As news of Michigan’s Board of State Canvassers finally certifying Michigan’s 2020 election results sinks in, it’s worth drawing attention to the antics of hyper-partisan Board member Norman Shinkle in the process. While his Republican colleague Aaron Van Langevelde acted honorably, following Michigan’s law that requires the Board of State Canvassers to certify the election and voting YES to certify, […]

In 2018, over half of the Democratic candidates for the state legislature and Congress who won their primary and went on to the general election in Michigan were women. When you talk about women finally getting parity in terms of high elected office (or ANY elected office, for that matter), there’s only one political party who is even close to […]

When I wrote up my piece following Monday night’s LGBTQ forum in Ann Arbor where a community forum took place on the topic of a ballot initiative for LGBTQ civil rights, I indicated that Wayne State University Law School Dean Jocelyn Benson had helped to write the ballot language. That statement came from civil rights attorney Dana Nessel’s opening remarks: […]

A week from today on Friday, April 4th, 2014 the Ann Arbor-based group Reclaim Our American Democracy (ROAD) is holding their 2014 Michigan Election Reform Conference at Cleary University in Ann Arbor. You can have a look at the brochure for this important event HERE (pdf). Registration is only $25, $10 for students and you may purchase a boxed lunch […]

Like many Democrats, I’m all for seeing Benson run for office. But not running for this one is a smart move. It’s been a topic of great speculation in the last month or so — especially after meetings with high-level Democrats in Washington — but Jocelyn Benson announced on Tuesday that she will not be running for Congress in Michigan’s […]

The story’s still unfolding, but this could be one heck of an interesting race. In breaking news on Friday, Inside Michigan Politics (IMP) reported that the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) has been calling members of Michigan’s congressional delegation to say Jocelyn Benson is running in Michigan’s 11th Congressional District. The information came from two “highly placed” Democrats, but a […]

There’s a third possibility, too, in what’s shaping up to be an interesting race. In his first media interview, counterterrorism expert Bobby McKenzie told Inside Michigan Politics early Thursday that he’s running for Michigan’s 11th Congressional District as a Democrat. McKenzie, who most recently worked for the U.S. State Department, is set to announce his bid on Thursday. He told […]

Democrats may soon have a strong candidate to get behind so they can take back Michigan’s 11th Congressional District. Democrats have been looking for someone to run for Rep. Kerry Bentivolio’s seat in the U.S. House in 2014 — and they may have found her. Jocelyn Benson, Dean of the Wayne State University Law School and the Democratic Party’s nominee […]

As I wrote about last month, the Michigan Campaign Finance Network, Michigan Center for Election Law, and Common Cause Michigan held a conference on election and campaign finance reform in Traverse City last Friday. Although I was unable to attend, my good friend and blogging pal Amy Kerr Hardin was there and put together a comprehensive report. At the request […]

A conference for anyone who is interested in fair government. The corrosive impact of money in our elections, particularly here in Michigan, is clearly evident to anyone who pays the slightest bit of attention. Even the elections for our state Supreme Court justices are fueled by money from corporate interests and wealthy individuals. Unfortunately, due to the permissive laws of […]

Michigan represent!

Michigan’s next Secretary of State, Professor Jocelyn Benson was on Up with Steve Kornacki this morning, talking about what’s happening in Michigan right now, how Detroit got to where it is today, and our path forward. It was a refreshingly smart and thoughtful conversation.

Watch it after the jump.