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Noah Arbit

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Noah Arbit
Image of Noah Arbit

Democratic Party

Michigan House of Representatives District 20
Tenure

2023 - Present

Term ends

2027

Years in position

2

Predecessor

Compensation

Base salary

$71,685/year

Per diem

No per diem is paid. Legislators receive an expense allowance of $10,800/year for session and interim.

Elections and appointments
Last elected

November 5, 2024

Education

Bachelor's

Wayne State University, 2018

Personal
Birthplace
Michigan
Religion
Judaism
Contact

Official website

Official Facebook

Official Instagram

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Campaign Twitter

Campaign Instagram

Campaign YouTube

Personal Facebook

Personal LinkedIn

Noah Arbit (Democratic Party) is a member of the Michigan House of Representatives, representing District 20. He assumed office on January 1, 2023. His current term ends on January 1, 2027.

Arbit (Democratic Party) ran for re-election to the Michigan House of Representatives to represent District 20. He won in the general election on November 5, 2024.

Biography

Noah Arbit was born in West Bloomfield, Michigan.[1] Arbit earned a bachelor's degree from Wayne State University in 2018. His career experience includes working as a communications director with the Oakland County Prosecutor's Office. Arbit founded and has served as the chair of the Michigan Democratic Jewish Caucus and has been affiliated with the Campaign Workers' Guild, the Chaldean American Chamber of Commerce, the Jewish Labor Committee, the Ukrainian American Crisis Response Committee of Michigan, the West Bloomfield Diversity Task Force, and the West Bloomfield-Lakes Area Democratic Club Executive Committee.[1][2]

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.


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

Arbit was assigned to the following committees:


Elections

2024

See also: Michigan House of Representatives elections, 2024

General election

General election for Michigan House of Representatives District 20

Incumbent Noah Arbit defeated Brendan Cowley in the general election for Michigan House of Representatives District 20 on November 5, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Noah Arbit
Noah Arbit (D)
 
53.2
 
31,764
Image of Brendan Cowley
Brendan Cowley (R) Candidate Connection
 
46.8
 
27,909

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 59,673
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Michigan House of Representatives District 20

Incumbent Noah Arbit advanced from the Democratic primary for Michigan House of Representatives District 20 on August 6, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Noah Arbit
Noah Arbit
 
100.0
 
11,560

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 11,560
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Michigan House of Representatives District 20

Brendan Cowley defeated Hermon Barbe in the Republican primary for Michigan House of Representatives District 20 on August 6, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Brendan Cowley
Brendan Cowley Candidate Connection
 
56.7
 
2,688
Image of Hermon Barbe
Hermon Barbe Candidate Connection
 
43.3
 
2,051

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 4,739
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Campaign finance

Endorsements

Arbit received the following endorsements.

  • Michigan League of Conservation Voters

2022

See also: Michigan House of Representatives elections, 2022

General election

General election for Michigan House of Representatives District 20

Noah Arbit defeated Albert Mansour in the general election for Michigan House of Representatives District 20 on November 8, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Noah Arbit
Noah Arbit (D) Candidate Connection
 
56.6
 
27,824
Image of Albert Mansour
Albert Mansour (R) Candidate Connection
 
43.4
 
21,303

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 49,127
Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Michigan House of Representatives District 20

Noah Arbit defeated Ken Ferguson and James Sklar in the Democratic primary for Michigan House of Representatives District 20 on August 2, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Noah Arbit
Noah Arbit Candidate Connection
 
46.6
 
7,180
Image of Ken Ferguson
Ken Ferguson Candidate Connection
 
31.0
 
4,785
Image of James Sklar
James Sklar Candidate Connection
 
22.4
 
3,448

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 15,413
Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Michigan House of Representatives District 20

Albert Mansour defeated Diana Mohyi in the Republican primary for Michigan House of Representatives District 20 on August 2, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Albert Mansour
Albert Mansour Candidate Connection
 
53.6
 
4,030
Image of Diana Mohyi
Diana Mohyi Candidate Connection
 
46.4
 
3,485

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 7,515
Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Campaign finance


Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Noah Arbit did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.

2022

Candidate Connection

Noah Arbit completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Arbit's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Growing up in West Bloomfield, I was steeped in the teachings of my Jewish faith, including the phrase “justice, justice shall you pursue.” Those words were a lifeline for me when, at 18 years old, I found myself in the courtroom testifying against the sexual predator who had assaulted me and many others.

I continued my pursuit of justice in politics, joining Governor Whitmer's team to advocate for policies to help Oakland County. After the Pittsburgh synagogue attack, I founded the Michigan Democratic Jewish Caucus to empower Jews to take on hate and extremism in the political arena. I was then appointed Director of Communications for the Oakland County Prosecutor’s Office, spearheading the first-ever Racial Justice Advisory Council and establishing a program to assist in prosecuting hate crimes targeting LGBTQ+ people.

Each of these roles—as well as my battles with depression, ADHD, and my journey to self-acceptance as a gay man—drive my passion to address issues like Michigan’s mental health crisis and rising hate crimes.

I truly never imagined running for office, but I was tired of watching my hometown treated like an afterthought in Lansing. West Bloomfield, Commerce, and the Lakes deserve a passionate, forward-thinking, relentless leader who exhausts every path to find innovative, common-sense solutions. A leader who shows up, works tirelessly, and fights for us with faith and fidelity. That’s the kind of person I am. That’s the kind of representative I’ll be.
  • Mental Health - I am committed to confronting Michigan’s mental health crisis and ensuring every kid, every senior, and every Michigander in between - from Keego Harbor to Copper Harbor - has access to the resources and treatments that will enable them to achieve their potential.
  • Hate Crimes - If elected, I will be laser-focused on tackling skyrocketing hate crimes and domestic extremism by strengthening and supplementing Michigan’s outdated, ineffective, and weak hate crimes statute and actually protecting our communities.
  • Democracy & Rights - There could scarcely be a more important issue than safeguarding our democracy and constitutional rights - including the freedom to choose, the freedom to vote, and the freedom to love. I will work fiercely to enshrine the right of every woman to bodily autonomy in Michigan law, as well as finally extend our state’s anti-discrimination protections to LGBTQ+ Michiganders.
Hate Crimes - ​​As a member of the Jewish and LGBTQ+ communities, the issue of hate crimes is deeply personal to me. One of my foremost priorities if elected is to transform Michigan from national laggard to national leader in hate crimes prevention and prosecution. I will introduce a comprehensive bill package to reinvent the way Michigan contends with hate crimes, to overhaul the antiquated and insufficient 1960s-era ethnic intimidation statute. I will build a multi-ethnic, multi-faith, bicameral, bipartisan coalition of stakeholders, supporters, and legislators in support.

Mental Health - Addressing Michigan’s mental health crisis - especially among youth and seniors - is mission #1 for me. I know what it’s like to not be able to see through to getting out of bed and taking care of yourself because of depression, anxiety, or ADHD. I know what it’s like to feel like you aren’t living up to your potential; I also know the wonder of what it’s like to finally fulfill that potential. I had the resources and opportunities to ensure that my struggles with mental health weren’t sentences. But so many across our state do not have those resources. And I am no more worthy than any other kid who dreams just as big as I do, but doesn’t have the same resources I did. That is a policy choice that we make here in Michigan, and it’s time we made a different one. Affordability and access to mental health care is not just a moral issue, it’s an economic issue; it’s a public safety issue.
I once heard one of my mentors say something that I will never forget. She said: “I believe you listen, learn, and lead – in that order.” I love that phrase, because it encapsulates my approach to the role of candidate and state representative. If elected, I won’t always know all the right answers; the key is knowing the right questions to ask, and to whom. This is a skill that is critical to being a legislator, as is building relationships and coalitions with community leaders, stakeholders, organizations, and other elected officials, to further collaboration towards a shared goal.
I’m not running to BE something; I’m running to DO something. That principle will guide my approach to serving West Bloomfield, Commerce, and the Lakes in the State House. I am relentless and tenacious in pursuit of my goals; I care deeply about and love my community; but most importantly, I know how to take my work seriously, without taking myself too seriously. It is important to me that elected officials know how to laugh at themselves, take a joke, and just be human. People don’t expect perfection; all people really want is for their leaders to show up, listen, work hard, and actually give a damn about their struggles and try to make those struggles just a little less hard.
I hope to be remembered as someone who actually gave a damn about people, and took the job seriously - but not himself - too seriously. I hope to be remembered as someone who works tirelessly, humbly, and inclusively, who always shows up, who advocates fearlessly, and who always keeps his word. I hope to be remembered as the legislator who fought to include his hometown in every policy conversation, and who, despite the tall hurdles arrayed before him, worked to fundamentally transform Michigan’s approach to hate crimes by passing a comprehensive package of innovative, effective statutes to protect all of our communities from hate-based violence and hold perpetrators accountable.
My very first job was working as an assistant at the Lakes Discount Pharmacy at the Lakes Medical Building on Haggerty and Pontiac Trail in WB one summer during middle school! The owner at the time was a close family friend - I remember having a ball and learning so much!
Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky. It has everything: suspenseful murder mystery, intoxicating romance, profound spirituality, provocative moral quandaries… I have always found Crime and Punishment to be a profoundly moving tribute to human nature; it argues persuasively that each of us contains the potential for both severe darkness as well as immense love and goodness - and that the path we go down is ultimately up to each of us and the choices we make. Our fate is in our own hands. I find that inspiring.
Stronger by Kesha - a great anthem for keeping your head held high and powering through some of tough moments of a political campaign
Michigan is facing an acute mental health crisis. This is personal to me, because I know what it’s like to battle depression, anxiety, and to cope with the challenges of ADHD. I know what it's like not to be able to see through to getting out of bed in the morning and taking care of myself because I could see no purpose for myself, and I had no reason to hope things would get better. And I also know what it's like to be firing on all cylinders, hitting my professional stride, single-handedly founding a non-profit organization and empowering people across my community. The difference between not getting out of bed and starting your own organization is the resources and opportunities that I had to ensure that my struggles with mental health weren’t sentences. There are countless people across our state - from Keego Harbor to Copper Harbor - who grapple with the same challenges I did, but don’t have access to the treatment or resources to navigate them. That is outrageous to me. Because I am no more worthy than any kid who dreams just as big as I do, but isn't able to ensure that their struggles aren’t sentences. And that is a policy choice that we make as Michiganders. And it's time to make a different one. For me this is mission number one. That's why I'm running. Because when you boil it down, my campaign is about one thing: potential. How can we, as individuals, as a community, as a state - live up to our potential.
It is critical Michigan starts working on reducing brain drain, the exodus of highly-educated young professionals from our state to Chicago and the coasts. I will prioritize measures to boost regional competitiveness, innovation, and job growth right here in Oakland County — including in dynamic sectors new to our region, such as defense. But we have to address the broader issue: what is it about Michigan that too often pushes our best and brightest to leave? It’s long past time for us to invest in the critical infrastructure - including regional public transit and cultural amenities - that attracts talent and employers to Metro Detroit. And we must implement family-first policies like paid family leave and affordable child care that make settling down and raising a family in Michigan easier, not harder. We must also strengthen our civil rights policies, including amending the Elliot-Larsen Civil Rights Act to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, and codifying protections for women’s reproductive health and bodily autonomy; these gaps in protections dissuade many families from making their home in Michigan.
It can be highly beneficial. In addition to serving on Governor Whitmer’s staff and founding and chairing the Michigan Democratic Jewish Caucus, I most recently served as Director of Communications for the Oakland County Prosecutor’s Office. There, I spearheaded the creation of the first-ever Prosecutor’s Racial Justice Advisory Council to ensure leaders in the Black community were involved in and could provide perspective on a wide-range of policy reforms; I am also proud to have helped establish a partnership to assist in the prosecution of hate crimes targeting members of the LGBTQ+ community. These experiences have helped shape my approach to building coalitions and seeking out expertise and insight from relevant stakeholders to get a job done, and get it done well. That’s how I will approach legislating on behalf of my district and community.
For the past 20 years, my hometown of West Bloomfield has been gerrymandered mercilessly by legislators seeking partisan advantage - with the result that our community has struggled to coalesce behind a collective political identity or agenda. I decided to run because I was so sick and tired of West Bloomfield being an afterthought in the policymaking conversations in Lansing, and no one else stepped up to run. I am so thankful that, with Michigan’s Independent Citizens’ Redistricting Commission drawing electoral districts, Greater West Bloomfield will finally be united in the same state house, state senate, and congressional district for the first time in 20 years. Our community has seen the benefits of an independent redistricting process.
I have been very vocal about my experiences fighting to accept and love myself as a member of the LGBTQ+ community. Coming out was difficult for me, and the process was made even more difficult due to my experience surviving sexual assault at age 18, by an assailant who had previously violated children as young as 6 and 7. The first time I told my story publicly, a man in his 50s whom I had known for a long time came up to me afterwards and whispered in my ear “thank you for saying that. Me too, when I was nine years old - I’ve never told anyone that before.” I remember being so struck by the way he looked at me. It was in that moment that I realized how powerful it is to lead by example and share the stories that make us who we are. You never know who is listening, who may find their courage by demonstrating your own. You never know who will find your words to be a life-raft as they navigate difficult times. That’s part of why I’m so excited by the opportunity to represent my community. I am willing to be vulnerable and share my rough edges with anyone who may find something to learn in them.
Absolutely. Staking out maximalist, all-or-nothing positions without leaving open the possibility of compromise is a recipe for failure in policymaking. As a legislator, if you care about enacting your policy priorities into law, you must present a clear vision and work to build a coalition of majority support; that necessarily entails some compromise. That’s what I will do as state representative for West Bloomfield, Commerce, and the Lakes. I know that our state and country feel so divided right now, but we cannot build a shared future by writing off 50% of our neighbors as fundamentally irredeemable. I am far from naive to the challenges. But in order to help as many people as possible achieve their potential, and live happy, healthy, fulfilling lives, we must find avenues for collaboration across the ideological spectrum.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

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.

Noah Arbit campaign contribution history
YearOfficeStatusContributionsExpenditures
2024* Michigan House of Representatives District 20Won general$115,705 $0
2022Michigan House of Representatives District 20Won general$270,048 $0
Grand total$385,753 $0
Sources: OpenSecrets,  Federal Elections Commission ***This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* Data from this year may not be complete

Scorecards

See also: State legislative scorecards and State legislative scorecards in Michigan

A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.

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.

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2024


2023










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External links

Candidate

Michigan House of Representatives District 20
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    Michigan House of Representatives District 20
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    Footnotes

    1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on May 16, 2022
    2. ↑ LinkedIn, "Noah Arbit," accessed May 2, 2023

    Political offices
    Preceded by
    Matt Koleszar (D)     		Michigan House of Representatives District 20
    2023-Present    		 Succeeded by
    -


    Current members of the Michigan House of Representatives
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