McDonald Holds Strong Lead In Oakland County Prosecutor Race

Last updated at 1 p.m.

OAKLAND COUNTY, MI — Karen McDonald, the Democratic candidate for prosecutor in Oakland County, has carried a commanding lead over Republican challenger Lin Goetz throughout most of Wednesday.

As of 1 p.m., McDonald leads Goetz by more than 100,000 votes, according to unofficial results provided by the Oakland County Clerk's Office. The clerk's office is reporting that 100 percent of precincts have been reported, although it remains unclear if all absentee ballots in Oakland County have been counted.

McDonald, who defeated incumbent Jessica Cooper in the August primary, has pulled in 415,652 votes in the race for prosecutor. Her counterpart, Goetz, has received 313,668, according to unofficial results.

See the latest results below as they come in:

McDonald: 415,652

Goetz: 313,668

(Results are provided by the Oakland County Clerk's Office)

Patch is updating this article with results as they come in. Refresh this page for the latest. Subscribe to receive free real time results in Michigan.

McDonald defeated Cooper in August, pulling more than 65 percent of votes in the upset. Goetz, meanwhile, ran unopposed on the Republican ticket.

In information provided to Patch through a questionnaire, McDonald — a Birmingham resident and mother to five children — said she would look to work with other county officials if elected.

"Now more than ever, government officials must learn to collaborate and work together for the good of their communities," she said. "I have been endorsed by a bipartisan coalition of over twenty elected officials, along with The Detroit News and Downtown Newsmagazine in the General Election and The Detroit Free Press in the Primary.

"Once elected, I will work with these state and local leaders across party lines to participate in treatment courts and implement common-sense reform policies that allow people to keep their jobs, housing, and families while seeking treatment; create new part-time and job share opportunities in the Prosecutor's Office; and use a science-based approach to limit the spread of COVID-19 and protect our communities and local businesses."

McDonald was a high school English teacher before becoming an assistant prosecuting attorney. She was an Oakland County Circuit Court Judge from 2012-2019.

Goetz did not fill out a Patch questionnaire, but has 28 years of criminal law experience as an assistant prosecutor in Oakland County and as a criminal defense attorney, according to The Oakland Press.

Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson said Tuesday night she expects ballots to be counted in Michigan by Wednesday night, an optimistic claim after originally projecting that votes would be tallied by Friday.