ACLU Gives Michigan Supreme Court Race $2M in Reproductive Rights Ads | News, Sports, Jobs

FILE – The Michigan Hall of Justice, home of the Michigan Supreme Court, is photographed Wednesday, May 24, 2023, in Lansing, Mich. It is Michigan’s court of last resort and is home to seven justices. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File)

By ISABELLA

WOLMERT

Associated Press Press Agency

LANSING — The American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan announced it will invest millions of dollars in two races for the state Supreme Court, underscoring the importance of the competition in a battleground state where control of the court is at stake.

The liberal ACLU of Michigan announced Thursday that the ACLU Voter Education Fund is investing about $2 million in the races, running seven weeks of statewide radio ads ahead of the November election. Political Director Merissa Kovach said the messaging will largely focus on the candidates’ record on reproductive rights.

Even though Michigan voters enshrined abortion rights in the state constitution in 2022 — finally affirming the right to abortion — Democrats and their allies continue to frame the state Supreme Court election through the lens of reproductive rights, saying the court could rule on the issue in the future.

Michigan Supreme Court elections are technically nonpartisan, meaning candidates appear on the ballot without a party designation, and a slate vote does not count toward the race. However, candidates are nominated at state party conventions.

The ACLU supports access to abortion, and its legal firm challenges restrictions and bans across the country. While Kovach said the ACLU does not endorse candidates in Michigan races, the ad is sure to benefit Democratic-backed Judge Kyra Harris Holden and law professor Kimberly Ann Thomas.

Bolden and Thomas will face Republican-nominated Judge Patrick O’Grady and state Rep. Andrew Fink, respectively.

The Democratic-backed justices control the current court by a 4-3 majority. The ACLU ad campaign will also highlight court decisions in recent years that the left-leaning organization has praised, as well as the four candidates’ record on other issues, such as LGBTQ+ rights and voting access.

“We will use our position as a leading civil rights organization to educate voters about the impact of the Michigan Supreme Court” said Kovach.

Kovach said the political action committee booking is the first he has invested in a Michigan Supreme Court race. The national ACLU also is putting about $300,000 into state House races.

Michigan Democrats say reproductive rights are still a major driver of voters in the battleground state, and the state Supreme Court could interpret the 2022 constitutional amendment in future cases. A lower court judge blocked Michigan’s 24-hour waiting period for abortions earlier this summer.

Michigan Republicans, meanwhile, have portrayed the state Supreme Court race as a race against abuse of power by the three Democrats, arguing that abortion is legally regulated by a constitutional amendment.

Scott Greenlee, a former vice chairman of the Michigan Republican Party and a consultant on races, said the topic of reproductive rights has no place in Michigan’s political races this year, “and is simply being misused by liberal-leaning groups and individuals to instill fear.”

In addition to the state Supreme Court, Michigan Democrats also control the House and Senate and have elected a Democratic governor. The 2022 abortion vote helped Michigan Democrats flip the state blue.

The Michigan Democratic Party is also pouring heavily into the Supreme Court races. The Michigan Advance first reported that the party is spending more than $1 million on digital ads, and Bolden and Thomas are spending $1.5 million on TV ads.

Bolden and Thomas outraised their counterparts by hundreds of thousands of dollars, according to the latest campaign finance reports, thanks in large part to contributions from political action committees linked to labor unions and Democratic heavyweights such as Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson.

Greenlee said Democratic candidates are ahead in fundraising and spending because they had no opponents at the state convention. Republican candidates faced opponents at their party’s convention in August.

“We are in the catching up phase” Greenlee said.

The U.S. Supreme Court election has taken on new significance in light of the U.S. Supreme Court’s June 2022 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, shifting abortion policy to the states. The following year, millions of dollars were spent on hotly contested elections in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. Supreme Court elections in Ohio and Montana are also expected to be hotly contested because of potential abortion rulings.

Breaking news and more in your inbox