| MICHIGAN | 17 Electoral Votes |
| Population
(Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Michigan Bureau of Elections) Total Population, July 2007 est. 10,071,822 Total Registration, Jan. 2008 7,141,914 Michigan has: 83 counties. Largest counties: Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Kent, Genessee. > Largest cities: Detroit, Grand Rapids, Warren, Sterling Heights. > Government
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State
of Michigan
Bureau of Elections Green
Party of MI
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| Democrats
Because the January 15 date violates DNC rules, the national party has threatened to reduce Michigan's allotment of delegates by 100% to zero. However, the state party on May 7 approved a proposal to allocate the 128 pledged delegates 69 for Clinton and 59 for Obama. The proposal will be presented to the DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee at the end of the month. 156 Delegates (128 Pledged and 28 Unpledged) and 21 Alternates. Organization
Official Results
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Republicans
30 Delegates After Penalty (lose 3 RNC Delegates and 27 of 45 CD Delegates) 60 Delegates (3 RNC Delegates; 12 Delegates at Large; 3 Delegates from each CD (45)) Organization
Official Results
Reactions, More Reactions Key events
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Setting the January
15
Primary
One could almost write a
book on the machinations around Michigan's Jan. 15, 2008 primary
date.
The basic milestones are: On Aug. 22, 2007, the Republican-controlled
State
Senate approved by a vote of 21 to 17 S.B.
624, which, as amended, required a statewide presidential primary
election
on Jan. 15, 2008 (the original bill set a date of January 29). (reactions).
On Aug. 30, the Democratic-controlled House passed the legislation by a
vote of 67 to 34, and the same day the Senate passed a concurred
version
of the bill. (letter
to candidates). Gov. Granholm signed the measure into law on
Sept. 4. (press
release).
However, on Oct. 24 Mark Grebner, an East Lansing political consultant, filed suit challenging the constitutionality of a provision of the law granting exclusive rights of voter lists to the Democratic and Republican parties. (related) In Nov. 2007 Ingham County Circuit Court Chief Judge William E. Collette issued an order prohibiting the Jan. 15 primary. The Court of Appeals upheld the ruling on Nov. 16. There were efforts to pass a legislative remedy and the parties prepared back-up plans. (press release). Finally on Nov. 21 the Michigan Supreme Court reversed the lower court rulings. (reactions). The ACLU also weighed in on Jan. 11, 2008, filing suit in the U.S. District Court in Detroit challenging the constitutionality of the law, but the primary went ahead. The Jan. 15 date violates Democratic and Republican national party rules, and both the DNC and the RNC have vowed to enforce penalties.
Democrats
Michigan Democrats, in
particular
Sen. Carl Levin, led the effort to challenge New Hampshire's privileged
first-in-the-nation status. Levin was the driving force behind
creation
of the DNC
Commission on Presidential Nomination Timing and Scheduling which
ran
in 2005-06. In April 2006 Michigan Democrats applied
to the DNC for Michigan to be one of the new early pre-window states;
however
the DNC approved Nevada and South Carolina. Democrats set a
preliminary
caucus date of Feb. 9, 2008, but Michigan Democratic Party chairman
Mark
Brewer warned in a March 1, 2007 statement,
that that could change. “There is also a consensus among our
leaders
that if any state schedules its caucus or primary in violation of the
DNC’s
rules, Michigan will move its Caucus to an earlier date. That
earlier
date may be on or before the date of the offending state’s caucus or
primary.”
On June 11, 2007 Florida Democrats announced
plans to hold their primary on Jan. 29, 2008, in violation of DNC
rules,
prompting Mark Brewer to repeat his vow to go early. "December is
a possibility for us," Brewer told The Detroit News, saying he
would
wait to see what developed. (See: Gordon Trowbridge. "State
Dem chief: We'll vote early." The Detroit News.
June
12, 2007). On Aug. 25, 2007 Brewer presented Michigan's plan for
Feb. 9 caucuses, complete with three methods of voting: at 219 voting
centers
around the state, by mail, or by Internet, to the DNC Rules and Bylaws
Committee. However, events were moving on another track. On
Aug. 30, 2007 the House passed the bill requiring a statewide
presidential
primary on Jan. 15, 2008 and the Senate concurred. Brewer issued
a statement
pointing to "New Hampshire’s stated intent to move their primary before
January 19th, in direct violation of the DNC rules," as a rationale for
participating in the January 15 primary, despite the prospect of
penalties.
The governor signed the bill into law on Sept. 4.
Because the major Democratic candidates had pledged not to "campaign or participate in any state which schedules a presidential election primary or caucus before Feb. 5, 2008, except for the states of Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire and South Carolina," the Democratic primary was largely meaningless. Democratic chair Mark Brewer submitted eight names to the Secretary of State to appear on the ballot (Biden, Clinton, Dodd, Edwards, Gravel, Kucinich, Obama, Richardson). Potential presidential nominees so listed who did not want to appear on the ballot could submit an affidavit with the Secretary of State by 4:00 p.m. on Oct. 9. Five Democrats did so: Biden, Edwards, Kucinich, Obama and Richardson. Thus Clinton, Dodd and Gravel appeared on the Democratic ballot. statements
In
March
2008 there was a flurry of activity on the Democratic side around a
possible
revote. In a March 10 op-ed in the Washington Post
("Delegates
We Need"), Govs. Jon S. Corzine (D-NJ) and Edward G. Rendell (D-PA),
both
Clinton supporters, argued for a revote in both Florida and Michigan
and
volunteered to help raise the funds to pay for such elections. A
spokesman for Gov. Jennifer Granholm noted that, "The Democratic
Leadership
-- including the Governor -- has asked a committee consisting of
Senator
Levin, Congresswoman Kilpatrick, Debbie Dingell and Ron Gettlelfinger
--
to work with the DNC in coming up with a solution that will allow our
delegates
to be seated." The committee recommended Michigan hold a
state-run,
privately funded primary, but the legislature failed to act before it
adjourned
on March 20.
April 4
- Various statements >
March 31 - Rep. Stupak proposal >
March
26 - Clinton and Obama campaigns: statements following U.S.
District Court ruling >
March
20 - Gov. Jennifer Granholm: "We will turn our attention to other
options" >
March
19 - Hillary Clinton for President: "Obama’s Re-Vote Pledge: Just
Words" >
March
19 - Groups weigh in: Michigan Change to Win, Michigan GOP >
March
14-17 - Various statements >
March
12 - Obama Michigan co-chairs: "Vote by Mail Not an Option" >
March
12 - Hillary Clinton for President: letter, press release on
seating
delegates from Florida and Michigan. >
March
7 - Sen. Levin: "Statement on Michigan Delegate Dispute">
March
5 - DNC: "Dean Statement on Florida and Michigan" >
March
5 - Florida and Michigan Governors: "Don’t Silence 5,163,271
Americans"
>
Republicans
State Republicans
established
a 2008 Presidential Selection Committee (see April 14, 2007 resolution).
Their preferred option (see July 18, 2007 message
from Michigan Republican Party Chairman Saul Anuzis to State Committee
Members and County Chairs) was, "A joint, State-run Primary with the
Democrats
on or before February 5 was, is and remains our preferred option."
However,
as noted above, there was a degree of uncertainty about what the
Democrats
would do, so there was also a proposal to hold a State Convention as
"the
best back-up plan should an agreement on a primary not be reached"
failed.
On July 17 the MI GOP's 2008 Presidential Selection Committee voted
13-2
to recommend a State Convention as the best back-up plan (a
reaction to July 17 recommendation), but the Policy Committee voted
against that recommendation. When the Jan. 15 presidential
primary
came under legal challenge, Republicans looked to hold a state
convention
on Jan. 25-26, 2008 (press
release). There was some talk about whether a convention
would
benefit one or another of the candidates, but the point became moot
with
the state Supreme Court's Nov. 21 ruling.
Ballot Access
By party list:
Sept. 11, 2007 deadline for Democratic and Republican state party
chairs
to submit to the Secretary of State names of potential nominees for the
presidential primary [M.C.L. 168.614a(1) as amended under PA 52 of
2007].
GOP chair Saul Anuzis submitted nine names (Brownback, Giuliani,
Hunter,
Huckabee, McCain, Paul, Romney, Tancredo, F.Thompson). Democratic
chair Mark Brewer submitted eight names (Biden, Clinton, Dodd, Edwards,
Gravel, Kucinich, Obama, Richardson), however most of these asked not
to
appear on the ballot (see below).
By petition:
Signature requirements: Republican Party candidate: 11,569; Democratic
Party candidate: 12,396 by 4:00 p.m. on Oct. 23 (start date Aug. 15,
2007).
Michigan Secretary of
State:
Presidential
Primary Candidates and Information
Michigan
Democratic Party 2008
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2004
Overview
Bush made it close in Michigan, but Kerry prevailed in the end with a plurality of 165,437 votes (3.42 percentage points). Bush carried 68 counties to 15 for Kerry. The three Detroit area counties (Wayne, Oakland and Macomb) produced 39.5% of the total votes in the presidential race (1,909,115 votes). Kerry amassed a plurality of 342,294 votes in Wayne county and narrowly won in Oakland county, while Bush narrowly won in Macomb county. General Election Details Kerry/Allies | Bush/Cheney '04 |
| Past Results |
1996
ll 1992
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2000
Total voters:
4,279,299
Notes:
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2000
Overview
The battleground state of Michigan went to Gore by a plurality of 217,279 votes (5.13 percentage points). Bush carried 58 counties to 25 for Gore. Almost 40% of the total vote (39.8%) comes from the Detroit area (Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties). Gore piled up a plurality of 307,393 votes in Wayne county and narrowly won in Oakland and Macomb. As expected, Bush did well in Western Michigan (Kent County/Grand Rapids and the surrounding counties). He underperformed in the city of Detroit, and would have had to have done better in Western Wayne county as well as in Oakland and Macomb to carry the state. A statewide school vouchers initiative, Proposal 1, was overwhelmingly defeated, 69.1% to 30.9%. |
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There was a fair bit of controversy over Michigan's Internet voting option. Joel Ferguson, DNC member from Lansing, led the challenges, emphasizing the discriminatory impact of unequal home access to the Internet and security problems. The DNC's Rules and Bylaws Committee took up the matter but gave final approval at its Nov. 22, 2003 meeting. 28.4 percent of those participating (46,543 of 163,769) voted via the Internet:
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Moseley
Braun
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Clark
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Dean
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Edwards
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Gephardt
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Kerry
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Kucinich
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Lieberman
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Sharpton
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Uncomm.
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Write
In
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| Internet |
39
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4,047
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8,944
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7,046
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270
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22,999
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1,432
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267
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1,380
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81
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38
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46,543
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| Caucus Site |
130
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5,346
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13,285
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12,263
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160
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49,208
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3,326
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126
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9,602
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250
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48
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93,744
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20
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1,562
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4,796
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2,596
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521
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12,611
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500
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266
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422
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166
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22
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23,482
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| Total |
189
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10,955
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27,025
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21,905
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951
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84,818
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5,258
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659
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11,404
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497
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108
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163,769
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0.12%
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6.69%
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16.50%
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13.38%
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0.58%
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51.79%
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3.21%
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0.40%
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6.96%
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0.30%
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0.07%
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| Copyright © 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 Eric M. Appleman/Democracy in Action. |
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