Winnie Brinks
2019 - Present
2027
6
Winnie Brinks (Democratic Party) is a member of the Michigan State Senate, representing District 29. She assumed office on January 1, 2019. Her current term ends on January 1, 2027.
Brinks was born in Mount Vernon, Washington, in 1968.[1] Her parents were immigrants from the Netherlands. Brinks attended Calvin College, where she earned a bachelor's degree in Spanish with a concentration in sociology.[2]
Before entering politics, Brinks' career included working as the executive director of a corrections agency, a school paraprofessional, and a caseworker at a nonprofit organization.[3][4] In 2023, Brinks said, "It became really clear to me in my two decades of work experience in nonprofits and education mostly, that what we do at any level of government can have a huge impact on people's daily lives. ... That was a real motivation for me to get informed about public policy."[5]
In 2012, Brinks ran a successful write-in campaign for the Democratic nomination for Michigan House of Representatives District 76 after incumbent Roy Schmidt changed parties from Democratic to Republican on May 15, the filing deadline for the primary.[6][7] Brinks received 3,146 votes in the August 7 Democratic primary and advanced to the general election, where she defeated Schmidt (R) and four other candidates.[8][9]
Brinks represented District 76 from 2013 to 2019, serving as policy chair for the Democratic caucus from 2015 to 2018 and the chairwoman of the Progressive Women's Caucus from 2015 to 2016.[2]
In 2018, Brinks was elected to represent District 29 in the Michigan State Senate, defeating Chris Afendoulis (R) 57%-40%.[10] She was the Democratic whip from 2019 to 2022 and became the Senate majority leader in 2023.[2] Upon being selected as majority leader, Brinks said, "The challenge will be that we, in order to do the most good for the people of our state, want to be in the majority for many terms, not just one. ... And so we'll be having a lot of conversation about being very thoughtful and thorough about the policy that we move."[11]
On May 12, 2025, the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee announced that Brinks had joined its board of directors.[12] Brinks said, "As the first Democrat to serve as majority leader in my chamber since the 1980s, I know firsthand what Democratic majorities can achieve here in Michigan and across the country as we continue to advocate on behalf of working families."[13]
Biography
Brinks was born in 1968 in Mount Vernon, Washington.[14] She earned a bachelor's degree in Spanish with a concentration in sociology from Calvin College.[2] Brinks' professional experience includes working as the executive director of a corrections agency, a school paraprofessional, and a caseworker at a nonprofit employee support organization.[3][4] She served in the Michigan House of Representatives from 2013 to 2018.[15]
Committee assignments
Note: This membership information was last updated in September 2023. Ballotpedia completes biannual updates of committee membership. If you would like to send us an update, email us at: editor@ballotpedia.org.
2023-2024
Brinks was assigned to the following committees:
2021-2022
Brinks was assigned to the following committees:
- Senate Agriculture Committee (decommissioned)
- Energy and Technology Committee (decommissioned)
- Environmental Quality Committee (decommissioned)
- Health Policy and Human Services, Minority vice-chair
2019-2020
Brinks was assigned to the following committees:
- Energy and Technology Committee (decommissioned)
- Health Policy and Human Services, Minority Vice Chair
- Environmental Quality Committee (decommissioned)
2017 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:
| Michigan committee assignments, 2017 |
|---|
| • Education Reform |
| • Health Policy, Vice chair |
| • Military and Veterans Affairs |
2015 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Brinks served on the following committees:
| Michigan committee assignments, 2015 |
|---|
| • Education |
| • Health Policy |
| • Tourism and Outdoor Recreation |
| • Workforce and Talent Development, Minority Vice Chair |
2013-2014
At the beginning of the 2013 legislative session, Brinks served on the following committees:
| Michigan committee assignments, 2012 |
|---|
| • Education |
| • Health Policy |
Sponsored legislation
The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.
Elections
2022
See also: Michigan State Senate elections, 2022
General election
General election for Michigan State Senate District 29
Incumbent Winnie Brinks defeated Tommy Brann in the general election for Michigan State Senate District 29 on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Winnie Brinks (D) | 60.3 | 59,407 |
 | Tommy Brann (R) | 39.7 | 39,115 | |
| Total votes: 98,522 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Michigan State Senate District 29
Incumbent Winnie Brinks advanced from the Democratic primary for Michigan State Senate District 29 on August 2, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Winnie Brinks | 100.0 | 22,147 |
| Total votes: 22,147 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for Michigan State Senate District 29
Tommy Brann advanced from the Republican primary for Michigan State Senate District 29 on August 2, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Tommy Brann | 100.0 | 20,208 |
| Total votes: 20,208 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Andrew Kroll (R)
Campaign finance
2018
See also: Michigan State Senate elections, 2018
General election
General election for Michigan State Senate District 29
Winnie Brinks defeated Chris Afendoulis, Robert VanNoller, and Louis Palus in the general election for Michigan State Senate District 29 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Winnie Brinks (D) | 56.9 | 70,715 |
 | Chris Afendoulis (R) | 40.4 | 50,225 | |
| Robert VanNoller (L) | 1.5 | 1,840 | ||
 | Louis Palus (Working Class Party) | 1.2 | 1,445 | |
| Total votes: 124,225 (100.00% precincts reporting) | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Michigan State Senate District 29
Winnie Brinks advanced from the Democratic primary for Michigan State Senate District 29 on August 7, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Winnie Brinks | 100.0 | 32,882 |
| Total votes: 32,882 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for Michigan State Senate District 29
Chris Afendoulis defeated Daniel Oesch in the Republican primary for Michigan State Senate District 29 on August 7, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Chris Afendoulis | 81.3 | 19,374 |
| Daniel Oesch | 18.7 | 4,445 | ||
| Total votes: 23,819 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Libertarian primary election
Libertarian primary for Michigan State Senate District 29
Robert VanNoller advanced from the Libertarian primary for Michigan State Senate District 29 on August 7, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Robert VanNoller | 100.0 | 172 | |
| Total votes: 172 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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2016
Elections for the Michigan House of Representatives took place in 2016. The primary election was held on August 2, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was April 19, 2016.
Incumbent Winnie Brinks defeated Casey O'Neill, John George and Brandon Hoezee in the Michigan House of Representatives District 76 general election.[16]
| Michigan House of Representatives, District 76 General Election, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic |  Winnie Brinks Incumbent |
56.72% | 27,046 | |
| Republican | Casey O'Neill | 38.74% | 18,473 | |
| Libertarian | John George | 3.27% | 1,558 | |
| U.S. Taxpayers | Brandon Hoezee | 1.26% | 603 | |
| Total Votes | 47,680 | |||
| Source: Michigan Secretary of State | ||||
Incumbent Winnie Brinks ran unopposed in the Michigan House of Representatives District 76 Democratic primary.[17][18]
| Michigan House of Representatives, District 76 Democratic Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Democratic | Winnie Brinks Incumbent (unopposed) | |
Casey O'Neill defeated Jeff Sheridan in the Michigan House of Representatives District 76 Republican primary.[17][18]
| Michigan House of Representatives, District 76 Republican Primary, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | Casey O'Neill |
71.76% | 3,352 | |
| Republican | Jeff Sheridan | 28.24% | 1,319 | |
| Total Votes | 4,671 | |||
2014
Elections for the Michigan House of Representatives took place in 2014. A primary election was held on August 5, 2014, and a general election was held on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was April 22, 2014. Incumbent Winnie Brinks was unopposed in the Democratic primary. Donijo DeJonge defeated Keith Allard and Stan Milanowski in the Republican primary. Brinks defeated DeJonge and William Mohr (U.S. Taxpayers) in the general election.[19][20][21][22]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Winnie Brinks Incumbent |
52.1% | 15,804 | |
| Republican | Donijo DeJonge | 45.6% | 13,822 | |
| U.S. Taxpayers | William Mohr | 2.3% | 689 | |
| Total Votes | 30,315 | |||
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|---|---|---|
|
Donijo Dejonge |
43.7% | 3,809 |
| Keith Allard | 37.9% | 3,297 |
| Stan Milanowski | 18.4% | 1,604 |
| Total Votes | 8,710 | |
2012
Brinks defeated incumbent Roy Schmidt (R), Bing Goei (write-in), Keith Allard (I), William Mohr (U.S. Taxpayers Party), and Patricia M. Steinport (L) in the 2012 election for Michigan House of Representatives District 76.
Incumbent Roy Schmidt changed parties from Democratic to Republican on May 15, the filing deadline for the primary.[23][7] Brinks ran as a write-in candidate for the Democratic nomination. She stated, "I know this is going to be a tremendous challenge. I'm not a politician. I've never run for office before. All I can do is pledge to you that I will do all I possibly can to win this race. ... I promise that I will restore honesty and integrity to this seat and I will represent you in the way that you expect and deserve."[4] Brinks received 3,146 votes in the August 7 Democratic primary and advanced to the general election.[24][25]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Winnie Brinks |
52.1% | 23,530 | |
| Republican | Roy Schmidt Incumbent | 27.3% | 12,337 | |
| Write-in | Bing Goei | 12.1% | 5,484 | |
| Independent | Keith Allard | 3.1% | 1,398 | |
| U.S. Taxpayers | William Mohr | 3% | 1,362 | |
| Libertarian | Patricia Steinport | 2.4% | 1,085 | |
| Total Votes | 45,196 | |||
Campaign themes
2022
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Winnie Brinks did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.
2012
Brinks' website highlighted the following campaign themes:[26]
Educating our Children
- Excerpt: "Money won’t solve every problem facing our schools, but I will fight to prioritize our real needs and restore the funding that was taken away from critical areas so that our children have the resources they need to do well in school"
Creating New Jobs
- Excerpt: "I will work with small businesses and fight for policies that will help them grow and create jobs. Our small businesses are important to our local economies and deserve as much consideration as we give to large corporations."
Making Government Work for Us
- Excerpt: "There’s no doubt that times are tough for families all across the state these days, which is why it’s more important than ever that we make every dollar work in the best interest of taxpayers. Government should be transparent and the citizens have a right to know how their tax dollars are being spent."
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Notable endorsements
This section displays endorsements this individual made in elections within Ballotpedia's coverage scope. Know of one we missed? Click here to let us know.
Scorecards
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Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Michigan scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
2024
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2024, click [show]. |
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In 2024, the Michigan State Legislature was in session from January 10 to December 23.
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2023
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2023, click [show]. |
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In 2023, the Michigan State Legislature was in session from January 11 to November 14.
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2022
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2022, click [show]. |
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In 2022, the Michigan State Legislature was in session from January 12 to December 28.
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2021
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2021, click [show]. |
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In 2021, the Michigan State Legislature was in session from January 13 to December 31.
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2020
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2020, click [show]. |
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In 2020, the Michigan State Legislature was in session from January 8 to December 31.
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2019
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2019, click [show]. |
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In 2019, the Michigan State Legislature was in session from January 9 through December 31.
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2018
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2018, click [show]. |
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In 2018, the Michigan State Legislature was in session from January 10 through December 31.
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2017
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2017, click [show]. |
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In 2017, the Michigan State Legislature was in session from January 11 through December 31.
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2016
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2016, click [show]. |
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In 2016, the Michigan State Legislature was in session from January 13 through December 31.
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2015
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2015, click [show]. |
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In 2015, the Michigan State Legislature was in session from January 14 through December 17.
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2014
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2014, click [show]. |
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In 2014, the Michigan State Legislature was in session from January 8 through December 31.
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2013
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2013, click [show]. |
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In 2013, the Michigan State Legislature was in session from January 9 to December 31.
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See also
2022 Elections
External links
|
Candidate Michigan State Senate District 29 |
Officeholder Michigan State Senate District 29 |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ Gongwer News Service, "Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks," accessed May 16, 2025
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Michigan Legislature, "Michigan Manual 2023-2024," accessed May 18, 2025 (page 147)
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Michigan Senate Democrats, "Winnie Brinks," accessed May 18, 2025
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 WOOD "Brinks begins Schmidt seat write-in," archived November 11, 2012
- ↑ Detroit Free Press, "New Michigan Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks entered politics out of frustration," January 19, 2023
- ↑ WOOD, "Rep. Roy Schmidt leaves Dems, joins GOP," May 15, 2012
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 MLive, "New candidates jump in to challenge Roy Schmidt in election, call election-rigging scheme 'deplorable,'" July 19, 2012
- ↑ MLive, "Democrats: Winnie Brinks will be on November ballot in 76th District," August 8, 2012
- ↑ Michigan Voter Information Center, "2012 Michigan Election Results," accessed May 6, 2025
- ↑ Department of State, "2018 Michigan Election Results," updated November 26, 2018
- ↑ Bridge Michigan, "New Michigan Senate Leader Winnie Brinks: Let’s end 'toxic time in politics,'" December 23, 2022
- ↑ DLCC, "RELEASE: DLCC Announces Seven New Board Members, Building Next Generation of Democratic Leaders," May 12, 2025
- ↑ Michigan Advance, "Brinks joins board of Democratic state legislature campaign arm," May 12, 2025
- ↑ Gongwer News Service, "Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks," accessed May 16, 2025
- ↑ Gongwer, "Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks," accessed September 4, 2025
- ↑ Michigan Secretary of State, "2016 official general election results," accessed May 2, 2017
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 Michigan Secretary of State, "2016 Michigan Candidate Listing," accessed April 22, 2016
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 Michigan Secretary of State, "2016 Michigan Election Results," accessed August 2, 2016
- ↑ Michigan Secretary of State, "Representative in State Legislature," accessed August 6, 2014
- ↑ Michigan Secretary of State, "Representative in State Legislature," accessed December 5, 2014
- ↑ Michigan Secretary of State, "2014 Official Michigan Primary Candidate Listing," accessed May 27, 2014
- ↑ Michigan Secretary of State, "2014 Official Michigan General Candidate Listing," accessed September 8, 2014
- ↑ WOOD, "Rep. Roy Schmidt leaves Dems, joins GOP," May 15, 2012
- ↑ MLive, "Democrats: Winnie Brinks will be on November ballot in 76th District," August 8, 2012
- ↑ Michigan Voter Information Center, "2012 Michigan Election Results," accessed May 6, 2025
- ↑ "winniebrinks," Official Campaign Website
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by - |
Michigan State Senate District 29 2019-Present |
Succeeded by - |
| Preceded by - |
Michigan House of Representatives District 76 2013-2019 |
Succeeded by Rachel Hood (D) |
