Voting results flew in the day after the 2024 election, with major changes in power and representation underway and leaders of all parties looking to the next steps.
Former Republican President Donald Trump clinched the election to become president once more, Republicans took control of the U.S. Senate and a key U.S. Senate race in Michigan had yet to be called by midday. Here’s the latest:
Harris got fewer Detroit votes than past Democratic candidates
Vice President Kamala Harris received fewer votes in Detroit in Tuesday’s general election than any Democratic presidential candidate in at least the past 20 years.
Election data from the city shows Harris received 221,629 votes in Detroit. That’s down from the roughly 241,000 Biden received in 2020, 235,000 Hillary Clinton earned in 2016 and substantially less than the approximately 281,000 votes former President Barack Obama received during his reelection campaign in 2012. Obama received roughly 325,000 Detroit votes during his 2008 campaign.
President-elect Donald Trump did not receive all of the votes Harris missed but he did earn more Detroit votes this election than in his previous two runs. In 2016, Trump received only 7,682 votes from Detroit. In his unsuccessful 2020 race, Trump garnered almost 13,000 votes. But in 2024, nearly 20,000 Detroiters voted for Trump.
Third-party candidates played a minimal role in the Detroit vote: Jill Stein, the Green Party candidate who tried to court voters disillusioned with the Biden administration’s approach to the war in Gaza, received just under 2,000 votes.
The Detroit vote did not necessarily directly lead to Harris struggling in Michigan overall — The Associated Press called the state for Trump midday Wednesday — but the city played a role in one of the tightest swing states this election cycle.
Both Trump and Harris tried to appeal to Detroit voters all cycle, making multiple visits to the city down the stretch. The Trump campaign, in particular, championed the idea it could peel away traditional Democratic voters.
-Dave Boucher
12:54 p.m.: AP calls Michigan for Trump
Just before 1 p.m. Wednesday, The Associated Press called that former President Donald Trump had won the state of Michigan and its 15 electoral votes.
The AP, which the Free Press uses to call races, had already called Trump the presidential winner Wednesday morning.
With 98% of Michigan’s estimated vote tallied, according to the AP’s unofficial count, Trump had 49.7% compared to 48.3% for Harris.
Michigan, a battleground state that has helped determine the winner of the last four presidential elections, saw both candidates focus their campaigns and numerous visits here.
Trump closed out his presidential campaign for the third time with a rally in Grand Rapids early Tuesday morning; Harris, meanwhile, made four stops in Michigan on Sunday, ending with a rally in East Lansing, before concluding her campaign Monday with a series of stops in Pennsylvania.
-Todd Spangler
12:21 p.m.: U.S. Rep. John James reelected to 10th Congressional District
Democratic former Macomb County judge and prosecutor Carl Marlinga conceded defeat in his challenge of U.S. Rep. John James, R-Shelby Township, on Wednesday morning.
As of 11:30 a.m., The Associated Press hadn’t called the race for Michigan’s 10th Congressional District but the vote tally suggested James would hold on to win his second two-year term. Shortly after noon, the AP made the call. With 98% of the vote in, James won the seat with 51% of the vote, compared with 45% for Marlinga, according to unofficial results from The Associated Press.
As he conceded ahead of the AP call, Marlinga said the race was about standing up for shared values and that the fight continues.
“While this is not the outcome we had hoped for, I am incredibly grateful for the support and dedication of the people who stood by me throughout this campaign,” Marlinga said.
-Todd Spangler
Michigan voters cast record number of ballots
A new voting record has been set in Michigan. With 98% of votes counted, more than 5.6 million people voted in the 2024 presidential election, according to unofficial results from The Associated Press. That’s the most ballots cast in the state’s history.
According to the Michigan Department of State, more than 5.5 million (5,579,317) Michiganders cast their ballots in the 2020 presidential election.
Turnout as a percentage of the voting-age population this election is currently about 70.7%, with 98% of ballots counted and final numbers pending. The latest census estimate for Michiganders 18 years and older is 7.9 million residents.
Voter turnout, based on the voting-age population, peaked in 1960 at 72.7% and was 70.5% in the 2020 presidential election.
-Kristi Tanner
GOP leader: House win means stronger voice for ‘values of hardworking families’
Republicans claimed victory Wednesday in the fight to control the Michigan House of Representatives, celebrating what leadership said was a show of trust to lead the state forward.
Republicans need 56 seats to secure a majority in the state House chamber. As of 9:45 a.m., unofficial results compiled by The Associated Press, which the Free Press uses to call races, called Republicans winning 53 out of the chamber’s 110 seats. Unofficial county-level results from three additional state House races show Republicans carrying enough seats to win a majority.
GOP challengers defeated three incumbent Democratic state representatives, unofficial results show, with former Michigan Youth Vice Chair Rylee Linting beating state Rep. Jaime Churches of Wyandotte, Calhoun County Commissioner Steve Frisbie unseating Jim Haadsma of Battle Creek and former TV meteorologist Karl Bohnak trumping Jenn Hill of Marquette, according to unofficial results reported by counties encompassed in those districts.
“With a Republican majority, Michigan will have a stronger voice fighting for the values of hardworking families and addressing the issues that matter most — safe schools and neighborhoods, an affordable economy, and a government that provides value for dollars,” said Minority Leader Matt Hall, R-Richland Township, in an emailed statement shortly before 6 a.m. Wednesday morning.
A Republican victory means the Democratic trifecta in Lansing will be no more. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer will now finish her term without her party’s full control of the state Legislature, although Michigan Democrats do retain their two-seat majority in the state Senate. It was not on the ballot this year.
-Clara Hendrickson
9:40 a.m.: Speaker Tate: Republicans take Michigan House majority
Michigan House Speaker Joe Tate, D-Detroit, issued a statement Wednesday morning effectively conceding the state House to the Republican party and vowing a comeback.
His Democratic colleagues and candidates “left everything on the field” to keep the majority, he said.
Republicans need 56 seats to secure a majority in the state House chamber. As of 9:45 a.m. Wednesday, unofficial results compiled by The Associated Press, which the Free Press uses to call races, called Republicans winning 53 out of the chamber’s 110 seats. Unofficial county-level results from three additional state House races show Republicans carrying enough seats to win a majority.
“Come January, we will look for every opportunity to work with our Republican colleagues in a bipartisan manner to put the people of Michigan first …The results of the election represent an opportunity to regroup and rebuild over the coming term,” said Tate. “House Democrats will put in the work to regain our majority and deliver a brighter future for the millions of residents who make Michigan their home,” Tate said.
-Clara Hendrickson
7:30 a.m.: Rogers, Slotkin locked in tight race
Republican former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers of White Lake and Democratic U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin of Holly are locked in a tight race for Michigan’s open U.S. Senate seat.
With an estimated 96.7% of ballots counted shortly after 7:30 a.m., Rogers and Slotkin each had 48.5% of the vote, according to unofficial results compiled by The Associated Press.
-Todd Spangler
Trump wins Dearborn amid anger over Gaza
Republican former President Donald Trump, who just won the 2024 presidential election, also won Dearborn and made significant gains in Hamtramck, compared to 2020, amid anger in Arab American and Muslim communities about deaths in the Israel-Hamas war, as well as Lebanon and Yemen.
Dearborn and Hamtramck, which have the highest percentage of Arab Americans among all cities in the United States, were courted by Trump and his campaign as the former president visited both places in recent weeks.
In Dearborn, where 55% of the residents are of Middle Eastern descent, Trump won with 42.48% of the vote over Vice President Kamala Harris, according to results provided by City Clerk George Darany with 100% of precincts counted.
Harris received 36.26%, according to the results; Jill Stein received 18.37% of the vote.
-Niraj Warikoo
5:38 a.m.: AP calls race for Trump
The Associated Press made the call after Trump passed the threshold for 270 electoral votes early Wednesday, reporting a win in Wisconsin put him over the edge in the race against Democrat Vice President Kamala Harris.
Trump is the first president in 132 years to lose his office and win again four years later, USA TODAY reports. The last president to do it was Grover Cleveland.
Democrat-backed justices keep Michigan Supreme Court majority
Kyra Harris Bolden and Kimberly Thomas have won elections for two seats on the Michigan Supreme Court, expanding the number of Democrat-backed justices on the state’s highest court.
Harris Bolden was nominated by Democrats to complete a four-year term after being appointed to replace retiring Justice Bridget McCormack. She defeated Branch County Circuit Judge Patrick William O’Grady, receiving 61% of the vote to O’Grady’s 39%, with an estimated 76% of the ballots counted, according to unofficial results compiled by The Associated Press.
Voters also backed Thomas, also nominated by Democrats, for a full eight-year term on the bench. Thomas received 61% of the vote while state Rep. Andrew Fink, a Republican from Hillsdale, received 39% of the vote, with 76% of the ballots counted, according to the unofficial results.
-Arpan Lobo
4 a.m.: Republican flips 7th Congressional District
Michigan’s 7th Congressional District, considered one of the state’s most competitive, flipped from blue to red when former state Sen. Tom Barrett won there decisively in a race called just after 4 a.m. Wednesday morning.
The seat was open after current U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Holly, ran instead for a U.S. Senate seat. Barrett bested Democrat Curtis Hertel, who previously served with him in the state senate.
-Emily Lawler
McDonald Rivet takes Michigan’s 8th Congressional District
Kristen McDonald Rivet won election to Michigan’s 8th Congressional District, securing a seat for Democrats that was opened up by retiring Congressman Dan Kildee.
With an estimated 99% of ballots counted, McDonald Rivet received 51.3% of the vote, while Republican Paul Junge had 44.6% of the vote, according to unofficial results compiled by The Associated Press, which called the race at 6:10 a.m Wednesday.
Michigan’s 8th Congressional District includes the area in and around Bay City, Flint, Midland and Saginaw. The seat was considered a tossup, even though the congressional district covering much of the region has been represented by Democrats for decades.
-Todd Spangler
3 a.m.: Scholten reelected in Michigan’s 3rd Congressional District
U.S. Rep. Hillary Scholten, D-Grand Rapids, won her reelection bid in Michigan’s 3rd Congressional District, as she defeated Republican challenger Paul Hudson.
With an estimated 99% of the vote counted, Scholten received 54% of the vote, while Hudson received 44%. That’s based on unofficial results compiled by The Associated Press, which called the race around 3 a.m. Wednesday.
First elected two years ago, Scholten broke up decades of Republican representation for the Grand Rapids area, helped in part by new boundaries in the district.
-Arpan Lobo
Bergman wins Michigan’s 1st Congressional District
U.S. Rep. Jack Bergman, R-Watersmeet, will keep his seat in Congress after he handily won reelection in Michigan’s 1st Congressional District, according to unofficial results compiled by The Associated Press.
Bergman was seeking a fifth term in Congress. The 1st Congressional District covers all of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and much of the northern half of its Lower Peninsula.
-Arpan Lobo
Republicans win control of the US Senate
The call for the U.S. Senate came in overnight, with Republicans slated to take the helm.
The most competitive races this election cycle were in states represented by vulnerable Democrats and the retirement of Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, a former Democrat turned independent, played a role as well, USA TODAY reports.
Tlaib reelected to represent Michigan’s 12th Congressional District
Incumbent U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Detroit, won reelection to serve another two-year term representing Michigan’s 12th Congressional District.
Based on an estimated 64% of the vote counted, Tlaib, a Democrat and the only Palestinian American currently serving in Congress, received 75.4%, while her Republican challenger, James Hooper, received 20%. That’s based on unofficial results compiled by The Associated Press, which called the race at 11:41 p.m. Tuesday.
-Clara Hendrickson
This story was updated because an earlier version included an inaccuracy.This is a breaking news story and will be updated.
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