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Two seats on the Michigan Supreme Court are up for election in 2024. This race is a general election for an open seat on the Court, for a full eight-year term, to replace Republican-nominated Justice David Viviano, who is retiring. The candidates are nominated by their state parties, but the positions are nonpartisan, and candidates are listed without a party affiliation. The two candidates are State Rep. Andrew Fink, nominated by the Republicans, and law professor Kimberly Ann Thomas, nominated by the Democrats. The other race is for a partial term. Democratic justices currently have a 4-3 majority on the Court. Their majority will grow to five if Democrats win both races. Republicans will gain a 4-3 majority if Republicans win both.
Michigan Supreme Court decisions can have big consequences:
To help you decide, we’ve assembled background about the candidates’ education and previous work experience—along with public statements, publicized endorsements, and rulings they’ve made if they’re sitting judges—to indicate how they might rule on key issues in the future.
Judicial candidates often have fewer public positions on key issues. We include only the positions we can find that match our standard list of topics. Different candidates often address different topics.
Andrew Fink is a Republican nominee and state representative from the 35th District. First elected to the state House in 2020, he currently serves as the Republican vice-chair of the House Judiciary Committee. He earned his law degree from the University of Michigan Law School in 2010 after graduating from Hillsdale College. After law school, he worked as a judge advocate for the U.S. Marine Corps. In 2014, he joined his family’s law firm, Fink & Fink, where he practiced civil litigation, property law, municipal law, and probate litigation. He is a member of the NRA, the American Legion, and the Federalist Society, considered a dominant force in promoting conservative and libertarian-leaning judges.
Fink is endorsed by state representatives, county sheriffs, and prosecutors; US Congressmen John Moolenaar and Tim Walberg; former Michigan Gov. John Engler; the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), and others.
Kimberly Ann Thomas is a Democratic nominee and a professor at the University of Michigan Law School. She runs the Juvenile Justice Clinic, representing people who cannot afford a lawyer. She served on the bipartisan Michigan Task Force on Juvenile Justice Reform, which proposed recommendations to improve outcomes for young people, including expanded opportunities for youth to avoid the formal legal system. She earned her law degree from Harvard University after graduating from the University of Maryland, College Park, and was a Fulbright Scholar. Before joining the Michigan Law School faculty, Thomas was a trial attorney with Defender Association of Philadelphia, which provides public defense services to low-income Philadelphians.
Thomas is endorsed by Reproductive Freedom for All, Michigan AFL-CIO, Young Democrats of Michigan, Women Lawyers Association of Michigan, Emily’s List, Planned Parenthood Advocates of Michigan, and others.
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