LANSING, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – Gov. Governor Gretchen Whitmer has appointed Judge Noah Hood to the Michigan Supreme Court.

Hood currently serves as a judge on the Michigan Court of Appeals, First District. He was a Whitmer appointee to the Third Circuit Court in 2019 and the Court of Appeals in 2022. He earned his law degree from Harvard.

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Hood’s appointment tips Michigan’s highest court further to the left after former Chief Justice Elizabeth Clement announced her departure in February. The court now sits at a 6-1 Democratic majority with Justice Brian Zahra serving as the only Republican.

The ripple effect of Hood’s appointment means other empty judge seats need to be filled. Whitmer announced Judge Mariam Bazzi will succeed Hood on the Michigan Court of Appeals, First District. Meanwhile, Christopher Trebilcock moves to the Michigan Court of Appeals, Second District; Daniel Korobkin heads to the Michigan Court of Appeals, Third District.

While Whitmer was quick to fill a justice seat that gives the Michigan Supreme Court an obvious Democratic advantage, she remains mum on a special election to fill an empty seat in the state Senate. The 270,000 residents in Michigan’s 35th Senate district have been without representation since Jan. 3. That’s when former State Senator Kristen McDonald Rivet (D) took her seat as a newly elected representative in the U.S. Congress.