Voters in Michigan’s 86th House District will choose a state representative on Nov. 3, 2026. The Republican nominee is incumbent Nancy DeBoer, 72, of Holland, seeking a third term. The Democratic nominee is Joseph McClusky, 28, of Holland, in his first campaign for public office.
Both ran unopposed in the Aug. 4 primary.
The district includes the City of Holland, most of Holland Township, and all of Park and Laketown townships in Ottawa and Allegan counties. It has about 91,000 residents. DeBoer was first elected to the seat in 2022 with about 56 percent of the vote and was re-elected in 2024 by a similar margin.
This article summarizes each candidate’s personal background and professional experience from public records, campaign materials, and prior reporting. It is not a scorecard of every legislative vote.
Nancy DeBoer (R) was born in Grand Rapids on March 5, 1954. She has been a Holland resident for about four decades. Her father’s AT&T career moved the family around Michigan and other states; she has said she lived in nine other places before settling here.
Joseph McClusky (D) grew up in Burton, a suburb of Flint in Genesee County, and moved to West Michigan in 2015 to attend Hope College. He graduated in 2018 and has lived in the Holland area since. His campaign describes him as a lifelong Michigander from Holland.
DeBoer is married to Jim DeBoer, who taught music in Holland Public Schools for 23 years and is now an adjunct associate professor of music and director of Awakening at Hope College. They have three children: Eric, Maria, and Jordan. Two of the children are teachers. Nancy DeBoer has sung with the Holland Community Chorale and served on her church’s worship team. The official Michigan legislator biographical file lists her religion as Protestant, Christian. In a January 2026 profile for The Hollander, she said, “If God calls you to something, you can’t halfway do it.”
McClusky is married. A photo from last summer shows him with his husband at a Holland-area gathering. He has not published a list of children. He has said he grew up in a conservative Christian household and attended a Baptist school whose motto was “Training Soldiers for Christ.” As a freshman at Hope College he ran for president of the Hope Republicans and attended the 2016 Republican National Convention as a guest of the Michigan delegation. He has said that watching the Republican Party fuse itself to Donald Trump, and coming out as gay during his senior year at Hope, convinced him there was no longer room for him in that party.
DeBoer earned a B.A. in secondary education from Calvin College in 1976, with an English major and a music minor. She later completed 18 hours toward a master's degree at Western Michigan University. She taught language arts and English at Randolph Christian Schools (1976–77), Calvin Christian Middle School (1977–78), and Holland Christian High School (1978–83). She has said she left the classroom to raise her children.
In 2002 she co-founded the West Michigan Character Council and served as executive director for 17 years. From 2013 to 2015 she co-hosted the morning show on WPNW The Pledge. After leaving City Hall she served as assistant director of She Leads Michigan and co-hosted faith-based broadcasts, including Heart and Soul segments on WLNS-TV. Wheaton Academy named her Alumna of the Year in 2022. She has also served as a trustee of the Michigan Municipal League.
McClusky is a Hope College graduate. A 2025 Hollander review of his LinkedIn listed his longest job as a year and three months, as deputy campaign manager for Bryan Berghoef's congressional campaign. In 2022 he managed Democrat Larry Jackson's campaign against DeBoer. He worked about 11 months as a development and communications associate at the Holland Museum. In 2024 he was a regional director for the Michigan House Democratic Fund, working with candidates in nine West Michigan districts. He completed the Great Lakes Political Academy candidate program in 2021 and later joined the organization as a research aide.
He told the Ottawa News Network: "I've always said if I feel like I have something to offer, if I feel like I have something to say for the community, that I'll step up and run." His campaign platform is organized around affordability, accountability, and action, including housing costs, health care, skilled trades, a pledge not to take corporate PAC money, applying FOIA to the Legislature and governor, and passenger rail between Holland, Detroit, and Chicago.
DeBoer served on Holland City Council from 2005 to 2015. In 2015 she was elected the first woman mayor of Holland and served two terms through 2019. She has said that as mayor she oversaw renovation of the Civic Center without a tax increase, replacement of the city's coal plant with a natural-gas plant, expansion of downtown snowmelt, and additional housing. She lost the 2019 mayor's race to Nathan Bocks, who remains mayor.
DeBoer won the 86th House District in 2022 and was re-elected in 2024. She chairs the House Education and Workforce Committee and serves on Energy, Health Policy, and Rules. In her first term she served on Appropriations, including school aid. Recent work she cites includes a six-bill epinephrine access package that passed the House unanimously, legislation on cell phones in classrooms, literacy and phonics, and about $600,000 in state funding to convert a former Coast Guard station in Park Township into a water-rescue base.
McClusky has not held elected office. The Nov. 3 general election is his first time on a ballot.
The election is Nov. 3, 2026.
Eric McKee is a lifetime resident of West Michigan. Married with two energetic boys, he spends his days balancing work with dad life. Also, a firm believer that Almond St. Claus Windmill Cookies are the ultimate snack (and maybe a little too good).
Copyright © 2025 Hollander Media. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without written authorization. By providing your email or phone number, you are consenting to receive emails, calls, and SMS/MMS messages from The Hollander and affiliates. Msg & data rates may apply.
