and recovery programs for opioid and other substance use disorders and expanding prenatal and postnatal care.
She said she would also support rural birthing centers as part of efforts to improve maternal and infant health outcomes.
Kim Cole
Kim Cole
Kim Cole, 62, lives in Mason County’s Pere Marquette Township with his wife, Gina. They have been married for 39 years and have two adult children and four grandchildren.
Cole is a fifth-generation Mason County resident and a 1982 graduate of Ludington High School. He graduated from West Shore Community College in 1984.
Cole has worked in law enforcement for 41 years and is currently serving his fourth term as Mason County sheriff.
He currently serves on the Michigan Sheriffs’ Association Legislative Committee and previously served on the association’s board of directors from 2018 to 2022. He served as MSA president in 2022.
Cole was appointed to the National Sheriffs’ Association Board of Directors in 2023 and serves on its Traffic Safety and Border Security committees.
Locally, Cole serves as vice chairman of the Mason/Oceana 911 Board of Directors. He also serves on the SSCENT Board of Directors, where he is a past chairman; Lakeshore Children’s Advocacy Center Board of Directors; Mason County Medical Control Board; Mason County Child Death Review Team; and Mason County Historical Society Board of Directors.
Cole also served on then-Gov. Rick Snyder’s Medical Marijuana Advisory Board in 2017.
He is a member of the Rotary Club of Ludington and is a two-time Paul Harris Fellow. He received the West Shore Community College Alumni Achievement Award in 2017, the Richard H. Austin Lifetime Commitment Award for traffic safety in 2020 and the Michigan Sheriffs’ Association’s Terrence L. Jungel Sheriff of the Year award in 2021.
Cole identified affordability, education and public safety as key issues.
Affordability
Cole said Michigan families are struggling financially while state government spending has increased. He said controlling state spending and reducing the financial burden on taxpayers would be priorities.
“Affordability must be a priority and putting money back into the pockets of hardworking Michiganders,” Cole said.
Cole said he supports getting state spending under control and providing tax relief. He also supports reducing regulations on businesses to encourage expansion and economic growth.
Education
Cole said Michigan’s education system needs changes but said teachers should not be blamed for the problems facing schools.
“There is plenty of blame and it’s not fair to place the blame on our teachers, many of whom I consider friends, but changes need to happen,” Cole said.
Cole said those changes should include allowing teachers to focus on teaching, keeping parents involved in their children’s education and supporting school choice.
He also said he would promote and support trade schools, community colleges and regional universities.
Public safety, mental health and addiction
Cole said promoting safe schools, streets and communities would be another priority if elected.
He said he would support law enforcement officers and other first responders and opposes efforts to defund police departments. Cole also said he opposes cashless bail.
“For 41 years, as a law enforcement officer, I have stood in the gap between good and evil to keep our communities safe,” Cole said. “I will continue to do it in the Michigan Senate.”
Cole said public safety policy should also address mental health and substance use disorders, issues he said he has experienced firsthand through loved ones.
“We need to be better and do better for this portion of our population,” Cole said. “I will always support mental health programs, drug treatment programs and be a voice for victims of crime.”
Cole said his service on various state and national boards and committees has given him experience working with state government.
“These priorities don’t fall into place without tough conversations and having a backbone,” Cole said. “Throughout my career, I have had these tough conversations, and you have my word, on day one, I will be that voice for West Michigan in our state’s capitol.”
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