ELECTION RESULTS: Royal Oak Decides 5 Charter Proposals

Updated at 9:40 p.m.

Mike Fournier, Patricia Paruch and Kyle DuBuc were re-elected to the Royal Oak City Commission Tuesday with 4,614, 4,451 and 4,094 votes, respectively, according to unofficial election results.

Mayor Jim Ellison, who was unopposed, also won another term.

Voters approved all five charter proposals. Here are the totals:

Proposal 1, 4,089 votes for and 2,509 against,

Proposal 2, 3,900 votes for and 2,664 against.

Proposal 3, 5,031 votes for and 1,423 against.

Proposal 4, 3,880 votes for and 2,659 against.

Proposal 5, 4,618 votes for and 1,765 against.

Our Earlier Report

Royal Oak voters are deciding a four-way race for three seats on the City Commission, plus five ballot proposals in Tuesday’s election.

Mayor Jim Ellison is unopposed in his election bid.

The City Commission candidates are newcomer Kim Gibbs and incumbents Kyle DuBuc, Mike Fournier and Patricia Paruch, who was appointed in 2014 and is seeking election to a four-year term.

Polls remain open until 8 p.m. If you’re unsure about where to vote, find your polling place here.

Here’s a rundown of the questions before Royal Oak voters.

Proposal 1 would allow the library board to spend up to $10,000 per invoice without approval from the City Commission. Currently, the charter allows the library board to spend up to $500 per invoice without commission approval. The proposal doesn’t change the requirement that the library budget be approved by the City Commission.

Proposal 2 would raise the amount of the performance bond that a contractor must provide to the city from $3,000 to $50,000. Surety bonds are a contractor’s pledge that work will be performed under the terms of the contract.

Proposal 3 would remove obsolete provisions from the city charter.

Proposal 4 clarifies the city manager position, making it clear that the city manager serves at the will of the City Commission and placing certain restrictions on the terms of the city manager’s contract.

Proposal 5 would eliminate all gender-based language in the charter, such as “he” and “his,” and replace those words with gender-neutral language.