GRAND RAPIDS — Two weeks after filing a federal lawsuit against Michigan State University for firing him, Ottawa County’s newest commissioner is now asking a judge to reinstate him into his former job and hold a hearing by the end of the month to prevent “irreparable harm” to his livelihood and political campaign.

Chris Kleinjans, a Democrat, filed a lawsuit Friday, June 21, in the Western District of U.S. District Court claiming MSU’s Extension violated his First Amendment Rights after giving him an ultimatum: Take an unpaid leave through the remainder of the year or face termination.

Read more: Ottawa County commissioner files federal lawsuit against MSU Extension for wrongful termination

His attorney, Sarah Riley-Howard filed a request on Wednesday, July 3, requesting that Judge Hala Y. Jarbou issue a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction that puts Kleinjans back into his role at MSU Extension as a community nutrition instructor and would prevent the school from firing him until his lawsuit is over.

“Plaintiff asks that this matter be set on an expedited briefing schedule and for a hearing no later than July 31, 2024, because of the irreparable harm from any delay as Plaintiff campaigns in this year’s elections,” Howard wrote in the new filing.

The lawsuit came after Kleijans said he was dismissed June 4 after the university decided his employment was “incompatible” with his new elected office representing District 2 on the board of commissioners. Kleinjans defeated Ottawa Impact Republican Lucy Ebel by a 20% margin in May after a recall process began in July 2023.

Read more: Was Ottawa County's newest commissioner punished for running?

Ottawa Impact is a far-right fundamentalist group formed in 2021 over frustrations with the county and state over COVID-19 mitigation measures.

Howard said MSU leadership — specifically MSU Extension District 7 Director M. Scott Korpak, associate director of the field operations Matt Shane and assistant director of MSU Health and Nutrition Institute Erin Moore — never informed Kleinjans that his run for office would put his employment with the university in jeopardy.

MSU did not respond to a request for comment about the allegations in the lawsuit.

“Before Plaintiff won the recall, Defendants assured Plaintiff that his employment would not be affected if he were elected to the commission,” Howard wrote in the new filing. “Plaintiff thus believed he would be campaigning for a full term while still employed with his MSU Extension salary and benefits, including health insurance and paid leave.”

Kleinjans Brief In Support Of Motion For Tro And Pi175KB ∙ PDF fileDownloadSarah Riley-Howard filed a request on Wednesday, July 3, requesting that Judge Hala Y. Jarbou issue a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction that puts Kleinjans back into his role at MSU Extension as a community nutrition instructor and would prevent the school from firing him until his lawsuit is over.Download

Howard said the sudden loss of employment has forced her client to search for employment, which is unfairly detrimental to his campaign efforts.

“Due to Defendants’ unconstitutional actions, Plaintiff will now have to spend the campaign season searching for and possibly beginning a new job. Absent immediate action from this court, Plaintiff’s ability to fully engage in his campaign will be severely hampered,” she wrote.

MSU told Kleinjans that the decision was made over internal policies that prevent employees from holding political office. Howard, however, said the motivations are political, claiming the contract between the Extension and Ottawa County was threatened if Kleinjans was allowed to continue to work there while he campaigned during the winter months.

In last month’s lawsuit filing, Howard said Commissioners Allison Miedema and Joe Moss, who currently chairs the board and is the president of Ottawa Impact, “applied pressure to (MSU) to fire or move (Kleinjan’s) employment, and otherwise negatively impact (Kleinjan’s) working conditions and livelihood, in an effort to deter a viable candidate from running against Ebel.”

Moss and Miedema did not respond to a request for comment about the allegations in the lawsuit.

The contract between the county and MSU Extension was approved in mid-January with no discussion; it will be up for renewal for the next fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1 — one month before the general election in which Kleinjans will face either Ebel or non-OI Republican Jordan Jorritsma.

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Howard said OI clearly leveraged its fiduciary power to target political adversaries.

“The OI majority has sent a message that has resonated throughout Ottawa County — those who oppose OI will face retaliation, and it will be severe,” she wrote in Wednesday’s filing. “Unless this cCourt acts quickly, not only will Plaintiff suffer a loss of his First Amendment rights for which there is no adequate remedy, but there will also continue to be a significant chilling effect on political speech throughout Ottawa County.”

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