Dem nominees McCormack, Welch ahead in Supreme Court race

DETROIT (AP) — Chief Justice Bridget McCormack was rolling to reelection Wednesday in a seven-candidate race for two seats on the Michigan Supreme Court.

McCormack had nearly 32% of the vote, followed by Elizabeth Welch, a Grand Rapids-area lawyer, at roughly 20%, with 86% of precincts reporting.

The two top finishers will win election to the state's highest court. If McCormack and Welch win, Democratic Party nominees will be in the majority, 4-3, for the first time since 2010.

Mary Kelly, a former prosecutor who was nominated by the Republican Party, was running third with 17.5%. Brock Swartzle, an appeals court judge and another GOP nominee, was fourth.

Supreme Court candidates don't have party designations next to their name, but McCormack had the advantage of being listed as a current justice. She also has been praised for leading the statewide court system as chief justice through the coronavirus pandemic.

McCormack and Welch ran as a team, appearing in TV ads and on billboards.