Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel faces GOP challenger Matthew DePerno: What to know
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel faces Republican challenger Matthew DePerno in the race to become the state's top law enforcement officer, a close contest marked by a looming criminal investigation and personal attacks.
Nessel, a Democrat, is running on another four years focused on civil rights, consumer protection and public safety. DePerno, who rose to prominence through touting unfounded election conspiracies, blasts Nessel for some of her office's failures while suggesting he can declare Critical Race Theory "unconstitutional" (the impact of such a decision is unclear) and take other sweeping actions to reverse some of Nessel's decisions.
Polls consistently show this is the tightest statewide race in Michigan, despite the candidate's starkly different professional promises and personal histories.
Here's a quick look at the office, the candidates and what's at stake on Election Day.
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What does the attorney general do?
The Office of the Michigan Attorney General has more than 500 employees, including lawyers and investigators. It represents the state in both civil and criminal proceedings. That's a wide range of cases; the office recently represented Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in her lawsuit seeking to bar enforcement of the 1931 law criminalizing most abortions. But it also secured convictions in sexual abuse and election fraud cases recently.
The office also at times reviews contracts involving the state and can issue opinions on broad questions of law.
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Who is Dana Nessel?
Nessel, 53, became the first openly gay statewide elected official when she won the seat back in 2018. Before taking office she worked as a private defense attorney in Metro Detroit and assistant prosecutor in Wayne County. That included representing clients seeking recognition of their same-sex marriage in 2012, a case that was ultimately included among those in the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark Obergefell decision.
Since taking office in 2018, she's focused on reducing robocalls, preventing elder abuse, increasing consumer protection efforts and other broad initiatives.
Yet she's weathered widespread criticism for her office's handling of failed prosecution attempts related to the Flint Water Crisis. Her personal decision to not criminally review whether Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's COVID-19 policies exacerbated deaths at long-term care facilities − experts say there's little indication it did − prompted fierce rebukes from conservatives, as did a quip she made suggesting there should be a "drag queen in every school."
Nessel's mea culpa related to getting drunk at a college football game last year remains campaign fodder for DePerno and other conservatives as well.
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Who is Matt DePerno?
DePerno, 53, is a self-described constitutional attorney who's practiced in the Kalamazoo area for nearly three decades. He garnered some attention in 2015 and beyond as he represented then-state Rep. Todd Courser, a Lapeer Republican embroiled in a sex scandal with a colleague.
But he truly rose to prominence in Republican politics through a lawsuit he filed in Antrim County after the 2020 presidential election. The legal challenge relied on a human error by the local clerk to amplify sweeping, unfounded conspiracy theories about election fraud. While courts and experts rebuked his efforts, they drew the attention of former President Donald Trump and other compatriots who sought to undermine the 2020 election.
His work also prompted a criminal investigation. In August, the Office of the Michigan Attorney General and Michigan State Police revealed details of an inquiry that show they believe there is evidence DePerno, a state GOP lawmaker, local sheriff and others violated multiple laws by accessing and tampering with election equipment. Nessel's office requested the appointment of a special prosecutor to ensure the Democratic AG did not investigate her GOP opponent.
Muskegon County Prosecutor DJ Hilson accepted the case in September. As of earlier this month, he said investigative work was ongoing and he had no timeline on when he would decide if criminal charges were necessary. DePerno denies all allegations of misconduct, instead saying Nessel is using her office to conduct a political witch hunt.
He is also the subject of an ongoing investigation by the state entity that regulates attorney conduct. While these proceedings are secret, the organization has the capacity to suspend or revoke a law license.
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Nessel, on why DePerno should not be attorney general
Speaking with the Free Press recently, Nessel said the more people know about DePerno's "extreme and radical stances," the sooner they'll agree with her that he is unfit to be the attorney general.
"That could be a number of things: what he said about Plan B, and banning it at the border like illegal fentanyl shipments. Opposing abortion in all instances, even to save the life of the woman...I mean, this is a guy who was in Washington, D.C. meeting with Trump's people during the course of the insurrection on January 6th...
"He has said time and time again that he supported Donald Trump when no one else did. Brought the Antrim County cases, which we know even according to (Trump's U.S. Attorney General) Bill Barr and many others were absolutely ludicrous and completely without merit...and yet here's a person running to be the top law enforcement official in the state."
DePerno, on why Nessel should not be attorney general
DePerno declined recent interview requests. But here's what he said at a recent fundraiser in Antrim County:
"Dana Nessel has a plan to take down our party if she wins again. She is coming after you. Not just me, like she's tried to do with the garbage attempt to say she's indicting me...she has a plan to come after the entire Michigan Republican establishment. And she's going to come after you, one by one, and take your party apart. That is the plan. Because people, we are at war right now, and we have to acknowledge it.
"We are no longer dealing with Democrats from the 70s and 80s. We are not dealing with Kennedy Democrats. We are dealing with cultural Marxists who want to destroy our republic. They want to silence us, they want to deplatform us and they want to debank us. Add every one of those things they've already done to me. If that doesn't work, their next plan is to lock us up."
What do polls and fundraising show?
Polls and fundraising totals favor Nessel, but she's winning the money race by a much larger margin.
She's collected $4.2 million as of early September, compared to about $955,000 by DePerno through the middle of September. Nessel's using that money to blast DePerno in television ads while DePerno struggles to have the buying power to launch wide-scale advertising campaigns.
But polling consistently shows a close contest. A recent EPIC-MRA poll conducted for the Free Press showed Nessel with a 43% to 39% lead, within the margin of error.
When is Election Day?
The General Election is Nov. 8, but absentee ballots are available right now. All absentee ballots must be received by a voter's local clerk by 8 p.m. on Election Day in order to be counted.
Contact Dave Boucher: dboucher@freepress.com or 313-938-4591. Follow him on Twitter @Dave_Boucher1
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan attorney general candidates Nessel, DePerno: Election info
