Michigan Supreme Court Justice Kyra Harris Bolden, left, and Kimberly Ann Thomas, right, at the Michigan Democratic Party’s election night watch party in Detroit on Nov. 5, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)
Michigan Supreme Court Justice Kyra Harris Bolden and University of Michigan law Professor Kimberly Ann Thomas won their respective races for the state’s highest court Tuesday, according to race calls from the Associated Press. That’s increased the Democratic-nominated majority to 5-2.
It was a rare bright spot for Democrats on a brutal night in Michigan and across the country.
“I want to express my sincere gratitude for each and every one of you,” said Bolden, her voice breaking as she spoke to supporters early Wednesday morning. “Thank you to my campaign staff for everything that you’ve done for pushing me and propped me up when I needed to be pushed and propped up during this race.”
Bolden also thanked her husband and Thomas. She ran for the high court in 2022 but lost and was then appointed by Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to fill a vacancy created when former Supreme Court Chief Justice Bridget Mary McCormack stepped down.
Bolden, who was nominated by Democrats, ran this year for a partial, four-year term against GOP-nominated Branch County Circuit Court Judge Patrick William O’Grady for a partial, four-year term, defeating him 61% to 39%, with 73% of unofficial returns reported.
Justice David Viviano, who was nominated by Republicans, opted to retire instead of seeking another term.
The separate eight-year term on the court pitted state Rep. Andrew Fink (R-Adams Twp,) who was nominated by the Republican Party, against Thomas, who was the Democratic nominee. Thomas, who serves as the director and co-founder of the U of M Juvenile Justice Clinic, received 61% to O’Grady’s 39%, with 75% of unofficial returns reported.
“I thought this might be a marathon, but what I’ve learned is that it’s the farthest from that, that the further I got into this, the more people carried me along, that I met people across the state, in Ann Arbor and Detroit and Houghton and Muskegon and Cheboygan and Monroe and everywhere else who cared deeply about our courts, and they wanted a court that was fair and that promoted access to justice,” said Thomas. “I found the further along that I got, the more and more people were with me and that carried me along. So I’m so grateful to all of you and to everyone who helped me get to this night.”
Michigan Supreme Court justices run as nonpartisan candidates, although they are selected by the two major political parties at their respective nomination conventions, a system that avoids primary races.
The court has had a 4-3 majority of justices nominated by Democrats for the past several years. And with Tuesday’s results, the party is up to a 5-2 majority. In 2026, the current terms of Chief Justice Elizabeth Clement and Justice Megan Cavanaugh expire.
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