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2020 Michigan legislative session

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Some states made changes to 2020 state legislative sessions and legislative activity in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
For a full list of changes, visit: Changes to state legislative session dates in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, 2020.
Michigan: A special session of the Michigan State Legislature convened on April 24, 2020.
Michigan State Legislature

Seal of Michigan.png
General information
Type:   State legislature
Term limits:   2 terms (8 years) in Senate, 3 terms (6 years) in House
Session start:   January 8, 2020
Website:   Official Legislature Page
Leadership
Senate President:  
Garlin Gilchrist II (D)
House Speaker:  Lee Chatfield (R)
Majority Leader:   Senate: Mike Shirkey (R)
House: Triston Cole (R)
Minority Leader:   Senate: Jim Ananich (D)
House: Christine Greig (D)
Structure
Members:  38 (Senate), 110 (House)
Length of term:   4 years (Senate), 2 years (House)
Authority:   Art IV, Michigan Constitution
Salary:   $71,685/year + expenses
Elections
Last election:  November 6, 2018
Next election:  November 3, 2020
Redistricting:  Michigan Legislature has control

In 2020, the Michigan State Legislature was scheduled to convene on January 8 and adjourn on December 31.

Several state legislatures suspended their sessions or otherwise limited legislative activity in response to the coronavirus pandemic. No modifications to state legislative activity in Michigan were made.

At the start of the 2020, Michigan was one of 28 state legislatures where neither party had a veto-proof supermajority in both chambers. Following the 2018 election, Republicans had a 22-16 majority in the Senate and a 58-52 majority in the House. Democrats controlled the governorship, meaning neither party held a state government trifecta.

At the beginning of the 2020 legislative session:
  • Republicans held a majority in the Michigan state House and state Senate.
  • Michigan was one of 14 states with a divided government.
  • Michigan’s governor was Democrat Gretchen Whitmer.

    • Black.png Click the links to read more about the 2022 state Senate and 2020 state House elections.
    Black.png Click the links to read more about the 2018 state Senate and state House elections.

    Partisan control in 2020

    See also: State government trifectas

    Michigan was one of 14 states without a state government trifectas at the start of 2020 legislative sessions. A state government trifecta occurs when one political party holds the governor's office, a majority in the state Senate, and a majority in the state House. For more information about state government trifectas, click here.

    Michigan was also one of 28 state legislatures where neither party had a veto-proof supermajority in both chambers. Veto overrides occur when a legislature votes to reverse a veto issued by an executive such as a governor or the president. If one party has a majority in a state legislature that is large enough to override a gubernatorial veto without any votes from members of the minority party, it is called a veto-proof majority or, sometimes, a supermajority. To read more about veto-proof supermajorities in state legislatures, click here.

    The following tables show the partisan breakdown of the Michigan State Legislature in the 2020 legislative session.

    Michigan State Senate

    Party As of January 2020
         Democratic Party 16
         Republican Party 22
    Total 38

    From 1990 to 2020, the Michigan State Senate was controlled by the Republican Party. The table below shows the partisan history of the Michigan State Senate following every general election from 1990 to 2018. All data from 2006 or earlier comes from Michael Dubin's Party Affiliations in the State Legislatures (McFarland Press, 2007). Data after 2006 was compiled by Ballotpedia staff.

    Michigan State Senate election results: 1990-2018

    Year '90 '94 '98 '02 '06 '10 '14 '18
    Democrats 18 16 15 16 17 12 11 16
    Republicans 20 22 23 22 21 26 27 22

    Republicans maintained control of the Michigan State Senate from 1990 to 2020. Throughout the period, Democrats usually controlled between 11 and 18 seats, while Republicans controlled between 20 and 27 seats. Senate Republicans held their largest majority following the 2014 elections when Republicans held a 16-seat advantage. From the 2010 elections through the 2014 elections, Republicans held more than the 26 seats required to override a gubernatorial veto. The Republican gains from 2010 to 2014 were in line with a national trend toward Republican state legislatures during the presidency of Barack Obama (D). From 2009 to 2017, Democrats experienced losses in state legislative elections, totaling 968 seats all together.

    Michigan House of Representatives

    Party As of January 2020
         Democratic Party 51
         Republican Party 58
         Vacancies 1
    Total 110

    Between 1992 and 2010, partisan control of the Michigan House of Representatives fluctuated, swinging back and forth between the Democratic and Republican parties. From 2010 to 2020, Republicans have controlled the chamber. The table below shows the partisan history of the Michigan House of Representatives following every general election from 1992 to 2018. All data from 2006 or earlier comes from Michael Dubin's Party Affiliations in the State Legislatures (McFarland Press, 2007). Data after 2006 was compiled by Ballotpedia staff.

    Michigan House of Representatives election results: 1992-2018

    Year '92 '94 '96 '98 '00 '02 '04 '06 '08 '10 '12 '14 '16 '18
    Democrats 55* 54 58 52 51 47 52 58 67 47 51 47 47 52
    Republicans 55 56 52 58 59 63 58 52 43 63 59 63 63 58

    *Chamber controlled by power-sharing agreement

    Between 1992 and 2020, majority control of the state House changed six times. As a result of the 1992 elections, the chamber was tied at 55-55. A power-sharing agreement was agreed between Democrats and Republicans where leadership of the chamber switched every month.[1] Republicans gained an outright majority in the 1994 elections when the party gained one seat. Republicans held the chamber until the 1996 elections when Democrats gained four seats and held a 58-52 majority. Republicans regained control of the chamber in the 1998 elections and held the chamber until the 2006 elections. During that period of time, the Republican majority spiked following the 2002 elections when the party held a 63-47 majority. Republicans lost five seats in the 2004 elections but maintained control of the chamber.

    Democrats took control of the House in the 2006 elections and held the chamber until the 2010 elections. In the 2008 elections, Democrats increased their majority from 58-52 to 67-43. In the 2010 elections, Republicans took control of the legislature after they flipped both chambers in 2010.[2] The Republican gains in 2010 were in line with a national trend toward Republican state legislatures during the presidency of Barack Obama (D). From 2009 to 2017, Democrats experienced losses in state legislative elections, totaling 968 seats altogether. Between 1992 and 2018, Democrats usually controlled between 47 and 67 seats, while Republicans controlled between 43 and 63 seats. From 1992 to 2018, neither Democrats or Republicans held more than the 74 seats required to override a gubernatorial veto.

    Leadership in 2020

    Michigan State Senate

    Michigan House of Representatives

    Regular session

    The following widget shows up to 25 pieces of legislation in the 2020 legislative session that most recently passed both chambers of the legislature, were signed by the governor, or were approved by the legislature in a veto override. If no bills are displayed below, no legislation met these criteria in 2020. This information is provided by BillTrack50.

    Standing legislative committees

    See also: Standing committee and List of committees in Michigan state government


    A standing committee of a state legislature is a committee that exists on a more-or-less permanent basis, from legislative session to session, that considers and refines legislative bills that fall under the committee's subject matter.

    At the beginning of the 2020 legislative session, there were 39 standing committees in Michigan's state government, including no joint legislative committees, 20 state Senate committees, and 19 state House committees.

    Joint legislative committees

    Senate committees


    House committees


    Legislatively referred constitutional amendments

    In every state but Delaware, voter approval is required to enact a constitutional amendment. In each state, the legislature has a process for referring constitutional amendments before voters. In 18 states, initiated constitutional amendments can be put on the ballot through a signature petition drive. There are also many other types of statewide measures.

    The methods by which the Michigan Constitution can be amended:

    See also: Article XII of the Michigan Constitution and Laws governing ballot measures in Michigan

    The Michigan Constitution can be amended in three different ways—a citizen-initiated process, a legislative process, and a state constitutional convention.

    Initiative

    See also: Initiated constitutional amendment

    An initiated constitutional amendment is a citizen-initiated ballot measure that amends a state's constitution. Eighteen (18) states allow citizens to initiate constitutional amendments.

    In Michigan, the number of signatures required for an initiated constitutional amendment is equal to 10% of the votes cast in the last gubernatorial election. A simple majority vote is required for voter approval.

    Legislature

    See also: Legislatively referred constitutional amendment

    A two-thirds vote is required during one legislative session for the Michigan State Legislature to place a constitutional amendment on the ballot. That amounts to a minimum of 74 votes in the Michigan House of Representatives and 26 votes in the Michigan State Senate, assuming no vacancies. Amendments do not require the governor's signature to be referred to the ballot.

    Convention

    See also: Convention-referred constitutional amendment

    According to Section 3 of Article XII of the Michigan Constitution, a question about whether to hold a state constitutional convention is to automatically appear on the state's ballot every 16 years starting in 1978. Michigan is one of 14 states that provides for an automatic constitutional convention question.

    The table below shows the last and next constitutional convention question election years:

    State Interval Last question on the ballot Next question on the ballot
    Michigan 16 years 2010 2026



    Historical context: Between 1995 and 2018, the following occurred:

    • Elections featured 41 ballot measures.
    • An average of three measures appeared on statewide general election ballots in Michigan.
    • An average of two citizen-initiated measures appeared on statewide general election ballots in Michigan.
    • Voters approved 51 percent (21 of 41) and rejected 49 percent (20 of 41) of the ballot measures.
    • Voters approved 31 percent (8 of 26) and rejected 69 percent (18 of 26) of the citizen-initiated measures.
    Ballot measures in Michigan, 1995-2018
    Type Total number Approved Percent approved Defeated Percent defeated Even-year average Even-year median Even-year minimum Even-year maximum
    All measures 41 21 51.22% 20 48.78% 3.33 3.00 0 6
    Citizen initiatives 26 8 30.77% 18 69.23% 2.17 2.00 0 6
    Legislative amendments 9 8 88.89% 1 11.11% 0.67 0.00 0 2


    Historical partisan control

    The table below depicts the historical trifecta status of Michigan.

    Michigan Party Control: 1992-2025
    Two years of Democratic trifectas  •  Fourteen years of Republican trifectas
    Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

    Year 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
    Governor R R R R R R R R R R R D D D D D D D D R R R R R R R R D D D D D D D
    Senate R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R D D D
    House D S S R R D D R R R R R R R R D D D D R R R R R R R R R R R R D D R

    See also

    Elections Michigan State Government State Legislatures State Politics
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    Michigan State Flag-Close Up.jpg
    State Houses-Tile image.png
    State Courts-Tile image.png

    External links

    Footnotes

    1. ↑ NCSL, "IN CASE OF A TIE......," accessed October 16, 2017
    2. ↑ Washington Post, "The Republican takeover in the states," November 14, 2010
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