By Greg Chandler
Zeeland Record
In 1987, Phil Tanis was a recent Hope College graduate and a member of the Holland City Council, at the age of 23.
Tanis decided to challenge two-term incumbent Bill Sikkel, a prominent local business leader and decorated World War II veteran, for the office of mayor. Few gave him a chance, and some thought it was a political stunt.
But Tanis was serious. As a councilman, he had played a leading role in the renovation of the city’s historic Centennial Park. And voters took notice.
In November of that year, Tanis defeated Sikkel by 16 votes in the closest mayoral election in the city’s history and became the youngest mayor of any city in the United States at that time. He served one two-year term in the office, playing a central role in the revitalization of the city’s downtown and the installation of its snowmelt system, before moving on to other pursuits.
Now, nearly four decades later, Tanis is challenging another long-established incumbent. He is running in the Aug. 4 Republican primary in the Fourth Congressional District against seven-term incumbent Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Holland Twp.
Tanis calls his candidacy “an act of protest against the current state of affairs and a commitment to the United States as a democracy of the people, by the people, and for the people.”
“I’m standing to give voters a choice. Our politics have lost their balance and our representatives their voice. It’s time to restore civility, integrity, and genuine public service to Michigan’s Fourth Congressional District,” Tanis said in a press release when he announced his candidacy.
“Congress has shirked its basic duties. Too many representatives have chosen silence over service, allegiance to a party over accountability to the people. I believe a representative’s job is to listen, to lead with integrity, and to uphold the Constitution above all else.”
Tanis, 61, is the director of Hope College’s Van Raalte Institute, which honors the memory of Holland’s founder, Albertus C. Van Raalte, through historical research and publications. He is also managing editor at Reformed Journal, an online publication.
Tanis says he’s not running a traditional campaign – he’s not accepting donations, seeking endorsements or hiring consultants. He sat down for an interview with the Zeeland Record at a Holland coffeeshop last week, and opened up further about his campaign.
“I’m doing it to make a point, and I’m also doing it because I’m just really disappointed in Bill … It’s this profound disappointment that he’s just seemingly sold out to Washington and the party, in a district where he could stand for what I still believe West Michiganders believe in,” Tanis said.
“He hasn’t held an (in-person) town hall meeting in how many years? Six? Eight? (He hasn’t held an) in-person, town hall meeting where you can step to the mike and ask anything,” he added.
Tanis addressed the changes that have taken hold over both major political parties in recent years, where “authoritarian rightists and the loopy leftists” have gained power. He says it has disenfranchised what he believes are a majority of Americans in the middle.
“They’re a very small percentage (of voters), but they’re driving the discussions and setting the agendas, and dyed-in-the-wool partisans in each party who are still committed to the parties are just falling in line rather than saying, ‘hey, wait a second. What’s going on?’” he said.
After his tenure as mayor of Holland, Tanis was involved in efforts to democratize the former Soviet bloc nation of Bulgaria, working for the International Republican Institute as a resident program officer, training center-right political parties in campaign strategies and tactics. He served as a volunteer consultant for the United Democratic Forces coalition that won a majority of Bulgaria’s parliament in 1997.
The takeaway from that experience? “Coalitions, working across political differences for a greater good, works,” Tanis said.
Tanis worked for 16 years for the Reformed Church in America in communications and operations, then spent 10 years in Hanover, Germany (2014-24) as an executive for communications and operations for the World Communion of Reformed Churches. He recalled what he saw when he returned to the U.S.
“The country that we left wasn’t the country we returned to,” Tanis said. “(We had) friends and family who ended up on different sides of the line (who) weren’t even talking, able to talk to each other anymore, and I’m like, ‘this is nuts, this isn’t who we should be.’ I don’t think this is who we actually are.”
Tanis points to immigration as one of the top issues that needs to be addressed in this country. He calls the current situation “a disaster.”
“What we need – and what we can’t get in this current climate – is a real discussion on immigration,” he said. “We’re a country built on immigrants. We’re a country that can continue to be fueled by immigrants, on both sides – the brilliant minds that come and those people who are desperate for a better life and who will work the jobs that none of us want. So, on both ends of our economy, we’ve gotta find a way to bring people in, and we are not even discussing it.”
Tanis lives in Holland with his wife of nearly 25 years, Gretchen, a senior pastor at Hope (RCA) Church in Holland, and two children, students at Hope College and Holland High School, respectively.
Tanis will hold a town hall/open house event June 15 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. in the Les Hoogland room of the Howard Miller Community Center.
“If I can start raising the flag, saying this is what I think should happen next (after President Trump), I would welcome any other Republicans and conservative/moderate independents who agree with me to vote for me. Let’s give this a chance to try and right the ship back to the middle – here’s your first chance,” Tanis said.
“I’m an idealist, but I’m not naïve. My chances of winning are small, but it’s worth the fight. It’s worth trying.”
Zeeland Record
In 1987, Phil Tanis was a recent Hope College graduate and a member of the Holland City Council, at the age of 23.
Tanis decided to challenge two-term incumbent Bill Sikkel, a prominent local business leader and decorated World War II veteran, for the office of mayor. Few gave him a chance, and some thought it was a political stunt.
But Tanis was serious. As a councilman, he had played a leading role in the renovation of the city’s historic Centennial Park. And voters took notice.
In November of that year, Tanis defeated Sikkel by 16 votes in the closest mayoral election in the city’s history and became the youngest mayor of any city in the United States at that time. He served one two-year term in the office, playing a central role in the revitalization of the city’s downtown and the installation of its snowmelt system, before moving on to other pursuits.
Now, nearly four decades later, Tanis is challenging another long-established incumbent. He is running in the Aug. 4 Republican primary in the Fourth Congressional District against seven-term incumbent Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Holland Twp.
Tanis calls his candidacy “an act of protest against the current state of affairs and a commitment to the United States as a democracy of the people, by the people, and for the people.”
“I’m standing to give voters a choice. Our politics have lost their balance and our representatives their voice. It’s time to restore civility, integrity, and genuine public service to Michigan’s Fourth Congressional District,” Tanis said in a press release when he announced his candidacy.
“Congress has shirked its basic duties. Too many representatives have chosen silence over service, allegiance to a party over accountability to the people. I believe a representative’s job is to listen, to lead with integrity, and to uphold the Constitution above all else.”
Tanis, 61, is the director of Hope College’s Van Raalte Institute, which honors the memory of Holland’s founder, Albertus C. Van Raalte, through historical research and publications. He is also managing editor at Reformed Journal, an online publication.
Tanis says he’s not running a traditional campaign – he’s not accepting donations, seeking endorsements or hiring consultants. He sat down for an interview with the Zeeland Record at a Holland coffeeshop last week, and opened up further about his campaign.
“I’m doing it to make a point, and I’m also doing it because I’m just really disappointed in Bill … It’s this profound disappointment that he’s just seemingly sold out to Washington and the party, in a district where he could stand for what I still believe West Michiganders believe in,” Tanis said.
“He hasn’t held an (in-person) town hall meeting in how many years? Six? Eight? (He hasn’t held an) in-person, town hall meeting where you can step to the mike and ask anything,” he added.
Tanis addressed the changes that have taken hold over both major political parties in recent years, where “authoritarian rightists and the loopy leftists” have gained power. He says it has disenfranchised what he believes are a majority of Americans in the middle.
“They’re a very small percentage (of voters), but they’re driving the discussions and setting the agendas, and dyed-in-the-wool partisans in each party who are still committed to the parties are just falling in line rather than saying, ‘hey, wait a second. What’s going on?’” he said.
After his tenure as mayor of Holland, Tanis was involved in efforts to democratize the former Soviet bloc nation of Bulgaria, working for the International Republican Institute as a resident program officer, training center-right political parties in campaign strategies and tactics. He served as a volunteer consultant for the United Democratic Forces coalition that won a majority of Bulgaria’s parliament in 1997.
The takeaway from that experience? “Coalitions, working across political differences for a greater good, works,” Tanis said.
Tanis worked for 16 years for the Reformed Church in America in communications and operations, then spent 10 years in Hanover, Germany (2014-24) as an executive for communications and operations for the World Communion of Reformed Churches. He recalled what he saw when he returned to the U.S.
“The country that we left wasn’t the country we returned to,” Tanis said. “(We had) friends and family who ended up on different sides of the line (who) weren’t even talking, able to talk to each other anymore, and I’m like, ‘this is nuts, this isn’t who we should be.’ I don’t think this is who we actually are.”
Tanis points to immigration as one of the top issues that needs to be addressed in this country. He calls the current situation “a disaster.”
“What we need – and what we can’t get in this current climate – is a real discussion on immigration,” he said. “We’re a country built on immigrants. We’re a country that can continue to be fueled by immigrants, on both sides – the brilliant minds that come and those people who are desperate for a better life and who will work the jobs that none of us want. So, on both ends of our economy, we’ve gotta find a way to bring people in, and we are not even discussing it.”
Tanis lives in Holland with his wife of nearly 25 years, Gretchen, a senior pastor at Hope (RCA) Church in Holland, and two children, students at Hope College and Holland High School, respectively.
Tanis will hold a town hall/open house event June 15 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. in the Les Hoogland room of the Howard Miller Community Center.
“If I can start raising the flag, saying this is what I think should happen next (after President Trump), I would welcome any other Republicans and conservative/moderate independents who agree with me to vote for me. Let’s give this a chance to try and right the ship back to the middle – here’s your first chance,” Tanis said.
“I’m an idealist, but I’m not naïve. My chances of winning are small, but it’s worth the fight. It’s worth trying.”
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