- Gov. Gretchen Whitmer will deliver her final State of the State address on Wednesday at 7 pm
- Ahead of that, readers highlighted their top issues in Bridge Listens survey, our unscientific election-year survey
- From health care to child care to the economy, here’s what Bridge readers had to say about the state of the state
LANSING — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer will deliver her final State of the State address on Wednesday night.
She’ll share her ideas for Michigan. But you have yours.
We asked Bridge Michigan readers to identify the top issues and concerns in the 2026 campaign through Bridge Listens, a nonscientific survey. We were overwhelmed by the response: More than 2,600 people participated.
Related:
- What’s Michigan’s top election issue? Cast your ballot with Bridge Listens
- Fact check: How Whitmer delivered — and didn’t — on her promises
- Whitmer pitches $88B budget. What it means for Michigan
- Matt Hall floats $4B Michigan tax overhaul, $1B energy bill savings
We received responses from 81 of Michigan’s 83 counties, with the most in Oakland and Washtenaw, followed by Kent and Wayne counties.
Though the results are unscientific, definite trends emerged. Readers told us they are most concerned about health care, education, affordability and democracy, along with energy, the environment and data centers.
Those issues are hugely important to the state, but trends also emerged on regional lines: Data centers, for example, emerged as a clear and concise issue for readers in mid-Michigan, while housing ranked No. 1 for our respondents in the Upper Peninsula.
Bridge will be refining our list through July while holding politicians accountable and demanding answers to what you believe are the top issues facing Michigan in the run-up to the Nov. 3 general election.
We’re also narrowing the list with a second round of balloting, because issues change over time. Immigration, for instance, was a top issue in January after federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers descended en masse on Minneapolis as part of “Operation Metro Surge.”
Come summertime? Who knows where the political headwinds will be blowing.
But, for now, here’s a glimpse of what we’ve heard about what our readers have identified as their top issues.
On education and childcare
Michigan’s 4th and 8th graders rank in the bottom half of all states for reading and math proficiency, according results of the latest National Assessment of Educational Progress. And, despite more money, more staffing and new laws passed by the state Legislature, Michigan K-12 schools are falling behind.
The state’s students have fallen behind peers in places like Mississippi despite tens of thousands of additional staff, free early childhood education and more free nutrition options.
Whitmer will mention literacy and education during her final State of the State address, according to the governor’s office, signaling the matter is a top priority for her administration during her final year in office.
What readers are saying
- “Education and population growth are absolutely essential to our state’s future. It needs to come from opportunity to excel and flourish while still being caring of others who truly need a helping hand. It needs to include all Michiganders.” — Tom B., Bloomfield Hills
- “We need to pay teachers more and treat them with the respect they deserve. They’re the frontline for improving the education of our children. That would also help address shortages.” — MJ J., Oakland County
- “We are failing at the one issue that affects all our children and their future. We need educators to be better educated. We need educators to participate in what’s needed in the classroom.” — Jill C., Benton Harbor
Is it on the gubernatorial candidates’ radar?
In a word: Absolutely.
Virtually every gubernatorial candidate running to succeed Whitmer, regardless of political stripes, has chimed in with their take on how to fix Michigan’s declining literacy rates and improve test scores. We reported on many of their positions in July, although additional candidates have entered the race since that time. Education will undoubtedly be a key issue, and something we’ll be hearing a lot more of as we get closer to the primary and general elections.
Read more
- Here’s how governor candidates say they’d fix Michigan education
- Governor hopefuls clash on free student meals, ICE at schools
- Whitmer says solving literacy crisis her ‘No. 1 priority’
On the economy and cost of living
The cost of living has skyrocketed in Michigan and nationally in recent years, in large part due to inflation, economic volatility and a tight job market. The cost of groceries, for example, has jumped higher than overall inflation — up 40% since 2017 to $1,033 for a Michigan family of four and higher than the national average, according to an analysis from the Urban Institute, a nonprofit research firm.
Rising costs have not gone unnoticed by politicians, who recently have pushed for a number of housing and tax overhaul plans that they claim can help alleviate the strain Michiganders are feeling in their pocketbooks.
What readers are saying
- “Prices are INSANE, wages are not keeping up, taxes are not coming down, tell me how we’re supposed to survive and thrive?” — Leigh, Mendon
- “There’s not enough decent housing, and what is out there is incredibly expensive. A person I worked with lived in her car with her disabled husband. Healthcare is also expensive, and often that’s true even with insurance. Grocery costs are outrageous. I look at what I pay as a single person and wonder how families manage.” — Linda B., Otsego
- “Affordable housing is preventing our younger generation from investing in their future. Our state’s growth is stagnant.” — Everett D., Saint Joseph County
Is it on the gubernatorial candidates’ radar?
Affordability has been mentioned by many gubernatorial candidates, but their ideas on how to address it vary. Some believe the answer lies in rolling back state licensing regulations to streamline homebuilding; others have proposed tax relief, specifically cutting Michigan’s income tax rate.
Read more:
- Grow Michigan’s economy? Many pledges, few plans at gubernatorial forum
- ‘Silver tsunami’ of retiring business owners leaves Main Streets at a crossroads
- Michigan economic forecast: Meh in 2026, with a chance for optimism
On health care and mental health
How good Michigan’s mental and physical health systems are really depends on who you ask — and how severe the need is. But federal cuts to Medicaid, rising prescription prices and health insurance premiums — as well as a lack of available mental health bed space — have made access to care a major hurdle for some.
Whitmer is expected to discuss medical debt in her Wednesday night speech, according to The Detroit News.
What readers are saying:
- “I have had insurance companies choose not to cover medications that are used to treat life-threatening conditions, and I have a relative who has a terrible time finding medical care professionals who are ‘in network’ for the options available through the Michigan ACA options.” — Kay R., Upper Peninsula
- “I pay for my own health insurance almost $700 a month and deductible is $9,500. I have student loans from social worker masters degree 2014 and will never be able to pay it off in my lifetime. I provide mental health therapy in my community. The payments are larger than my health insurance due to interest. My electricity bills have went up about 25%. I am widowed and have concerns about financial survival.” — Debbie L., West Olive
- “I run a smaller nonprofit and there is no way (my) nonprofit can absorb the insane increasing costs for everything — health care is at the top.” — Diana K., Washtenaw County
Is it on the gubernatorial candidates’ radar?
While at least one candidate is talking about mental health, few have made it a top priority so far this campaign season. But when it comes to health care, candidates have been a bit more vocal, citing rising costs of prescription medication, federal cuts to Medicare and health care issues unique to more rural parts of the state.
Read more:
- Michigan quietly kills effort to restructure mental health care system
- How a sword and SWAT standoff sparked fury over Michigan mental health crisis
- Desperate for doctors: Michigan looks to expand who can provide care
- 40,000 fewer Michiganders seek Affordable Care Act health insurance
On the environment, energy and data centers
When it comes to energy and the environment, data centers have become a focal point in the state and national debate.
But, the fight over what role Michigan should play in the artificial intelligence-driven tech boom doesn’t fall neatly along partisan lines, and there’s a lot at stake for the state’s environmental and energy concerns.
A new clean energy law is putting pressure on utilities to derive power from designated “clean” sources by 2040 and set up a mechanism allowing developers to appeal to state regulators if local governments deny renewable energy projects.
What readers are saying:
- “I live on earth, climate change is (affecting) all of us. I also live near a place where all local residents voted against a data center nearby, yet there is a massive data center nobody wants being built.” — Mandy D., Saline
- “(In) my neighborhood, 90% of homes have a whole home generator. Why is that? We do it because our electricity is regularly going off. Why are we paying so much for electricity that is inconsistent?” — Carman T., Belleville
- “Stop the data centers … If allowed, make the entire process transparent: how much land, (how) many gallons of water used, how much energy, can current infrastructure support the project — if not, WHO PAYS? No tax dollar subsidies.” — Kathy F., Reed City
Is it on the gubernatorial candidates’ radar?
Data centers are already a prominent issue for several candidates. Some have proposed guidelines for water and electric resources and others are calling for a full statewide moratorium. We reported on their data center positions in early February. Some candidates have also made rising energy prices and state green energy policies top issues in their campaigns.
Read more:
- Where Michigan gubernatorial candidates stand on data centers
- Data center moratoriums pile up in Michigan. No one knows if they’ll work
- Trump cancels federal climate regulations. Here’s what it means for Michigan
On government and democracy
Michigan has made some strides on government transparency but still ranks fairly low nationally.
The state’s politically divided Legislature struggled to complete a budget on time last year, and at the federal level, the Trump administration has challenged Michigan voter rolls and is investigating several school districts and the University of Michigan.
The Michigan Legislature adopted a new law in 2025 that mandates lawmakers disclose the pet projects they’re sponsoring as part of the state budget, among other things. But the state House has not taken up Senate-approved bills to open lawmakers and governor up to public records requests under the Freedom of Information Act. Michigan is one of two states where you’re unable to request communications from those elected officials.
What readers are saying:
- “The political climate has become so fractious that neighbors can’t talk to neighbors. The country is polarized. Our children’s role models are crude talkers spewing antagonism.” — Dorothy V-P., Rockford
- “Our governments are so deeply divided, and accusing each other of so much! I feel that if each side just would commit to transparency in whatever they are doing , and make honesty and noble character their standard, the public would hopefully see that and begin to trust them and their processes again.” — Joan C., Michigan
- “The influence of corporate and special-interest money makes it feel like elected officials are more responsive to donors than to voters, which undermines confidence that government is working in the public’s best interest.” — Michael S., Marquette County
Is it on the gubernatorial candidates’ radar?
Yes and no.
Multiple candidates have called for more government transparency, including government ethics proposals. But positions on election integrity and ballot access have largely fallen along party lines.
Read more:
- Former Michigan governors unite to urge civility
- Republicans ask DOJ to oversee Michigan’s 2026 election
- Judge dismisses Trump admin lawsuit over Michigan voter rolls
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