ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Ann Arbor Democrat Carrie Rheingans is fighting to keep her Michigan House District 47 seat against Republican Justin Griffis of Dexter when voters decide the Nov. 3 general election.
Rheingans first won the seat in 2022 with roughly two-thirds of the ballots cast and held it again in 2024 above the 60 percent mark. Each cleared the Aug. 4 primary: she had no Democratic challenger, and Griffis took the Republican nomination.
Griffis trained as a lawyer at Dayton’s law school and cites stints as a criminal defense attorney, firm partner and assistant prosecutor. Rheingans once led a Michigan Public Health Institute project and holds U-M graduate degrees in social work plus public health.
The district stretches from Ann Arbor’s west side into southeast Jackson County, taking in Dexter, Manchester and Lima townships along with parts of Scio, Freedom, Sharon, Sylvan, Grass Lake and Summit townships plus Columbia, Napoleon and Norvell townships.
House terms run two years. A 2022 statewide proposal replaced the old separate House and Senate caps with a 12-year combined limit across both chambers.
