Of the 110 members of the Michigan House of Representatives, the most conservative of them all this year was Rep. Lana Theis, R-Brighton Township.
So says the Lansing political newsletter MIRS, which has been ranking the Legislature’s Most Conservative and Most Liberal members since 2003. To arrive at the rankings, MIRS selected 52 bellwether votes and looked at which members voted the conservative or liberal way on each one.
Theis voted the conservative way 92 percent of the time, which gave her the title of Most Conservative.
In the 15-year history of the MIRS ranking, Theis is the first Livingston County House member to top the list.
This year’s Most Liberal House member was Rep. Tom Cochran (D-Mason), who voted the conservative line just 6 percent of the time.
Theis – who was elected to the State Senate this year and begins her new job on Jan. 1 – took pride in winning the Most Conservative title. She told MIRS, “I wanted to represent the community that elected me. My voting record reflects Livingston County values, and I’m honored to have been able to be their voice in Lansing.”
