Michigan › Kent County › Judge of Circuit Court, 17th Circuit, Incumbent Position
3 candidates are tracked for Judge of Circuit Court, 17th Circuit, Incumbent Position on the November 3, 2026 ballot: Maureen A. Gottlieb, Scott A. Noto and Clay M. West. Candidate information follows official Kent County election filings; verify with the official election office linked below.
Nonpartisan; three incumbent judges run unopposed for three seats on the November 3 ballot. Michigan election law (MCL 168.409b) restricts the 'incumbent position' ballot designation to the sitting judge in that seat; this designation is printed on the Kent County Clerk's official candidate list.
Nonpartisan
Maureen A. Gottlieb appears on the November 3, 2026 ballot for Judge of Circuit Court, 17th Circuit, Incumbent Position, per the county clerk's certified candidate list.
Campaign site →Nonpartisan · Incumbent
Scott A. Noto was elected to the 17th Circuit Court in November 2020, per the Kent County staff directory. He received his B.A. from the University of Chicago and J.D. from Loyola University Chicago School of Law, and was previously in private practice representing clients in civil and criminal matters. Scott A. Noto appears on the November 3, 2026 ballot for Judge of Circuit Court, 17th Circuit, Incumbent Position, per the county clerk's certified candidate list.
Nonpartisan · Incumbent
Clay M. West holds a bachelor's degree from Harvard, a master's degree from Cambridge, and a law degree from Yale, per the Kent County staff directory. He clerked for federal and state appellate judges and served as a federal prosecutor before taking the 17th Circuit Court bench in April 2023; he deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan with the U.S. Army and has served as a Judge Advocate in the Army Reserve since 2004. Clay M. West appears on the November 3, 2026 ballot for Judge of Circuit Court, 17th Circuit, Incumbent Position, per the county clerk's certified candidate list.