Updates About People

Following the passage of Senate Concurrent Resolution 23, sponsored by Senator Adam Hollier (D-Detroit), National Statuary Hall in the U.S. Capitol will replace the statue of former Michigan Governor Lewis Cass with former Detroit Mayor Coleman Young.

Lewis Cass served as Governor from 1813-1831. Cass supported slavery and implemented policies to support the forced removal of Native tribes. Young was the first African American mayor of Detroit who oversaw major development projects in the City of Detroit and the auto industry. He is also a veteran, serving with Tuskegee Airmen in World War II.

In 2020, Governor Gretchen Whitmer took steps to rename downtown Lansing’s Lewis Cass building to the Elliott-Larsen Building to honor Representatives Daisy Elliott and Melvin Larsen who sponsored Michigan’s landmark civil rights act.

On Monday, September 12, Michigan Supreme Court Chief Justice Bridget McCormack announced that she would be retiring from the bench at the end of the year after 10 years of service.

Michigan Supreme Court justices are listed on the ballot under the non-partisan section, but they are nominated by the parties. As they serve eight-year terms, McCormack was two years into her second term, with six years remaining.

Democrat-nominated justices currently hold a 4 to 3 majority. McCormack’s retirement paves the way for Governor Gretchen Whitmer to appoint her first justice since taking office and allows Democrats to retain the majority on the court regardless of the outcome of the November election.

On Friday, August 19, Republican gubernatorial candidate Tudor Dixon announced her choice of former state representative Shane Hernandez as her running mate. The announcement was made ahead of the August 27th Michigan Republican Party Convention, which was held to nominate statewide candidates for the November election.

Hernandez, who was nominated by attorney general candidate, Matt DePerno, at the convention, overwhelmingly won the nomination as Dixon’s running mate via a secret, paper ballot. Hernandez amassed approximately 80 percent of the vote, despite concerns that the Macomb County delegation and allies might attempt to thwart the nomination.

In related news, Dixon and Governor Gretchen Whitmer will have two televised debates prior to the November 8 election. The first will be hosted in Grand Rapids on October 13, while the second will be hosted in Detroit on October 25.