Election results have continued to come in for races across Michigan, following the AP’s call that the state would go to Trump at 11:54 A.M. on Wednesday. Other races, however, are looking more evenly split, and other state-wide races were called for Democrats or candidates supported by them.
Many major down-ballot races have been called, including Michigan’s 7th Congressional District, where former State Senator Tom Barrett flipped the seat from Democratic control. Despite being a state where Democrats handily won majorities in state government during the 2022 midterms, the state is likely headed toward a divided government once more.
Stateside’s April Baer spoke with the hosts of Michigan Public’s It’s Just Politics, Zoe Clark, Michigan Public’s Political Director, and Rick Pluta of the Michigan Public Radio Network, on Wednesday afternoon.
Across the state, Democrats have lost ground. The Michigan House of Representatives is expected to fall under Republican control. But some bright spots emerged for the party, particularly with the state Supreme Court, where the two open seats were called for Democrat-backed candidates Justice Kyra Harris Bolden and UM Law professor Kimberly Ann Thomas.
“This could have, you know, a pretty profound effect on a lot of decisions coming from the court in the future,” Pluta said. “Also, these terms aren't short, and that means that people tend to vote for incumbents in these races. So Democrats have a pretty powerful majority on this court at the moment, and probably the most significant one in my memory.”
The new Republican House majority could make things difficult for an executive branch controlled by Democrats. It could be reminiscent of Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s first term in office when she would often have to compromise with a Republican legislature.
“What we know is we are going to be back to a period of divided government, here in Michigan. We should remember, of course, that was Governor Gretchen Whitmer's first term in office, though,” Clark said. “What we saw was acrimony, what we saw was fights over the budget… Having a Republican state house is absolutely going to change the trajectory of this governor's agenda and the final two years of her legacy in office.”
Here more about Michigan's election results in our conversation with Clark and Pluta.
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Guests on today's episode:
- Zoe Clark, Political Director of Michigan Public and host of It’s Just Politics.
- Rick Pluta, reporter for the Michigan Public Radio Network and co-host of It's Just Politics.
