On Hand

Late Monday afternoon, the Board of State Canvassers voted to certify Michigan’s election results and confirm that President-elect Joe Biden won the state. That’s after a serious pressure campaign from President Donald Trump to get Republican lawmakers and officials to hand him the state’s electoral votes anyway, a move that would have been unthinkable in previous cycles. But Trump has made the unthinkable reality in today’s Republican Party. And that’s driven many conservatives away. 

We talked to Matt Resch and Nick De Leeuw of Resch Strategies public relations in Lansing. They’re fiscal and religious conservatives who have worked for many Republican administrations and campaigns in Michigan. They’re not becoming Democrats, but they don’t recognize much about the GOP anymore.

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Republican state Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey was met by protesters early Friday morning as he got on a plane bound for Washington D.C. to meet with President Trump. Michigan House Speaker Lee Chatfield, a Republican, was also invited. So, why would a sitting president issue an invitation on less than one day’s notice to two state legislative leaders he barely knows? Many Democrats are worried it’s part of a plan to use the state Legislature to undermine Joe Biden’s win in Michigan.

We talked to Zach Gorchow, executive editor and publisher of Gongwer Michigan, about what we know (and don’t know) about the last minute meeting. We also checked in with Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson about how the Trump campaign’s strategy squares with Michigan election laws.

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As COVID-19 cases balloon in Michigan, the state has shut down indoor dining again. How many Michigan restaurants will be left standing after the pandemic is over? An industry group is suing the state over the ban on serving customers inside. But for some restaurants, it’s already too late. 

GUESTS:

Andrew Epstein and Marcela Rubio Orozco were co-owners of Dolores, a Mexican restaurant and bar in Ypsilanti. They closed down earlier this year. 

Justin Winslow is president and CEO of the Michigan Restaurant and Lodging Association, which has filed suit against the state over the indoor dining ban.

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On Tuesday night, what is usually a very boring, uneventful session for the Wayne County Board of Canvassers exploded with the conflicting pressures of the 2020 election. The two Republican members of the board said they were unwilling certify election results from city and township clerks.

They ultimately reversed their decision, but not before drawing outrage during a three-hour long public comment period on Zoom. On today’s episode, we look at what happened and what it can tell us about the pressures on Michigan’s contentious post-election process.

GUESTS:

Jonathan Kinloch is a Democratic member of the Wayne County Board of Canvassers. He’s also president of the Kinloch Group, Inc. and political director for SEIU Healthcare of Michigan. 

Chris Thomas is a former long-time state elections director who worked with Detroit this election cycle to help shore up their systems.

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Every aspect of the state’s health and human service infrastructure has taken a beating during the COVID-19 pandemic. And that means hopes are extremely high for two vaccines getting closer to FDA approval. On today's episode, we'll look at Michigan's role in the development and production of those vaccines. Plus, a conversation about what state health officials are doing to try to get skyrocketing COVID numbers under control.

GUESTS:

Karen Bouffard is a health reporter for the Detroit News. You can find her latest reporting on potential COVID-19 vaccines here.

Robert Gordon is director of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. He’s also co-leader of a team working with president-elect Joe Biden's administration on transition plans for the federal Department of Health and Human Services.

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Michigan's grappling with new rules from Governor Gretchen Whitmer for social gatherings and businesses, and the legislature is still not on board. Plus, the restrictions will mean more hard times, even for some of the state's most successful restaurants.

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Wash your hands, wear a mask, stay socially distant. We’ve heard this time and time again, but the number of new COVID-19 cases is climbing a dizzying spiral. Today we’re taking a look at the spread of COVID in Michigan and what measures we can take to slow it down.

GUESTS:

Kate Wells is a reporter for Michigan Radio.

Kerry Ott is the public information officer for the Upper Penninsula’s LMAS District Health Department, which serves Luce, Mackinac, Alger, and Schoolcraft Counties.

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Donald Trump’s presidential campaign has filed more than a dozen lawsuits in Michigan that aim to stave off the state’s certification of election results. The campaign’s attorneys have mostly focused on what happened inside of the TCF Center in Detroit, where the city’s ballots were tabulated. Today, we talk about the allegations laid out in the latest filings and the strength of the legal arguments behind them.  

GUESTS:

Rick Pluta is Capitol bureau chief for the Michigan Public Radio Network.

Sam Bagenstos is a law professor at the University of Michigan who specializes in constitutional law and civil rights litigation.

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Michigan and other key swing states that delivered Donald Trump the presidency in 2016 swung back to blue this year. But like it or not, Donald Trump has changed what it means to be a Republican. So what does that mean for members of Michigan’s GOP after he leaves office? 

We talked to two political veterans and former chairs of the Michigan Republican Party. Susy Avery was party chair in 1995 and 1996 when John Engler was governor. Bobby Schostak was chair from 2011 to 2015 during Rick Snyder’s tenure.

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The real star of this year’s election in Michigan might be the voters. A historic turnout resulted in some small, but significant, shifts in voters' presidential choices. Today, we dig into what the demographic breakdown of Trump and Biden voters tell us about a shifting political landscape in the state.

Mark Grebner is a longtime political consultant and election observer in Michigan. He’s also a Democratic Ingham County Commissioner.

Angela Ocampo is an assistant professor of political science at the University of Michigan.

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