After a fleeting sense in the beginning of the summer that the pandemic might be receding for good, the Delta variant has brought a new surge in cases, leading to renewed debates over mask mandates and stronger pushes for vaccine requirements. Public health has become in many ways a dividing line between blue states and red states. In Michigan, the state itself is sharply divided.
Many voters backed Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s decisions during the pandemic, and her approval ratings rose 15 points in the early months of the lockdown. But those decisions also produced a backlash, with anger among opponents spawning armed protests in the State Capitol and recall efforts.