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Susan J. Demas

Susan J. Demas is an 18-year journalism veteran and one of the state’s foremost experts on Michigan politics, appearing on MSNBC, CNN, NPR and WKAR-TV’s “Off the Record.” In addition to serving as Editor-in-Chief, she is the Advance’s chief columnist, writing on women, LGBTQs, the state budget, the economy and more. Most recently, she served as Vice President of Farough & Associates, Michigan’s premier political communications firm. For almost five years, Susan was the Editor and Publisher of Inside Michigan Politics, the most-cited political newsletter in the state. Susan’s award-winning political analysis has run in more than 80 national, international and regional media outlets, including the Guardian U.K., NBC News, the New York Times, the Detroit News and MLive. She is the only Michigan journalist to be named to the Washington Post’s list of “Best Political Reporters,” the Huffington Post’s list of “Best Political Tweeters” and the Washington Post’s list of “Best Political Bloggers.” Susan was the recipient of a prestigious Knight Foundation fellowship in nonprofits and politics. She served as Deputy Editor for MIRS News and helped launch the Michigan Truth Squad, the Center for Michigan’s fact-checking project. She started her journalism career reporting on the Iowa caucuses for The (Cedar Rapids) Gazette.

COMMENTARY
Michigan State University students and members of surrounding communities pay their respects for victims of the mass shooting on MSU's campus at the Spartan Statue on Feb. 14, 2023. (Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)

Susan J. Demas: What we owe our children after the horror at MSU

By: - February 19, 2023

Michigan State’s sprawling campus has been home to thousands, like my daughter, during some of the most exciting and demanding years of their lives. It can feel like just about everyone in the state has a connection to the school in one way or another. And so, there are countless personal stories about the Michigan […]

COMMENTARY
Susan J. Demas graphic of Tudor Dixon using Andrew Roth photo

Republicans served up ‘red wave’ Kool-Aid. Pundits drank it up.

By: - November 18, 2022

The election was four weeks out. Every sign pointed to Republican gubernatorial nominee Tudor Dixon careening toward an epic loss. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer was, by all indications, running a smart campaign that connected with voters on kitchen-table issues, which does, as she often pointed out, include abortion rights. Her authentic bond with her running mate, […]

MINNEAPOLIS, MN: Signage at an early voting center on September 23, 2016 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)

Kaul, 21 AGs tell congressional leaders to guard against voter suppression, possibly reform the filibuster

By: - August 3, 2021

Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul, along with 21 other attorneys general, on Monday sent a letter to bipartisan congressional leaders urging them to pass legislation protecting against both voter suppression and election subversion and possibly reform the filibuster. “Following the 2020 presidential election, we witnessed something many of us considered unthinkable: an attempt by the then-sitting President of the United States […]

COMMENTARY
Ruth Bader Ginsberg (Photo by Tom Brenner / Getty Images)

RBG is gone. This is why we fight.

By: - September 19, 2020

Ruth Bader Ginsburg, best known as a steely champion of women’s equality, gave voice to the voiceless. And as a legendary Supreme Court justice, she was committed to ensuring their rightful place in America until the day she died. We have lost so much as a country during these last four years of Donald Trump’s […]

COMMENTARY
Woman in a U.S. flag mask on her face

The coronavirus crisis shows now is the time to demand more from our government

By: - July 22, 2020

America has blown past every country in the coronavirus pandemic, with almost 4 million cases and more than 140,000 deaths. If you want to know why the most medically advanced country in the world ended up here, look no further than the malfeasance and conspiracy-mongering of President Donald Trump. The New York Times this weekend ran a devastating tick-tock […]

COMMENTARY
President Barack Obama (R) speaks during a presser while Elizabeth Warren (C) listens in the Rose Garden at the White House on July 18, 2011 in Washington, DC. | Mark Wilson/Getty Images

Nobody likes a smarty pants: Why Warren and Obama irk pundits so much

By: - February 20, 2020

Elizabeth Warren has never succeeded in charming the pundit class, which tends to describe her in oh-so-flattering terms like professorial,  scold, elitist, lecturing, strident and schoolmarmish (she was a Harvard professor before being elected as a senator, in case you couldn’t tell by these pejoratives). After covering this primary for the last approximately 12,000 years (or […]

Evers joins 14 governors pushing Congress to address PFAS in defense bill

By: and - September 19, 2019

Gov. Tony Evers joined a group of 14 other Democratic and Republican  governors in sending a letter Wednesday to both the U.S. Senate and House Armed Services Committees backing provisions related to per- and polyfluoralkyl substances (PFAS) in the FY2020 National Defense Authorization Act.  In August, Evers issued an executive order on PFAS chemicals, which […]

Rep. Debbie Dingell introducing the revamped Violence Against Women Act | Photo by Robin Bravender

U.S. Rep. Moore sponsors measure on intersection of misogyny, domestic violence and gun violence for VAWA anniversary

By: - September 16, 2019

It’s been 25 years since Congress passed the landmark Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) but the GOP-controlled U.S. Senate still hasn’t reauthorized it. Marking the 25th anniversary of the landmark VAWA on Sept. 13, U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore (D-Wis.) introduced a resolution recognizing the intersection between misogyny, violence against women and gun violence. She and […]

Evers, 4 other Dem. govs urge prez candidates to protect Great Lakes

By: - July 29, 2019

Gov. Tony Evers of Wisconsin and four other Midwest Democratic governors on Monday urged presidential contenders to adopt their Great Lakes agenda. This comes before 20 contenders are set to arrive in Detroit for the second round of Democratic presidential debates on Tuesday and Wednesday. Evers, along with Govs. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, Tim Walz of […]