Listening. Leading. Local.
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A lifelong Michigander, M. Bartley Seigel (Matt to those who know him best) first came to Houghton in 1993 — where he met his wife, Marika — and has made the city his full-time home since 2005. His roots here run back more than thirty years, and in that time he has become one of the most distinguished literary voices the Upper Peninsula has produced. Now he is bringing that same dedication to public service as a candidate for Houghton City Council.
Seigel is the author of two poetry collections, In the Bone-Cracking Cold (Wayne State University Press, 2025) and This Is What They Say (Typecast Publishing, 2013), with poems in Poetry Magazine, Michigan Quarterly Review, About Place, Split Rock Review, and many other respected journals. He served as U.P. Poet Laureate in 2021–2022 and has been honored as an Academy of American Poets Laureate Fellow, one of the most prestigious recognitions available to an American poet.
At Michigan Technological University, he serves as Writing Center Director, Professor in the Department of Humanities, and Affiliated Professor in the Department of Visual and Performing Arts. His ties run just as deep at home: Marika is a Houghton native, and both of their children are Houghton High School graduates. He is not just a candidate for this community — he is a member of it.
A neighbor, a teacher, a parent, and a poet of this place, M. Bartley Seigel brings to his candidacy for City Council the same qualities that define his work: careful attention, common sense, civic commitment, and a genuine love for the Keweenaw Peninsula and the people who make Houghton home.
City Council shouldn’t be about ideology. It’s about keeping the lights on, maintaining and improving our infrastructure, managing resources responsibly, and making our community a better place to live.
I believe local government should put local residents first — protecting affordability, supporting responsible and accessible development, investing in the services people rely on, and ensuring that growth benefits the community as a whole.
I believe in liberty, personal responsibility, environmental stewardship, quality education, equal rights, and local self-government — that people should be free to live as they choose, provided they respect the rights and freedoms of others. I value independent thinking and treating people with fairness and respect. Strong communities are built when neighbors help neighbors, people have a voice in the decisions that affect them, and public officials focus on solving more problems than they invent.
My guiding principles are simple: treat people fairly, respect their dignity, and leave the community better than you found it.
For university business: mbseigel@mtu.edu
For all other business: matthewbartleyseigel@gmail.com; or use the contact form below.
M. Bartley Seigel 