Speaker Pro Tempore Pam Byrnes, a graduate of the University of Michigan, has lived and worked in Washtenaw County for over 34 years. A well-known attorney who practiced in Ypsilanti, Saline and Ann Arbor for more than 25 years, Byrnes is serving her third term in the Michigan House of Representatives. Her colleagues unanimously elected her to the position of Speaker Pro Tempore of the House this year, giving her the responsibility of running each session of the 110-member body from the rostrum.
Before joining the House in 2004, Byrnes served on the Washtenaw County Road Commission in 2000, becoming the first female road commissioner in Washtenaw County. As an outgrowth of her long-standing involvement in the Washtenaw County Democratic Party, Byrnes founded the Western Washtenaw Democratic Club and served as its first Chair. She is an active member of several local Chambers of Commerce, and was a board member with the Ypsilanti Chamber of Commerce where she was active with that chamber’s Women’s Council.
Representative Byrnes has regular coffee hours for constituents (her next two events are mentioned below). Alas, even though A2Politico doesn’t drink coffee, I still managed to catch up with Representative Byrnes in between budget negotiations.
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