Michigan › Wayne County › Michigan House District 2
2 candidates are tracked for Michigan House District 2 on the November 3, 2026 ballot: Joanna Whaley and Ron Kokinda. Candidate information follows official Wayne County election filings; verify with the official election office linked below.
Joanna Whaley won the Democratic primary with about 56 percent over Frank Liberati and Gary Schlack, and Ron Kokinda won the Republican primary with about 74 percent over Zacharia Ortiz, per official results certified by the Michigan Secretary of State; the nominees meet on the November 3 ballot.
Joanna Whaley works as a clinical hospital chaplain specializing in hospice care, per Pride Source. She completed her senior year at Eastern Michigan University and holds a master's degree in theology from seminary, per Pride Source. If elected, she would be the first openly transgender state representative in Michigan history, per FOX 2 Detroit. Joanna Whaley appears on the November 3, 2026 ballot for Michigan House District 2, per the county clerk's certified candidate list.
Ron Kokinda holds a bachelor's degree from the State University of New York at Stony Brook, earned in 1971, per his iVoterGuide candidate profile. Ron Kokinda appears on the November 3, 2026 ballot for Michigan House District 2, per the county clerk's certified candidate list. No campaign website or questionnaire response was found as of September 4, 2026. No campaign website or questionnaire response was found as of September 4, 2026.
