Don’t skip it, flip it – vote your entire ballot, front and back.
Michiganders will decide this November who will serve on the Michigan Supreme Court. Your vote matters because the Michigan Supreme Court has the highest legal authority in the state. Their decisions shape our civil rights and liberties, including reproductive rights, LGBTQ+ rights, disability rights, privacy rights, and more.
Unlike the U.S. Supreme Court justices, who are appointed by the president, the people decide who serves on the Michigan Supreme Court. This year, we have the opportunity to elect two justices to the Michigan Supreme Court. You can do so by voting in the nonpartisan section of your ballot (see the back of your ballot).
This year there are two seats up for election.
Learn more about the candidates here.
Here are some of the recent decisions the Michigan Supreme Court made that impact your rights:
Voting Rights that helped protect your Reproductive Rights
The Michigan Supreme Court decided that Proposal 3 of 2022, Reproductive Freedom for All, should be placed on the 2022 ballot, which voters overwhelmingly approved. This enshrined the right to an abortion – and all decisions related to reproductive health – in our state constitution. When Roe fell, Michiganders’ reproductive rights remained intact.
Voting Rights
Also, in 2022, the Michigan Supreme Court decided that Proposal 2, Promote the Vote 2.0, should be placed on the ballot. Voters also passed this measure in a landslide, making voting more accessible by providing nine days of early in-person voting, requiring state-funded absentee ballot drop boxes and postage for ballots and applications, and requiring that military and overseas ballots be counted if postmarked by Election Day.
LGBTQ Rights
The Michigan Supreme Court also ruled in 2022 that our state’s civil rights act applies to LGBTQ people, ensuring protections from discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
Respecting Trans and Nonbinary People
The Michigan Supreme Court also issued a new court rule last year that requires all state court judges and their staff to use a person’s chosen pronoun and name of all who appear before them, including attorneys. The rule, which went into effect this year, also applies to all written court documents. Michigan is the first state court to adopt such a rule.
Protecting the Democratic Process
The Michigan Supreme Court ruled in July 2024 that it is unconstitutional for the state legislature to circumvent the ability of the people to vote on ballot initiatives. The ruling means that lawmakers cannot take a people-led ballot measure that has qualified for the ballot, pass it into law, and then immediately rewrite the core meaning of the measure.
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