LANSING, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – When the Michigan Supreme Court struck down Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s emergency powers during the pandemic in October 2020, Whitmer complained the ruling was “handed down by a narrow majority of Republican justices.”

In the four years since that decision, the makeup of the court has decidedly swung in favor of the Democrats after two Dem-backed Supreme Court justices were elected on Tuesday.

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Kyra Harris Bolden and Kimberly Thomas were both elected to the state’s Supreme Court giving the Democrats a 5-2 advantage on the state’s highest court. Thomas will replace sitting justice Dave Viviano, who is a conservative.

The elections for Supreme Court justices are nonpartisan but the candidates are selected by political parties.

In 2024, the state’s highest court has issued 45 opinions, ranging in topics that cover just about every aspect of life including election poll watchers, medical marijuana, public school pensions, home foreclosures, hostile work environments and police conduct.

The case Mothering Justice v. Attorney General decided in July involved the minimum wage and earned sick time laws in this state. The Supreme Court ruled, for instance, that sick time must be extended to all employees, including part-time employees, seasonal workers and contractors.

Amanda Fisher, state director of the Michigan chapter of the National Federation of Independent Business, said the ruling on paid sick leave would “cause a lot of harm” to small businesses.