Michiganders voted in Tuesday primaries for governor and U.S. House races, along with other state contests. Polls closed by 9 p.m. ET.
Same-day voter registration was permitted through Election Day. Residents could go in-person to their city or township clerk, bringing key documents: something proving voter eligibility and something showing residency, like a Michigan driver’s license.
Michigan law requires voters to present a photo ID but voters can cast a ballot as long as they fill out an affidavit. Absentee vote totals have not been released by the state.
State Significance
Perhaps the most high-profile gubernatorial race in the nation begins to play out Tuesday — between the unopposed Democratic incumbent Gretchen Whitmer and a slew of Republican challengers looking to win their party’s nomination to challenge her.
This year, Whitmer has raised more from individual donors than all five of her GOP candidates combined. None of Whitmer’s Republican opponents have held elected office.
In the Michigan Republican gubernatorial primary, ABC News projects that Tudor Dixon will win.
Dixon and the other GOP hopefuls boast a variety of backgrounds, including a pastor and a wealthy entrepreneur.
Their attempt to unseat Whitmer has been occasionally dramatic — beginning in May, when the two leading Republican challengers were kicked off the ballot for not having enough valid signatures, officials said. Another candidate, Ryan Kelley, was charged for his alleged actions in the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol. (He has pleaded not guilty.) Trump has backed Dixon, a conservative media personality.
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer addresses the press in Detroit, July 20, 2022.
Carlos Osorio/AP, FILE
When the COVID-19 pandemic started, Whitmer garnered national attention for implementing some of the toughest masking and social distancing requirements in the state. One fierce opponent to her policies is Kelley, a 40-year-old real estate broker who gained a following starting in 2020 when he protested the removal of a Confederate statue and helped organize protests against Whitmer at the Michigan Capitol.
Before Dixon’s projected victory, Kelley was widely considered to be the GOP front-runner. He had cited so-called election integrity (eliminating ballot drop boxes, canceling contracts with various voting machine companies and so on) as one of his key issues.
Dixon, 44, was the Trump-endorsed favorite. She was also backed by the DeVos family, one of the most influential and powerful conservative clans in the state and who count among their members former Trump Education Secretary Betsy DeVos. Dixon previously worked in the steel industry, where she was a sales manager.
Businessman Kevin Rinke and Garrett Soldano, co-founder of Stand Up Michigan, a collective opposed to Whitmer’s coronavirus response, were also competing in the race.
In the House races, GOP Rep. Peter Meijer in Michigan’s 3rd Congressional District hoped to fend off a challenger after voting to impeach Trump last year in the wake of the Capitol riot and a mere 10 days into his first term in Congress. Meijer faced John Gibbs, who received an endorsement from Trump.