Before you cast your vote this November, you might want to take a closer look at who’s on your ballot.

Some Michigan legislative candidates have made deeply controversial claims on their public social media accounts.

The ’Gander’s Kyle Kaminski found at least 16 Republican candidates for the Michigan Legislature this year who have denied the 2020 election, called Jan. 6 a false flag, claimed the plot to kidnap Gov. Gretchen Whitmer was staged, and a lot worse.

Read on for a closer look at what some of these candidates have posted, and why their views matter if they’re elected to a position that helps write Michigan’s laws.

Plus: Michigan Senate candidates Mike Rogers and Abdul El-Sayed have different views regarding funding public education in the state—here’s what voters need to know.

Michigan House passes bill to toughen sex crime penalties (WKAR): Michigan House lawmakers have passed bills that would allow life sentences for first-, second-, and third-degree criminal sexual conduct and establish mandatory minimum prison terms for each offense. The legislation now heads to the state Senate.

Bills introduced to lower age for EMT licenses in Michigan (Michigan Advance): Michigan lawmakers are considering bills that would allow 17-year-olds to become licensed emergency medical technicians or medical first responders with parental consent. The sponsors of the bills say the change could help address the state’s shortage of emergency medical personnel.

Supreme Court candidates running despite lack of law license (WXYZ): Michigan’s 2026 Supreme Court race includes two US Taxpayers Party candidates, Jody White and Tom Howe, who state records show are not currently licensed to practice law in Michigan. State officials say that does not prevent them from appearing on the ballot, but state law requires a valid law license to take office if elected.

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“When will women be smart enough to vote?” That was posted by Randell Shafer, the Republican nominee for Michigan House District 12. He’s not a random guy in the comment section. His name goes on your ballot in November, and this year, he’s got company.

The ‘Gander’s Kyle Kaminski has been poking around social media and found at least 16 Republicans running for our state Legislature this year who have either denied the 2020 election, called Jan. 6 a false flag, or claimed the plot to kidnap Gov. Gretchen Whitmer was staged. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

Here’s the deal: These aren’t random people yelling into a void online. They are people applying for a very real job in Lansing. And none of this was hidden. It’s all sitting on public profiles, under their real names, with their district in the bio.

First up, Michele Lundgren, House District 9. She was one of 16 Michigan Republicans who posed as fake electors after the 2020 election. She was charged with forgery and election law felonies, and pleaded not guilty. The charges were dismissed, and Trump pardoned the group last year.

Now she’s on the ballot this fall, and according to her Twitter bio, she still thinks she’s done nothing wrong. She has also retweeted that the whole thing had somehow been staged by the Democratic Party.

Next, Allison Fuller, District 24. Traveled to DC for Jan. 6. She later called Jan. 6 a lie.

Ken Crider, District 17, built a whole Facebook album in November 2020 called “Election Irregularities in the D.” And then went on to repeat conspiracies about so-called election discrepancies online.

And here’s the kicker: This is just a small highlight reel of a few of the things these candidates have said.

By now, we know these folks are full of it, but here’s what gets lost when that stuff gets written off as noise. The Michigan Legislature writes our election laws. How you register, when the deadline is, whether your local clerk gets more support or gets investigated. A 2024 report found one in five people already sitting in that building qualified as an election denier. It’s clear the latest slate of Republicans would only add to that number.

So what? Well, plenty of those candidates will lose. Some are running in seats their party was never going to win. That’s not really the point. The point is that the Michigan Republican Party keeps nominating them. And the ones who do win get a vote on how you get to cast yours. So before November, do one thing. Look up who’s on your ballot and search their names online. Everything here was public, posted under their own names. Nobody had to dig here.

See the receipts in this edition of so what? Michigan.

Michigan Senate candidates Mike Rogers and Dr. Abdul El-Sayed have different views on whether or not Michigan should opt into the Trump administration’s federal school voucher tax credit program. (Photo Collage: AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

By Lucas Henkel

Michigan voters have historically opposed education voucher programs. However, the topic is resurfacing in Michigan’s Senate race after President Trump signed a Republican-backed reconciliation bill last summer, giving states the option to join a nationwide education voucher program through the federal government. 

The candidates, Republican Mike Rogers and Democrat Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, stand on opposite sides of the debate regarding the Educational Choice for Children Act (ECCA), which allows individuals to receive up to $1,700 in tax credits for donating to certain scholarship organizations. Those organizations then provide scholarship funding for private school tuition and tutoring. While ECCA supporters say it offers students access to high-quality schooling, financial experts and public education advocates say the program could ultimately divert resources from Michigan’s public schools.

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Thanks for reading. This newsletter was written by Karel Vega with stories from Kyle Kaminski and Lucas Henkel. It was edited by Crystal Niforos.

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