Gov. Gretchen Whitmer speaks at a ceremony for Michigan veterans in Heritage Hall on Nov. 12, 2024. | Kyle Davidson
Following a Tuesday morning ceremony at the Michigan Capitol commemorating Veterans Day, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer was asked by reporters about the outcome of the 2024 election and the future of her administration in working with President-elect Donald Trump and a Republican-led state House.
Whitmer served as a co-chair of Vice President Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign and was a popular surrogate for the campaign around the country.
Since Democrats took control of the Michigan House and Senate in 2022, Whitmer has signed a number of bills for Democratic priorities, including repealing the state’s 1931 abortion ban, instituting gun safety regulations, repealing Michigan’s Right to Work laws and expanding the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act to outlaw discrimination based on gender identity or sexual orientation.
However, Republicans are set to take control of the House in January with a 58-52 majority, riding the coattails of Trump, who defeated Harris in Michigan.
“I think one of the things that I know having lived in this state my whole life and served in public service most of the last 25 years is things change, right? And so my job is to continue to stay focused on the people of Michigan and ensuring that we’re building a state where every person can thrive,” Whitmer said.
When asked if her administration would take any steps to future-proof the state from any potential Trump administration policies, Whitmer said her colleagues had staked out some aggressive strategies, though she is focusing on areas where she can find shared priorities with the incoming administration.
“Obviously, there will be areas in which we don’t agree. I don’t agree with anyone on everything, and so that’s not going to be a surprise. But you know, we have worked with the Trump administration before. We’ll figure out how to work with the Trump administration, going into this last two years of my term,” said Whitmer.
Trump and Whitmer had a fraught relationship during his first term, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. At one point, Trump said he instructed his vice president at the time, Mike Pence, not to take her calls about getting help for the state.
Whitmer, who was elected to her first term in 2018, will be term-limited in 2026. Fellow Democrats Attorney General Dana Nessel and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, also will be termed out of office that year.
Benson has expressed interest in running for governor in 2026, while Whitmer is considered a top presidential contender in 2028.
With less than two months remaining for Michigan’s first Democratic trifecta in 40 years, Whitmer said she continues to have an open dialogue with Democratic and Republican leadership in each chamber.
Whitmer noted she congratulated House Minority Leader Matt Hall (R-Richland) on his election as House speaker for the upcoming legislative session and said she looked forward to seeing if she and Hall could find common ground in the coming months.
“That said, the Legislature’s not been in session a ton this year. And so I would anticipate that we’ll get a number of things done during lame duck,” Whitmer said. “Had a meeting this morning with some of the leadership and [talked] about our shared priorities as we’re going forward, and anything we want to get done prior to the end of the year. So that will be coming.”
In addition to her future plans, Whitmer also responded to a recent protest of white supremacists in Howell, where a group waved Nazi flags outside of a production of the play “The Diary of Anne Frank,” based on the life of a Jewish girl who hid from the Nazis for more than two years during World War II.
This is the third time since the summer that white supremacists have gathered in Livingston County, which lies between Lansing and Detroit and was once a Ku Klux Klan hotspot.
“It’s distressing. I think that some of the rhetoric that we’re already seeing is really corrosive and very concerning. And as you see rallies like this, and how the local community was really shocked by it, just tells you that we are wading into some, you know, concerning territory,” Whitmer said.
“That’s why I’m going to continue to try to make sure that Michigan residents feel safe and do everything I can to find common ground with people. But you know, hate speech and demonstrations to scare and intimidate fellow Americans is not something I take lightly,” Whitmer said.
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