FLINT, MI (WTVB) – The area will be well represented on the statewide ballot in November, with Branch County Circuit Judge Bill O’Grady and 35th District State Representative Andrew Fink both winning nominations to run for the Michigan Supreme Court.
O’Grady will face off in the general election against Justice Kyra Harris Bolden, who was appointed to the court by Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer after another justice stepped down in 2022.
O’Grady was the choice of Republicans meeting at their convention in Flint Saturday after Portage attorney Matthew DePerno announced Friday night he was dropping out of the race. DePerno said he could best help former President Donald Trump win Michigan in his bid to win the White House by ensuring that Michigan programs for absentee and early voting were strong.
DePerno also faces felony charges of trying to illegally access and tamper with voting machines after the 2020 election. He unsuccessfully ran for Michigan Attorney General in 2022.
Supreme Court races in Michigan are officially nonpartisan, meaning candidates appear without a party label on the ballot, but the nominees are chosen by party convention.
Bolden was unopposed as she sought the Democratic nomination to run for a full term. She was the first Black woman to be appointed to the court and would be the first elected if she prevails in November.
Republican delegates also chose state Representative Andrew Fink of Hillsdale as their nominee for the second seat, which is being vacated by GOP-backed Justice David Viviano.
Fink was competing against Court of Appeals Judge Mark Boonstra for the Republican nomination. In November, Fink will face University of Michigan Law School professor Kimberly Ann Thomas, who was also unopposed at the Democratic convention.
The conventions in Michigan kicked off what will almost certainly be competitive and expensive general election races. The Associated Press says candidates seeking Democratic backing have raised far more money than their counterparts on the other side, according to campaign finance reports.
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