LANSING, Mich. — Michigan Democrats have won control of the state Legislature and the governor's office for the first time in 40 years, providing their party with a chance to reverse decades of GOP policies and overturn a Capitol culture that has catered to Republicans.
With the wide majority of Michigan's election results in on Wednesday, Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer was up by nearly 11 percentage points in her reelection race against Republican Tudor Dixon. And the GOP leaders of the Michigan House and Senate had conceded that Democrats, powered by new district lines and a push to protect abortion rights, had scored narrow majorities in both chambers.
Democrats haven't controlled the state House since they lost it in the 2010 election and last won a majority in the state Senate in 1982. Democratic leaders vowed to use their new power to safeguard access to abortion and undo past GOP achievements, including the state's 2012 right-to-work law.
