Michigan League of Conservation Voters

The Michigan LCV advocates for greater government spending on environmental issues ⁴ and supported utility Consumer Energy’s plan to shutter all its coal plants by 2025. ⁵ The Michigan LCV had called for the Enbridge Energy Line 5 pipelines that provide 55 percent of the propane needs in Michigan to be shut down. ⁶

The leadership of the Michigan LCV has a history of ties with the state’s Democratic Party. Jeff Irwin, executive director of the Michigan LCV, went on to become a Democratic state representative and state senator. ⁷ Michigan LCV executive director Lisa Wozniak worked on the campaigns of two Democratic politicians. ⁸

Organization

The Michigan LCV is part of a group of associated organizations that includes the Michigan League of Conservation Voters Education Fund, the Michigan League of Conservation Voters Political Action Committee, and the Conservation Voters of Michigan Political Action Committee. ⁹

The Michigan LCV had $1.89 million in revenue and $1.92 million in expenses with listed net assets of $471,485 in 2018. ¹⁰ The League of Conservation Voters gave the Michigan affiliate $884,000 in 2018. ¹¹

Controversy

Claims about Environmental Jobs

Wozniak wrote an op-ed in the Detroit News on December 12, 2014 where she claimed environmentalist energy had created more than 100,000 jobs in Michigan. ¹² The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics stated Michigan had 82,644 alternative energy goods and services jobs in 2011, ¹³ the last year it did such a survey. The Bureau of Labor Statistics defined garbage collectors, bus transportation employees, electricians, plumbers, roofing contractors and organic dairy farmers as belonging to the “green goods and services” sector. ¹⁴

In 2012, a ballot proposal to insert a renewable energy mandate into the state constitution was rejected by voters by a 63 to 37 percent margin. ¹⁵ Three months before the election, the Michigan LCV claimed in its Political Week In Review blog that the renewable energy mandate ballot proposal would create 94,000 jobs according to a Michigan State University study. ¹⁶ The MSU study had claimed the ballot proposal if passed would create 74,495 “job years.” The study explained that it used “job years” and not “jobs” in its calculations and stated that each job was counted for every year it existed in a plant and stated a single manufacturing job could amount to as many as 30 “job years.” ¹⁷

Advocacy

MCLV board members Kerry Duggan and Phil Roos were appointed in 2021 by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) to serve on a Council on Climate Solutions ² which will work to implement Whitmer’s climate plan. Whitmer’s target is to have the state achieve “carbon neutrality” by 2050. ¹⁸

In June 2021, the Michigan LCV supported the utility Consumers Energy’s plan to shut down all its coal plants by 2025. ¹⁹

Political Endorsements

In 2020, the Michigan LCV endorsed two judge candidates ²⁰ for the Michigan Supreme Court who were supported by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D). ²¹
Fifty-five the 60 state house candidates endorsed by the Michigan LCV in the November 2020 elections were Democrats, as were all nine of the Oakland County candidates the group endorsed. ²²

Nestle Bottling Permit

Wozniak criticized the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality for approving Nestle’s permit to pump more groundwater to expand its bottling operations in Michigan, claiming the state agency “put corporate interests ahead of the health of our families.” ²³ The Michigan League of Conservation Voters claimed Nestle was depleting the state’s water sources, ²⁴ Though on average in Michigan, for every gallon of water consumed by the state’s residents and businesses there are 288 gallons that fall as rain. ²⁵ Nestle pledged in 2020 to replenish 100 percent of the water it takes from watersheds by 2025. ²⁶

Enbridge Line 5 Pipelines

The Enbridge Energy Line 5 are twin pipelines that travel under the Straits of Mackinac and supplies 55% of the propane demand in the state of Michigan. ⁶ The Michigan LCV called for Line 5 to be shut down claiming that Enbridge Energy cannot safely maintain the pipelines. ²⁷

#NoKings Protests

In June 2025, the Michigan LCV participated in organizing or supporting protests branded under the “#NoKings” banner, a national day of demonstrations positioned as a defense of democratic norms against President Donald Trump. These events were part of a larger mobilization involving over 70 Democratic Party affiliates and allied organizations across at least 19 U.S. states and multiple international locations, according to publicly available event listings on Mobilize.us, a Democratic Party-aligned organizing platform. ^{28 29}

Leadership

Wozniak is the executive director of the Michigan LCV. She previously worked on the political campaigns of Democrat Lana Pollack in a losing 1994 U.S. Senate campaign and a successful state senate campaign of Alma Wheeler Smith (D). ⁸ Wozniak has attacked GOP politicians in op-eds placed in the Lansing State Journal ³⁰ and Detroit Free Press while praising Democratic politicians. ³¹

George Davis II is the board president and was an executive assistant to Detroit Mayor Dennis Archer (D). ³²

Marseille L. Allen is a board member and has been a registered lobbyist for the United Auto Workers Local 6000. ³³ Allen also worked on the transition team for Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel (D) in 2018 and for the 2020 presidential campaign of President Joe Biden (D). ³³

Kerry Duggan, a board member, was appointed by Biden and former Secretary of State John Kerry to serve on the joint environmental task force of Biden and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), which developed an environmental agenda for Democrats before the 2020 Democratic convention. ³⁴ Duggan also was appointed by Biden to be his deputy director of for policy when Biden served as vice president under President Barack Obama. ³⁵

Keith Cooley is a board member who was appointed as director of Michigan’s Department of Labor and Economic Growth by then-Gov. Jennifer Granholm (D) in 2007. ³⁶

Rudy Hobbs is a board member and former Democratic state representative. ³⁷

Londell Thomas is the Michigan LCV’s political and outreach director. ³⁸ He worked previously at the left-of-center Center for Popular Democracy and has worked for Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and was deputy director of the Michigan Democratic Coordinated Campaign, ³⁸ which works to elect Democratic candidates. ³⁹

Jeff Irwin was the executive director of the Michigan League of Conservation Voters and then went on to become a Democratic state representative and state senator. ⁷