'Concerned about waste': Conservative Shawn Haff seeks District 6 seat on Ottawa County board
“Instead of going in like a bull in a china shop, I think we can take our time … make sure we get things done.” ~ Shawn Haff
EDITOR’S NOTE: This profile is a continuation of interviews of Ottawa County commissioner candidates. For other profiles prior to May 2, click here.
OTTAWA COUNTY — Shawn Haff wants District 6 voters to know that “conservative” doesn’t have to be a dirty word.
“We can respect other people, we can listen to their concerns, and we can rally around transparency, accountability and fiscal conservatism,” he said. “Instead of going in like a bull in a china shop, I think we can take our time … make sure we get things done.”
Haff, 50, is running as a Republican for Ottawa County's District 6 on the Ottawa County Board of Commissioners, comprising portions of Georgetown Township.
District 6 is currently represented by Ottawa Impact Republican Kendra Wenzel, who is seeking re-election after being appointed to the board in December after Kyle Terpstra resigned only 11 months into his two-year term. Also running for the District 6 seat is Democrat Michelle Dieleman.
Haff, like Wenzel, applied for the seat appointment after Terpstra’s resignation, which occurred shortly after the board entered into a $4 million settlement with the county’s health officer (it was later deemed too vague to be legally enforced by a judge). Both were among the five finalists selected for public interviews.
Haff said it’s been difficult to watch the decisions of the Ottawa Impact-controlled board making decisions that have led to five lawsuits in 14 months, along with a brief investigation by the Michigan Attorney General’s Office over allegations of Open Meetings Act violations.
The far-right fundamentalist group formed in 2021 over frustrations with county and state COVID-19 mitigation measures. The group currently has a six-seat controlling majority on the 11-member board.
Read more: 'We're confused, not lost': John Teeples seeking open District 7 seat on Ottawa County board
“The more I've watched things, I've just been embarrassed as a conservative about certain things that have happened,” Haff said. “And it's things that we can avoid that is causing me my biggest concerns.”
Haff said there’s space for conservative conversations, but that strategies need to be worked through better.
“I appreciate the fight that the new board is showing, but we have to be more tactical and smarter about how we go about picking our battles and taking our time and being a bit more prudent to make sure we actually have a chance of winning as conservatives rather than facing the inevitable defeat,” he said.
Haff pointed to the failed termination hearing for Administrative Health Officer Adeline Hambley shortly after the Court of Appeals ruled that she was appropriately appointed by the previous board of commissioners.
“They should have stopped all attempts to get rid of her and tried to work with her,” Haff said.
Haff, a criminal defense attorney, holds a political science degree with a minor in history from Grand Valley State University. He said it’s important to pay attention to big events in history to learn from successes and failures.
“Sometimes when people come in, they make changes right away, but things might not work out as well as they should have because proper procedures weren't followed — and it ends up causing a lot more problems,” he said. “Just take your time to make sure they're done.”
He pointed to the resolution of the Hambley litigation in February, where she agreed to remain in the post — only to fire Administrator John Gibbs days later that drew a fifth lawsuit against the board for alleged wrongful termination.
“I was relieved when they settled the issue with the health officer. And almost immediately after that, we fall into the giant Gibbs debacle,” Haff said. “When that happened, I was just like, ‘You've got to be kidding me. This is just going go on and on and on.’”
The OI majority unexpectedly fired former administrator John Shay in January 2023 and hired Gibbs without conducting a formal search for the next county chief. At the time, Moss and his fellow OI commissioners touted Gibbs’ experience — some even going so far to say he was overqualified for the job.
“And that is a complete and utter failure on Ottawa Impact,” Haff said. “Their candidate that was going to do such an exceptional job … and no matter what happens in that lawsuit, it's a loss for Ottawa Impact in Ottawa County. Then, they didn’t take responsibility for making a poor choice — something I have no problem doing. You made a mistake; take responsibility.”
Haff said the benefit of having a legal mind on the board is that issues would be better studied and plans thought through before commitments to action.
“I do think that's something I can bring to the table,” he said. “A lot of it's just taking the time to study the issues and being more prudent with choices that are better made.”
If elected, Haff said he would like to see more discussion restored in board meetings, where commissioners are allowed to have conversations in the public view. Board Chair Joe Moss eliminated commissioners’ time to discuss non-agenda items at the end of meetings and he often interrupts fellow commissioners who hold opposing views to his own.
“I would like to give the commissioners more time to talk about the issues,” Haff said. “They got rid of the comments that were allowed. The chairman should be allowed to make some comments during the board meeting, but not all.”
Haff said the political temperature needs to be reduced and the board needs to start trusting the employees who serve the county.
“If you're new to taking over a position in government, you might want to listen to people that know how the nuts and bolts of the county work for a little bit,” he said.” People that are working in our county are not deliberately sabotaging what the board wants to do. You need to work with those people, if they say, ‘Hey, hold on, let's make our sure our I’s are dotted and our T's are crossed,’ then you need to listen to those people. And if you can't have a relationship, or work with those people at all, it's just going to be an entirely hopeless situation where nothing gets done properly.”
He said he’s open to working with everyone and that other perspectives are beneficial to the process of administration and government.
“I'm not looking to make sure we have conservatives in every single administrative position within Ottawa County or something like that,” he said. “There's a lot of talented people that work there that might not agree with me 100% on the issues, but I'd be more than happy to work with those people.”
Haff, a 40-year resident of West Michigan, said he and his family have deep roots in the community.
He said he isn’t interested in mudslinging on the campaign trail, but that he’s a better choice over Wenzel because he won’t vote in lockstep with Ottawa Impact commissioners.
“I would just encourage people to watch the interview process that was had and just come to their own conclusions who they thought was best prepared and gave the best answers at that time,” Haff said of when he interviewed for the District 6 seat appointment late last year.
“I'm not going to get into any personal attacks or anything like that. I'm just going to go out and tell the voters what I believe in. I'm sure she'll be consistently voting right along with Ottawa Impact on everything,” he said.
Ultimately, Haff said he thinks he shares the concerns with many voters in Ottawa County.
“You know, honestly, I'm like everybody else … I'm very concerned with a lot of the money that's being spent — wasted from paying severance packages and lawsuits,” he said. “My big thing is I want to make sure I'm working with the best people for these positions. And they don't have to be sycophants or people that I agree with 100%. Politically, I just want to work with people that are the best in their fields and that do excellent work.”
Learn more at shawnhaff4commissioner.com or visit his campaign Facebook page.
— Contact Sarah Leach at SentinelLeach@gmail.com. Follow her on Twitter @SentinelLeach. Subscribe to her content at sentinelleach.substack.com.
Thank you Shawn for accepting an interview. Good coverage Sarah.
Again, thanks for this coverage. Glad to see as well that you have "hundreds" of paid subscribers. I hope to be another if I can generate some of my own income to match...