By Jonathan Oosting
LANSING, MI — Michigan voters resoundingly rejected two separate wolf hunt laws on Tuesday, but it was a different story in the Upper Peninsula, where most all of the state’s estimated 630 or 640 wolves are believed to live.
A majority of voters in all 15 counties on the far side of the Mackinac Bridge voted “yes” on Proposal 1, voicing support for a law that established wolves as a game species and authorized a hunt.
A majority of voters in 14 out of 15 counties in the U.P. voted “yes” on Proposal 2, supporting a law that gave those decision-making powers to the Natural Resource Commission. The “no” vote won Chippewa County by 463 votes.
In the end, both laws were repealed by wide margins in the statewide election, which was dominated by larger populations in the Lower Peninsula. The impact of all votes remains unclear, however, as a third wolf hunting law is set to take effect in March or April.
Sen. Tom Casperson, R-Escanaba, said the geographic divide on both referendums vindicate his belief that wolf hunting is an issue best decided by the NRC rather than voters.
“That’s been my argument all along, that the folks in the Upper Peninsula are going to be disenfranchised by the majority not knowing the whole truth,” Casperson said Thursday after the state Senate met to decide new leadership for next year.
“I think it’s not a good thing, and quite frankly disappointing, because the folks that went against us are not living with the problem. My citizens are.”
Related: Anti-wolf hunt votes in Michigan deliver a blow even as attacks grow, now courts will make the call
More than 72 percent of U.P. voters said “yes” to proposal 1, compared to just 44 percent in the rest of the state. Some 2.9 million voters weighed in on the issue, but only 95,000 of those were north of the bridge.
Roughly 59 percent of U.P. voters said “yes” to Proposal 2, but the NRC law was rejected by 65 percent of other voters. Statewide, it failed by 803,800 votes; in the UP, it won by 16,590.
Jill Fritz, who heads up the Keep Michigan Wolves Protected ballot committee and is state director of the Humane Society of the United States, said statewide totals are a clear sign that voters do not want wolf hunting.
“Everyone in the state, all the citizens of the state of Michigan, have a right to vote on these important wildlife issues,” she said. “The wildlife of Michigan belongs to all the people of the state.”
Wolf hunt opponents also say the resounding rejection of Proposal 2 makes clear that voters do not want the NRC to have the final say on wolf hunting.
They’re planning a legal challenge against the newer law that would re-affirm the NRC’s authority, and they’re also urging commissioners to respect the will of voters by holding off on wolf hunting for the foreseeable future.
“That is a statewide commission, not a U.P. commission,” Fritz said of the NRC, a seven-member body whose members are appointed by the governor.
The NRC and the Department of Natural Resources have already made clear there will not be a wolf hunt this year after an inaugural season in late 2013. They won’t have the authority to make that decision until the newer law takes effect.
Wolf hunt supporters are anticipating a lawsuit on the newer law, but they’re confident in their case and firm in their belief that hunting must be part of the management plan, which already allows farmers to kill nuisance wolves.
“We’re certainly not trying to eliminate them, but there needs to be a balance, and right now it’s out of balance,” said Caperson.
“Regardless of whatever happens, the wolves will be dealt with,” Casperson continued. I’m telling you my people that I represent are not going to put up with this. When they feel threatened — and we do feel threatened — action has to be taken.”