DETROIT — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer prevailed Thursday in a high-stakes challenge from Republican lawmakers who sued over her authority to declare emergencies and order sweeping restrictions during the coronavirus outbreak.
A judge said a 1945 law cited by Whitmer is not limited to local and regional emergencies only.
The dispute in Michigan centres on two laws: a 1976 statute that gives the Legislature a role in emergency declarations after 28 days, and another from 1945 that grants broad authority to governors.
The House and Senate, which are controlled by Republicans, did not extend Whitmer’s disaster emergency declaration in late April but she acted anyway.
The Associated Press
