Full Election Report from The Michigan Chapter Political Team
This election cycle, Sierra Club local groups, interns, and members rolled up their sleeves and fought for environmental causes, supporting and working with candidates who prioritized clean air, clean water and protection of our natural resources. Those efforts paid off!
On November 8th, Michiganders spoke loud and clear: voters supported candidates who fight for renewable energy and our Great Lakes. For the first time in 40 years, Michigan’s State House and Senate flipped, ushering in a new environmental majority for the state. Unlike previous election cycles, environmental issues were a top concern for Michigan voters. Countless candidates prioritized clean drinking water, climate change and protecting the Great Lakes in their campaigns.
The election victory did not happen by luck or chance. Our environmental champions were attacked for our Sierra Club endorsements by dark money backed ads and mailers that blamed our candidates' positions on renewable energy for high gas and energy prices. These attacks fell flat because of a strong pushback from our Sierra Club political program and decades of grassroots organizing. Michiganders know that a healthy environment and economy are two sides of the same coin. Our future is renewable energy, not further reliance on unstable international fossil fuel markets. With Sierra Club support, our clean-energy champions fought back and won against these dark-money attacks.
Recent pro-democracy reforms were a significant contributor to our pro-environment wave. 2022 was the first election held under the maps created by the nonpartisan Independent Citizens Redistricting Committee (ICRC). Created by the 2018 Prop 2 ballot initiative, the ICRC was tasked with drawing fair and competitive state legislative and congressional district maps for Michigan. Sierra Club members worked hard to pass Prop 2 in 2018 as our members participated in ICRC public meetings to voice their views on the new maps. As a result of our fair and independent redistricting process, we had more competitive races for Congress and the State Legislature.
Overall, The 2022 elections in Michigan were a resounding defeat for climate-deniers and polluters and a victory for those who support Gov. Whitmer’s policies to protect Michigan and the Great Lakes. We look forward to taking real action on our environmental agenda with the Whitmer administration and the new environmental majorities in the House and Senate.
To see the work and success of our electoral program, check out our 2022 election report and post election webinar here: https://www.sierraclub.org/michigan/elections