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The Republican Party has made clear that it intends to contest elections in 2022 from the local to the federal level, an all-hands approach with a big focus on bolstering their power in swing states that delivered the White House to Donald Trump in 2016 and to Joe Biden in 2020.
One of those states is Michigan, an Upper Midwest target for both parties where Trumpism is a potent force and there’s a strong likelihood of efforts at electoral subversion in 2024. Republicans are working to ensure they have operatives at every level of the electoral process, from county canvassers to the governor’s office.
Donors looking to give to 501(c)(3) organizations pushing back against Trumpism should consider Progress Michigan, a progressive communications center. The organization advocates for progressive policies and priorities and gives communications support to groups across the state.
“Like many states across the country, we’re fighting to protect voting rights,” Progress Michigan Executive Director Lonnie Scott told Blue Tent. “Dozens of anti-voter bills and two ballot initiatives were introduced in the wake of Donald Trump’s lies about the 2020 election and we’ve been working to educate Michiganders about those efforts and holding lawmakers accountable who support them.”
While Progress Michigan is barred from candidate advocacy due to its nonprofit status, it is able to provide critical assistance to its partners. That’s the main driver of the group’s efforts to address the threat to democracy posed by the right—but it’s not solely focused on that issue.
“We’re a multi-issue organization, so we’re also heavily involved in transparency/FOIA reform, gun violence prevention, protecting public education, supporting abortion rights and advocating for housing and infrastructure equity in rural communities, to name a few,” Scott said.
It has also fought against GOP tactics like disguising racially charged electoral strategies as pushback to “critical race theory” and highlighted the accomplishments of elected Democrats like Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.
Research is a key part of what the group does to support progressive causes. White papers from Progress Michigan have addressed GOP efforts to gerrymander the state, interfere with the democratic process, and detail the funders of the Michigan Republican Party so voters and advocates alike can know what’s really going on as the right vies for control of state government.
The outcome of the 2022 election will have a big impact on who wields such control in 2024, when Michigan is again likely to be a closely contested state. To make sure the state’s votes are counted correctly, it’s imperative that incumbent Democrats Whitmer, Attorney General Dana Nessel and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson win reelection.
Blue Tent recommends that donors support all three candidates.