Author

Allison R. Donahue covers education, women's issues and LGBTQ issues. Previously, she was a suburbs reporter at the St. Cloud Times in St. Cloud, Minn., covering local education and government. As a graduate of Grand Valley State University, she has previous experience as a freelance researcher for USA Today and an intern with WOOD TV-8. When she is away from her desk, she spends her time going to concerts, comedy shows or getting lost on hikes in different places around the world.
Judge rejects Karamo’s election lawsuit, says it would disenfranchise Detroit voters
By: Allison R. Donahue - November 7, 2022
Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Timothy Kenny rejected on Monday GOP Secretary of State nominee Kristina Karamo’s lawsuit attempting to disqualify absentee voters in Detroit, calling it “unprecedented” and “intolerable.” “Such harm to the citizens of the city of Detroit, and by extension the citizens of the state of Michigan, is not only unprecedented, it […]
Voting rights advocates prepare for increase of ‘frivolous challenges’ at the polls
By: Allison R. Donahue - November 7, 2022
Voting rights organizations in Michigan are preparing for Election Day after seeing reports about growing efforts from right-wing activists to make “frivolous challenges” at the polls. Progress Michigan, Promote the Vote and All Voting is Local held a press conference Friday morning to discuss last-minute litigation and efforts from organizations and individuals who are sowing […]
Planned Parenthood president: ‘We’re leaving no stone unturned’ before Tuesday’s election
By: Allison R. Donahue - November 5, 2022
“Health care is not a partisan issue,” said Jeff Timmer, a longtime Republican strategist during a Yes on Proposal 3 rally Saturday in Grand Rapids. With just days before the Tuesday election, that is the message advocates for the ballot proposal to codify Roe-era abortion rights in the Michigan Constitution are trying to spread to […]
Michigan Supreme Court ruling keeps Benson’s poll challenger rules in place
By: Allison R. Donahue - November 3, 2022
Less than a week before the election, the Michigan Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the Secretary of State and election clerks will continue to follow the poll challenger guidance put in place by Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson earlier this year. Last month, a Michigan Court of Claims judge blocked a number of the rules […]
Study: Michigan could see the 3rd highest maternal death rate if abortion is banned
By: Allison R. Donahue - November 3, 2022
Michigan has the third-highest expected increase in maternal deaths in the nation if the state’s 1931 abortion ban goes into effect, according to a report released Wednesday from the liberal group the Center for American Progress (CAP). Held off by preliminary injunctions amid a flurry of legal action, Michigan’s 91-year-old law criminalizing abortion hasn’t gone […]
Ted Cruz stumps for Gibbs in congressional race against Scholten
By: Allison R. Donahue - November 3, 2022
With less than a week before the election, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) visited Grand Rapids Wednesday night to stump for Republican U.S. House candidate John Gibbs in one of the most competitive districts in the state. “For the past two cycles, I’ve worked to look across the county and try to identify the strongest […]
ACLU calls on school leaders to stand up against book bans
By: Allison R. Donahue - November 1, 2022
The American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan (ACLU) sent a letter Tuesday urging Michigan’s public school district leaders to “to affirm your commitment to public education, the First Amendment, and the welfare of all students in your community by resisting” efforts to ban books in schools. “When school officials attempt to create a ‘sanitized’ learning […]
A Wayne County judge will handle Karamo’s lawsuit, despite her pushback
By: Allison R. Donahue - November 1, 2022
Republican Secretary of State nominee Kristina Karamo’s lawsuit to require Detroit voters to vote in person will be handled by a Wayne County judge after Karamo asked to disqualify all judges in the county. The suit, which says Detroit’s absentee voter counting board has “many problems that cannot be remedied, also argued that Wayne County […]
Are national ‘parental rights’ groups making decisions in your local school district?
By: Allison R. Donahue - November 1, 2022
On a stage in Troy, in front of dozens of parents, state leaders, school board members and candidates last month, GOP gubernatorial nominee Tudor Dixon stood beside far-right activists from Florida and made a pledge. “I pledge to advance policies that strengthen parental involvement and decision-making, increase transparency, defend against government overreach and secure parental […]
Contentious school board elections create new divides in communities across Michigan
By: Allison R. Donahue - November 1, 2022
Residents of the Forest Hills School District lined up out the door last month for the first FHPS school board candidate forum, waiting to get past security and have their state I.D. checked to make sure they live in the district. That’s an unusual level of security for a school board candidate forum — but […]
MSU board appoints Provost Teresa Woodruff as interim president
By: Allison R. Donahue - October 31, 2022
The Michigan State University Board of Trustees unanimously voted Monday to appoint Provost Teresa Woodruff as the university’s interim president after President Samuel Stanley announced his resignation earlier this month. Board of Trustees Chair Dianne Byrum said the board met with a variety of stakeholders and groups during their process to find an interim president. […]
Karamo files long-shot lawsuit to require Detroit residents to vote in person
By: Allison R. Donahue - October 28, 2022
GOP Secretary of State nominee Kristina Karamo filed a lawsuit Wednesday to require Detroit voters to vote in person or obtain their ballots in person at the clerk’s office. “This is the only valid process of identity in the statute because the [Michigan secretary of state] failed to promulgate a signature comparison rule,” the lawsuit […]