Chair of the Michigan Democratic Party Lavora Barnes speaks to a crowd in Detroit at a rally for Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign for president on Aug. 7, 2024. | Anna Liz Nichols
After three terms as chair of the Michigan Democratic Party (MDP), Lavora Barnes says will not seek reelection in February.
In a letter posted on the MDP website, Barnes, the first Black woman to serve in the role, acknowledged the losses by Democrats in the Nov. 5 election were “deeply painful,” but said the party was able to hold its ground “in a year with stronger headwinds than we have ever seen nationally.”
Despite Democrats losing their majority in the Michigan House, as well as seeing President-elect Donald Trump win Michigan’s popular vote for the first time on his way back to the White House, Barnes pointed to the election of U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-Holly) to the U.S. Senate, state Sen. Kristen McDonald Rivet (D-Bay City) to Congress and Justice Kyra Harris Bolden and Kimberly Ann Thomas to the Michigan Supreme Court.
“We ran in hard races across the state, and we ran those races well, which is why I know that we will continue to show up for working Michiganders everywhere – and we will continue to grow our tent as we righteously fight for every single person in our great state,” said Barnes.
While no one has officially stepped forward in a bid to replace Barnes, one possible successor is former state Sen. Curtis Hertel Jr. (D-East Lansing), who lost his race against former state Sen. Tom Barrett (R-Charlotte) to fill Slotkin’s U.S. House seat.
Barnes, who was the Michigan director of Obama for America 2012, became the MDP chief operating officer in 2015, before winning election as chair in 2018.
During her tenure, the MDP saw a string of successes that began with the election that year of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Attorney General Dana Nessel, and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, making a sweep of the state’s executive branch offices. U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Lansing) also was reelected to what would be her final term.
In her letter, Barnes called those wins a “direct repudiation of Trump’s MAGA presidency” and was followed by Project 83, “named for the 83 counties in Michigan,” which she called “a year-round, full-time organizing strategy in every corner of Michigan” that she says has become the blueprint for Democratic parties in other states.
“Despite overwhelming obstacles to reaching voters due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we were able to adapt and still delivered Michigan for President Biden, sweeping statewide offices and defending crucial state House and congressional seats,” said Barnes.
In 2022, the MDP reached the peak of its success during Barnes’ tenure, not only reelecting Whitmer, Nessel and Benson, but powering Michigan Democrats to majorities in both the state Senate and the House. That trifecta was able to get major Democratic priorities passed, including gun safety measures, expanding civil rights protections, as well as repealing Right to Work legislation and the state’s 1931 law banning abortion.
Among those paying tribute to Barnes’ was U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens (D-Birmingham) who thanked her for her “incredible leadership and leading our party to victories all across the state. I’m so grateful for all you have done and can’t wait to see what you do next!”
State Rep. Jason Morgan (D-Ann Arbor) also praised Barnes for “her incredible service as Chair of the Michigan Democratic Party,” calling her “an incredible friend and leader!”
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