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UPDATE: Hi! Rick and Zoe here updating the newsletter at 6:08 p.m. on Friday evening with some very interesting news that changes this afternoon’s newsletter. In a dramatic reversal to what Representative Joe Tate told us yesterday at the Capitol, he has now decided not to run for Mayor of Detroit. Crain’s Detroit Business’ Nick Manes has more. The former Democratic Speaker of the House had originally sent out an invitation that he was going to make the announcement official that he was running on Monday.
Now, back to the rest of the newsletter!
For weeks we’ve been talking about how much of the oxygen in Lansing has been sucked up by the Legislature’s near-singular focus on the state’s new minimum wage, tipped wage and paid sick leave laws. Well, late last night, the Republican-controlled House and the Democrat-controlled Senate came to a deal and adopted two bills within a whisker of the midnight deadline. As of Friday morning, the bills were on Whitmer’s desk for review and could be signed into law before the start of the weekend.
There are a lot of political ramifications and we’ll try to tackle them in some sort of order. Let’s start with bipartisanship.
Unlike what we saw time and again during last year’s disastrous lame-duck legislative session, Democrats and Republicans took on some serious deal-making and delivered. Could this portend more of the same going forward, maybe even a so-far-elusive road-funding deal?
“All the way up to the last minute, there were opportunities for this to fall apart, but fortunately we got it done,” said Republican House Speaker Matt Hall on Michigan Public Television’s Off The Record.
“That’s the way I viewed it” he said, “If this thing fell apart and blew up, it would not be a particularly productive two years. If we got it done, it would maybe lay the foundation for a productive two years.”
Hall said this chapter served as an early test of trust, reading the other side of the aisle, and the ability of leaders to deliver votes from their caucuses – the nuts and bolts of dealmaking in the Legislature.
But this deal is very possibly (very probably) not the final word.
Groups that are not satisfied with the bargain include the petition campaigns that got all this rolling. As far as they are concerned, Republicans shouldn’t get away with what they tried to pull off in 2018. A GOP-controlled Legislature adopted the initiatives before they could go to the ballot and then after the election, replaced the initiatives with new laws, which were signed by GOP then-Governor Rick Snyder. The campaigns took the state to court and the Michigan Supreme Court, in essence, agreed with the campaigns that Republicans cheated.
Critical takeaway – this is not over. So, what’s next?
There could be another lawsuit, another petition drive and political actions directed at Democratic lawmakers to answer for their votes in primaries and at party nominating conventions.
“There needs to be accountability,” said Danielle Atkinson with the progressive group Mothering Justice. That “accountability” could make for some awkward conversations this weekend at the Michigan Democratic Party (MDP) convention in Detroit (see more about the party conventions below). Count progressives and unions among the groups that want (maybe need) to show they are not to be counted out heading into the 2026 election cycle.
They’re also looking at party primaries next year in open races for governor and other statewide races and down-ballot elections for the Legislature. A more critical forum could be the MDP’s nominating conventions next year when Democratic lawmakers who voted for these bills may be running for new offices. The nominees for Secretary of State, Attorney General and Lieutenant Governor will all be chosen by delegates who skew further from the center than the general public.
Meanwhile, One Fair Wage, a group that backed the 2018 minimum wage initiative, has already announced its intentions to prep for a referendum to be put before voters. If the campaign gets enough valid signatures, the law would be suspended until it's put up for a vote.
Have questions about Michigan politics? Or, just want to let us know what you want more of (less of?) in the newsletter in 2025? We always want to hear from you! Shoot us an email at politics@michiganpublic.org!
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What we’re talking about at the dinner table
Tate to make it official: Bridge Detroit’s Malachi Barrett first shared on X that state Representative Joe Tate’s campaign for Detroit Mayor was going to be made officially public on Monday. Tate filed the paperwork to create a campaign committee and start fundraising in November, and it appears it’s gone well enough that he’s taking the next step. We ran into the former House Speaker just outside the capitol on Thursday and asked him to confirm. Indeed, the Democrat said he’s all in. Tate joins a crowded field (that’s getting bigger every week) in the 2025 mayoral race as current Mayor Mike Duggan makes a bid for governor (not surprising) as an independent (very surprising) in 2026.
Clement to step down: The last time we wrote about Michigan Supreme Court Chief Justice Elizabeth Clement in the newsletter was last fall when the Republican-appointed justice surprised many by announcing her endorsement of former Vice President Kamala Harris for president. On paper, Clement’s Republican bona fides were solid. She was Republican Governor Rick Snyder’s top legal advisor before he named her to the court in 2017 to fill a vacancy. She was nominated by a Michigan Republican convention in 2018 to run for a full eight-year term. But she’s marched to her own drum on the court, including a ruling to send the Michigan redistricting commission to the ballot to be adopted by voters. That ruling outraged a lot of Republicans who wanted that authority to remain with the Legislature. She was booed by delegates at the 2018 state GOP convention and said she faced bullying and harassment. So, while we wondered how she might win renomination at a Republican convention to run in 2026, maybe we shouldn’t have been surprised that she decided not to run at all. And, once again to the chagrin of Republicans, Clement’s departure means Governor Gretchen Whitmer will make her second appointment to the Michigan Supreme Court, leading to a 6-1 progressive majority.
Parties to choose chairs: This weekend, Michigan Democrats and Republicans are set to gather separately to choose their new state party chairs. Democrats have had some six years of stability in Michigan Democratic Party Chair Lavora Barnes but, after the 2024 election, she announced she’s stepping down. Republican party leadership had been more chaotic in recent years until former Republican Congressman Pete Hoekstra took over in early 2024. He, however, is stepping down after being nominated by President Donald Trump to be the next U.S. Ambassador to Canada. With open races for governor, attorney general and secretary of state, plus an unexpected open U.S. Senate race, and the entire state House and state Senate up for election in 2026, party chairs will play an important role in candidate recruitment and fundraising. This week, President Trump endorsed former co-chair of the Michigan Republican Party Meshawn Maddock as his pick for the top party position; Governor Whitmer has endorsed former state Senator Curtis Hertel to chair the Michigan Democratic party.
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Yours in political nerdiness,
Rick Pluta & Zoe Clark
Co-hosts, It’s Just Politics
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IJP ON THE ROAD:
Rick was a panelist this week on WKAR’s Off the Record with Speaker Matt Hall as the guest fresh from a bipartisan deal at the state Capitol.
Zoe joined NPR’s Friday News Roundup to dig into the week’s national news.
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