A whopping 80% of Michiganders recently agreed on something political.
When asked how they felt about getting corporate money out of politics, 82% of Democrats, 76% of Republicans, and 81% of Independents polled said they were supportive of a ballot initiative with that aim.
The recent poll by Progress Michigan and the research firm Public Policy Polling shows overwhelming bipartisan support for the Michiganders for Money Out of Politics (MMOP) ballot initiative, which has had record signatures by Michigan voters on its path to being on the November 3 midterm election ballot.
MMOP was established by a nonpartisan coalition to pass a citizen-initiated law banning political contributions from regulated utilities and major government contractors.
“Michiganders are sick and tired of the power that wealthy corporations wield in our elections,” said Justin Mendoza, executive director of Progress Michigan, in a press release.
The poll asked respondents if they supported the MMOP ballot initiative. It also asked how likely they’d be to vote for a candidate who supported it.
Sixty-one percent of respondents said if a candidate supported the ballot, they’d be more likely to vote for that candidate. When it came to party lines, 66% of Democrats said they would be more supportive of those politicians, and 65% of Independents agreed—as did 49% of Republicans.
Why limit political campaign donations?
You don’t have to look far to see the effects of big money on politics. The fossil fuels industry has given President Donald Trump at least $75 million for his second term, and in return received $18 billion in tax incentives from his administration.
Michigan Republicans have followed suit. DTE Energy and Consumers Energy spent nearly $500,000 on political donations in 2025. Their donations were soon followed by government approvals to natural gas rate hikes and influence over state energy policy.
Among the donations from DTE Energy towards politicians, Speaker of the House Rep. Matt Hall (R-Richland Township) accepted $7,000 in 2025. Hall has since led the 2026 effort to repeal Michigan’s clean energy laws passed by the Democratic state leadership in 2023. Likewise, Rep. John James (R-Shelby Charter Township) took $10,000 from DTE in the 2023-24 cycle before working with Hall to repeal the same clean energy legislation.
Incidents like these likely led to the widespread support for MMOP.
“Monopoly utilities in our state have the ability to raise prices year over year while donating near-endless amounts of cash to our lawmakers who have the power to rein them in,” Mendoza said. “And what do us Michiganders get in return? The answer is higher bills year after year.”
“With high and rising costs for just about everything, Michiganders are looking for leaders to stand up to corporate greed. Candidates on both sides of the aisle should take note of these results.”
