Michigan Democrats endorsed Washtenaw County Prosecutor Eli Savit for attorney general and Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II for secretary of state at their party convention in Detroit on Sunday, April 19, as the party gears up for its first election test in President Donald Trump’s second term.
The tenor at Huntington Place was notable as progressive delegates made their voices heard, cheering and booing candidates at the event that typically serves as an opportunity for the party to come together.
Large swaths of the over 7,200 delegates who registered for the convention booed as University of Michigan Regent Jordan Acker was nominated for endorsement. Acker was not endorsed for another term on the board, with delegates backing Dearborn Civil Rights Attorney Amir Makled instead.
Although university board races are typically low-key affairs, the U-M contest became a flashpoint over how universities handled on-campus demonstrations in the wake of the war in Gaza.
“This is what happens when people decide something better is possible,” Makled said.
Robert Pawlowski, a Southgate organizer and Democratic delegate, said he backed Makled because he viewed him as a free speech advocate. He criticized U-M’s handling of the protests.
“The amount of injustice that people see, getting arrested for just expressing their voice, (being) peaceful, is unjust. It’s un-American,” Pawlowski said.
Makled represented one of the students who was arrested at a U-M protest, although charges were eventually dropped.
Wayne County Commissioner Jonathan Kinloch said Acker was a proven Democrat who would support candidates up and down the ballot come November. But as the crowd jeered, Kinloch criticized delegates and warned of losing the seat entirely in the fall elections.
“We’re dealing with the consequences of actions like this in November 2024,” Kinloch said. “Obviously, some folks haven’t learned.” Kinloch appeared to walk off in the middle of speaking, although it was difficult to hear over the crowd in the Grand Riverside ballroom.
Incumbent Regent Paul Brown was also endorsed for another eight-year term on the board.
Troy Zukowski-Serlin, a delegate from Kalamazoo, said most of those booing appeared to be primarily concerned with the war in Gaza. “It was really quite disruptive of the entire process,” he said of the jeers. His wife, Michelle Zukowski-Serlin, also condemned the boos, mentioning that Acker’s Huntington Woods home was vandalized in 2024. Michelle Zukowski-Serlin, who was seated toward the front of the stage, said those booing also shouted profanities and made obscene gestures at some candidates and Michigan Democratic Party Chair Curtis Hertel as they spoke.
Senate hopefuls stump
Although their contest was not decided at the convention, the three major candidates in the Democratic primary race for Michigan’s U.S. Senate were in attendance Sunday, pitching delegates on their campaigns.
A recent poll of likely Democratic voters had state Sen. Mallory McMorrow, D-Royal Oak, and former Wayne County health director Abdul El-Sayed tied atop the poll at 24% each, with U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Bloomfield in third at 13%.
El-Sayed, considered perhaps the most progressive candidate in the field, told reporters his recent polling surge was down to campaigning on issues that affect voters directly.
“We’re trying to focus on the issues that everyday people need,” he said. “They need to know that they can afford gas, afford housing, afford to take their kid to a doctor.” El-Sayed drew perhaps the loudest applause from any candidate who spoke at the convention.
McMorrow, a two-term state lawmaker, was similarly optimistic and pointed to her Lansing tenure as a track record she can pitch to voters. She also said Democrats across campaigns are unified.
“People are campaigning for their candidates with a ton of energy, but there seems to be a recognition that the most important thing is to take on Donald Trump and the Republicans in November,” McMorrow told the Free Press.
Stevens brushed aside the poll, and said others in the Senate primary show her leading.
“I know tough races and I win tough races because I put up my hand to fight for Michigan, and I win for Michigan,” Stevens said to reporters before delegates gathered.
When Stevens spoke to the delegate crowd, she was jeered by more than a few scattered individuals in the audience throughout her remarks. The vast majority of the likely electorate in Michigan’s U.S. Senate race weren’t in attendance at Huntington Place on Sunday, but the optics of the crowd reaction could potentially signal trouble for Stevens’ campaign.
Dems look to the fall
Hertel said the gathering was the largest convention in the party’s history, with 7,252 registered delegates.
But delegates had to wait longer than expected to vote – Hertel said an error made by a volunteer prevented all delegates from being able to vote when ballots were expected to open at 3 p.m.
Gilchrist, who previously launched a campaign for governor but pivoted to run for secretary of state in January, won on the first round of voting, meaning he took more than 50% of the vote against challengers Suzanna Shkreli, a former Michigan Lottery Commissioner, and Barb Byrum, Ingham County Clerk.
Savit, who also earned his endorsement after the first round of voting, defeated Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald.
With Republicans in control of the White House and Congress, Democrats have historical trends on their side. The party out of power in Washington typically fares well in midterm elections. Still, delegates and candidates alike said they cannot take any voters for granted, even as Trump’s approval rating slides.
Steve Swaney, a Democratic delegate and an Isabella County commissioner, said he thinks the party’s base can overcome its differences and coalesce around a message opposing Trump and Republican policies in the November elections.
But Swaney thought as much in 2024, when Trump won Michigan.
“I’m certainly not as confident as I thought in the past,” Swaney said, before voting began. Still, Swaney said the state of the economy in Trump’s second term will motivate voters to back Democrats, as continued inflation and higher fuel costs due to the war in Iran persist.
“When you hit people’s pocketbooks … they tend to change how they lean,” Swaney said.
In Michigan, candidates for most statewide races are decided by political parties, although voters will get to select candidates for governor and U.S. Senator in the August statewide primary. At their endorsement convention last month, Republicans backed Eaton County Prosecutor Doug Lloyd for attorney general and Macomb County Clerk Anthony Forlini for secretary of state.
You can reach Arpan Lobo at alobo@freepress.com
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Dems endorse Gilchrist for secretary of state, Savit for AG
Reporting by Arpan Lobo, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
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