2018 will go down in history as the year voters elected more candidates that promised to be unapologetic advocates for social change and institutional reform than ever before in recent history. A huge number of those elected were women.

In fact, for the first time in Michigan history all three of the top elected offices in the state were won by women.

• Governor Gretchen Whitmer;
• Attorney General Dana Nessel; and
• Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson

While Michigan has had women serve in the offices of Governor, Attorney General, and Secretary of State before, never in state history have women swept all of these races in the same election.

Women also dominated the Michigan’s races for US Senate and Supreme Court. US Senator Debbie Stabenow will return for another 6-year term, Justice Elizabeth Clement won reelection to Michigan’s Supreme Court, and Megan Cavanagh will claim the other Justice of the Supreme Court seat.

Other highlights from the election:

• Next year, eight of Michigan’s 16 Democratic State Senators will be women. The highest number in state history.
• Five of Michigan’s 14 members of the US House delegation will be women. Also, the highest in state history.
• Six of the 113 female members of Congress (House and Senate) will hail from Michigan.
• Michigan’s Rashida Tlaib (D-Detroit) will be one of the first Muslim women ever elected to Congress. Another female Muslim was elected in a Minnesota seat.

97 years ago, Eva McCall Hamilton of Grand Rapids became the first woman to serve in the Michigan Legislature. She was elected to the Michigan Senate in 1921. While many women have served in elected office since then, never before has Michigan seen such change in the gender makeup of its leaders.  By the way, Grand Rapids voters just elected their first female Senator, Winnie Brinks, since Senator McCall Hamilton’s tenure.

Michigan Legislative Consultants is a bipartisan lobbying firm based in Lansing, Michigan. Our team of lobbyists and procurement specialists provide a wide range of services for some of the most respected companies in America. For more on MLC, visit www.mlcmi.com or connect with us on LinkedIn and Twitter.