Detroit — After months of attack ads, back-and-forth accusations and rigorous statewide campaigning, Gov. Jennifer Granholm emerged victorious Tuesday.
At press time, Granholm led with 56 percent of the vote, leaving Republican challenger Dick DeVos with 43 percent.
Met with a bedlam of cheers and applause at a Democratic campaign celebration in Detroit Tuesday night, Granholm thanked supporters for allowing her to serve Michigan for another term.
"A few minutes ago, I spoke with Dick DeVos," Granholm told cheering supporters. "He offered me his congratulations and his best wishes for a second term. I told him how much I admired his tenacity and his passion for Michigan, and I'm sure you will join me in wishing him well.
More than 400 supporters crowded the lower lobbies of the Marriott Hotel in Detroit's Renaissance Center for an event sponsored by the Michigan Democratic Party.
"We are passionate about transforming the state," Granholm said. "We may not have arrived at the promised land yet, but we can see it."
U.S. Sens. Debbie Stabenow and Carl Levin, and other state Democrats celebrated Granholm's re-election.
Lt. Gov. John Cherry assured the crowd in Detroit that they elected a governor who will continue to build a prosperous Michigan in her next term.
"Over the course of four years, she has built a strong foundation, but she was also put in a position where she had to build the bricks, cut the lumber and melt the steel," Cherry said. "When the governor is done building the structure, it will be better and it will be stronger and it will blow the Republicans away."
In a speech delivered shortly after 11:15 p.m., DeVos conceded the race to Granholm and thanked Michigan voters at a Lansing event.
"There are many challenges to face, many issues to cover — the governor's success will be our success, and we wish her the best," DeVos said. "If we aren't going to be able to serve in this way, I look forward to the ways we can serve.
"I was grateful of the privilege of being a candidate for the great state of Michigan."
DeVos watched the election with nearly 600 supporters at the Sheraton Lansing Hotel.
Steve Ovares, a communication and public relations senior who worked for the DeVos campaign, spent Tuesday night working the VIP door at DeVos' Lansing event. As he watched election totals stream in, Ovares said "seeing all these people come out to support DeVos and his vision of change — it's really uplifting."
Saul Anuzis, chairman of the Michigan Republican Party, said Republican volunteers pushed hard up through Election Day, with volunteers calling more than 250,000 voters on Tuesday and more than 130,000 on Sunday.
But ultimately, they fell short.
"The national numbers coming in do not look good. Democrats were successful in making this a national election rather than a local election," Anuzis said.
Staff writers Lindsey Poisson and Kristyn Peterson contributed to this report.
