Livingston County, Michigan


Livingston County is a county in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the population was 180,967. It is part of the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI Metropolitan Statistical Area.
The county seat and most populous city is Howell. The county was platted in 1833, but for three years remained assigned to Shiawassee and Washtenaw counties for revenue, taxation and judicial matters. It was formally organized in 1836. As one of Michigan's "Cabinet counties", a group of ten counties whose names honor members of President Andrew Jackson's Cabinet, it is named after former US Secretary of State Edward Livingston.
Livingston County's location in Southeast Michigan offers residents relatively convenient access to the metropolitan centers of Detroit, Lansing, Ann Arbor, and Flint. Livingston County residents regularly commute to those centers, using the three major expressways which pass through the county: I-96, US 23, and M-59.
Although continuing to be composed largely of bedroom communities, the county is experiencing and maintaining significant growth in both the service and industrial economic sectors. Major employers include Tribar, PepsiCo, Citizens Insurance, and ThaiSummit. The Brighton Recreation Area is in the county.

Geography

According to the US Census Bureau, the county has an area of, of which is land and is water.

Adjacent counties

As of the 2000 United States Census, of 2010, the county had 180,967 people, 55,384 households, and 43,531 families. The population density was 320 people per square mile. There were 58,919 housing units at an average density of 104 per square mile. 96.7% of the population were White, 0.8% Asian, 0.4% Black or African American, 0.4% Native American, 0.4% of some other race and 1.3% of two or more races. 1.9% were Hispanic or Latino. 20.8% were of German, 11.2% Irish, 10.6% English, 10.6% Polish, 6.5% American, 5.2% Italian and 5.1% French, French Canadian or Cajun ancestry. 95.9% spoke English and 1.7% Spanish as their first language.
There were 55,384 households, of which 39.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.50% were married couples living together, 6.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.40% were non-families. 17.10% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.80 and the average family size was 3.18.
28.80% of the county's population was under age 18, 6.60% was from age 18 to 24, 31.70% was from age 25 to 44, 24.60% was from age 45 to 64, and 8.30% was age 65 or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 102.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.70 males.
With a median household income of $67,400 and a median family income of $75,284, Livingston County is one of the highest-income counties in the United States and has the second-highest median income in Michigan. Males had a median income of $54,358 versus $32,073 for females. The county's per capita income was $28,069. About 2.40% of families and 3.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.60% of those under age 18 and 4.50% of those age 65 or over.
More than 50% of the county's population resides in the southeastern communities of Brighton Township, Genoa Township, Hamburg Township, Green Oak Township, the Village of Pinckney, Putnam Township and the city of Brighton.
The US Census Bureau in 2000 identified Brighton, Howell and the nearby city of South Lyon to be a contiguously-urbanized area, one of the newest such areas in the United States.

Media

There are two local newspapers, the Livingston County Daily Press & Argus, owned by Gannett Company, and The Community Journal, which is an independently owned weekly.
The Daily Press & Argus, which publishes daily except Saturday, was launched in 2000 through the combination of two weekly newspapers, The Livingston County Press and The Brighton Argus, which served the communities for many decades.
The Community Journal was launched in February 2010 by Steve Horton and Buddy Moorehouse, two veteran newspapermen. It publishes Tuesdays, covering Pinckney, Fowlerville, and the Howell areas. Its editor is Stephenie Koehn. The Journal is published along with the Fowlerville News and Views, which has been published for 25 years by Horton and his wife Dawn.
A weekly all-local paper,The Livingston Community News, was launched in May 2003 with offices in downtown Brighton and was closed in July 2009 when "The Ann Arbor News, the newspaper's parent company, ceased publication. Community Journal editor Koehn was a reporter with The Livingston Community News.
Other media in the county include WHMI-FM, a Classic Hits radio station that has local news on the hour, and www.LivingstonTalk.com, a web-based product launched in the fall of 2009 by Moorehouse and fellow veteran journalist Maria Stuart. Moorehouse and Stuart previously worked as editors for a combined 45 years at the Daily Press and Argus.
The Marketeer is a free monthly magazine that is mailed to more than 42,000 in Livingston County. Its content is primarily advertising from local businesses plus articles and information about people and community events. The Marketeer has been published by George Moses Company since 1974.

Politics

Livingston County falls entirely within Michigan's 8th Congressional district, and is currently represented by Democrat Elissa Slotkin, who defeated Republican Mike Bishop in the 2018 election. However, Livingston County has been reliably Republican since its founding. Since 1884, the Republican Party nominee has carried 83% of the Presidential elections.
In 2016, Republican Donald Trump received 65,680 votes to Democrat Hillary Clinton's 34,384.
In 2012, Republican Mitt Romney received 60,083 votes, to 37,216 votes for incumbent Barack Obama. Obama won the state by nearly 10 point, however.
In 2008, Republican John McCain received 55,592 votes to 42,349 for Democrat Barack Obama, even as Obama carried the state by a double-digit margin. Democrats last carried the county in 1964.
In 2004, Republican George W. Bush easily won the county, receiving 58,860 votes to 33,991 for Democrat John Kerry.
In 2000, George W. Bush received 44,637 votes to 28,780 for Democrat Al Gore.
In 1996, Republican Bob Dole received 30,598 votes to 22,517 to Democrat Bill Clinton, who carried the state by a double-digit margin.
In 1992, Republican George H.W. Bush received 27,539 votes to Clinton's 17,851, while independent Ross Perot received 15,971.
In 1988, George H.W. Bush received 31,331 votes to 13,749 for Democrat Michael Dukakis.
In 1984, Republican Ronald Reagan received 31,846 votes to 10,720 for Democrat Walter Mondale

County government

The county government operates the jail, maintains rural roads, operates the major local courts, records deeds, mortgages, and vital records, administers public health regulations, and participates with the state in the provision of social services. The county board of commissioners controls the budget and has limited authority to make laws or ordinances. In Michigan, most local government functions – police and fire, building and zoning, tax assessment, street maintenance, etc. – are the responsibility of individual cities and townships.

Elected officials

Major highways

Cities