Terri Lynn Land (born June 30, 1958) is an American politician who served as the 41st Michigan Secretary of State from 2003 to 2011. A member of the Republican Party, Land was elected to the Republican National Committee in 2012. She was the Republican nominee for the 2014 United States Senate race in Michigan, losing in the general election to Democrat Gary Peters. Land currently serves on the Board of Governors of Wayne State University. She grew up in Grandville, Michigan, graduating from Grandville High School, and attended Hope College in Holland, Michigan, where she received a Bachelor of Arts in political science. In 2009, Land was awarded an honorary doctorate degree from Davenport University.
Politics
Early political career
In 1980, Land joined the Grandville Planning Commission. At age 23, Land ran for the Michigan House of Representatives, unsuccessfully challenging incumbent Democrat Jelt Sietsema. From 1992 to 2000, she was the elected Clerk of Kent County, Michigan's fourth-largest county.
Michigan Secretary of State
In 2002, Land became Michigan's 41st Secretary of State, defeating Detroit-based attorney Melvin Hollowell 55%-43%, and took office on January 1, 2003. She and her husband contributed more than $1.9 million of their own money to her 2002 and 2006 Secretary of State campaigns. The Press editorial board wrote that, over the opposition of some Republicans, Land "advocated measures that would expand participation at the polls, including early voting, no-reason absentee voting and early registration for young voters."
In 2006, Land was reelected, defeating Macomb County Clerk Carmella Sabaugh, 56%-42%. After serving two terms, the maximum allowed in the state, she was succeeded by Republican Ruth Johnson. She ran for lieutenant governor on a ticket with Bouchard the following year, but lost in the Republican primary.
2014 U.S. Senate election
On June 3, 2013 Land announced her candidacy for the United States Senate in 2014. She ran unopposed in the primary and faced Democratic congressman Gary Peters in the general election.
According to an early analysis by The Washington Post, the U.S. Senate election in Michigan was considered one of the top 10 Senate races of 2014. Land outraised Peters throughout the campaign. Her largest independent backer was Americans for Prosperity, which spent $3.6 million in support of her candidacy.
In 2014, Land gave $3 million to her own campaign, saying, "You can't ask other people to invest in you if you don't invest in yourself."
In May 2014, Land gave a speech at the Mackinac Policy Conference, a three-day event that many of the state's top business and civic leaders attend, which she read from notes. Following her speech, Land was swarmed by reporters and, unable to articulate a response to a question, pushed their microphones away, saying, "I can't do this."
Land was endorsed by the entire Michigan Republican delegation, as well as former congressman Pete Hoekstra, and the Family Research Council.
Her campaign was weighed down by various missteps and her reluctance to make public campaign appearances, particularly after the event in May. Peters opened up a consistent lead in the polls beginning in September. The Republican establishment effectively gave up on Land's campaign the following month. In the November 4 general election, Land received 41.3% of the vote to Peters's 54.6%.
Voting rights lawsuit
In September 2020, Land filed a lawsuit against Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson for allowing votes postmarked before Election Day to be counted after Election Day.
2020 Wayne State University Board of Governors election
In September 2020, the Michigan Republican Party was required by law to withdraw its nomination of Diane Dunaskiss for the Wayne State University Board of Governors due to Dunaskiss's failure to pay a 2018 campaign fee. In an emergency state committee session, Land replaced Dunaskiss as the party's nominee. On November 3, 2020, Land was elected to an 8-year term on the board of governors.
2020 Michigan Fake Electors Case
As revealed by documents from the Federal Government retrieved via a FOIA request, Terri Lynn Land was listed as a fake elector for Donald Trump during the 2020 presidential election, but declined to attend, and was replaced by Ken Thompson.
Personal life
Land married Dan Hibma in 1983. They live in Byron Center