Michigan Democratic Party delegates at the party’s spring endorsement convention in Detroit voted to endorse attorney Amir Makled for the University of Michigan Board of Regents, defeating incumbent Regent Jordan Acker. The party also endorsed incumbent Regent Paul Brown for the second seat on the ticket.
Michigan Democratic Party delegates endorsed civil rights attorney Amir Makled for the University of Michigan Board of Regents at the party’s spring endorsement convention in Detroit on Sunday, according to the party and multiple Michigan outlets. The endorsement replaced incumbent Regent Jordan Acker on the Democratic ticket for the two regent seats that will be on the November 2026 general election ballot.
The Michigan Democratic Party said more than 7,200 members attended what it described as the party’s largest endorsement convention and listed Brown and Makled as its endorsed candidates for the University of Michigan Board of Regents.
The regents’ race became one of the convention’s most contentious contests, as activists and party factions clashed over the university’s handling of pro-Palestinian campus protests during the Israel-Hamas war. Bridge Michigan and Michigan Public Radio Network reporting described Acker’s defeat as a prominent win for the party’s progressive wing.
Makled, a Dearborn-based attorney, has represented some University of Michigan students and affiliates who were charged by the Michigan attorney general’s office in connection with campus protest activity in 2024; the state later dropped those charges, Bridge Michigan reported. Coverage of the convention also noted that Makled drew support from progressive groups and some campus and labor constituencies.
In the days leading up to the convention, Makled faced criticism over previously posted and later deleted social media content that, according to Bridge Michigan and other reports citing documentation by The Detroit News, appeared to praise Hezbollah figures and amplify antisemitic rhetoric. Makled did not respond to questions from some outlets about the posts.
Acker, who is Jewish, has been a frequent target of vandalism and threats tied to the campus protest controversy. In June 2024, Southfield police investigated as a possible hate crime vandalism at Acker’s law office after pro-Palestinian graffiti was spray-painted on the building, the Associated Press reported. In December 2024, Acker’s home was vandalized and a family vehicle was spray-painted with “Divest” and “Free Palestine,” according to the ACLU of Michigan.
A separate controversy also intensified attention on Acker shortly before the convention. The Guardian reported on April 17, 2026, that it had reviewed screenshots and other evidence of Slack messages attributed to Acker that included obscene sexual comments about a Democratic Party strategist and lewd remarks about a female University of Michigan student. Through his lawyer, Acker said he had never used Slack and raised doubts about the authenticity of the screenshots; his attorney did not directly confirm or deny that Acker wrote the messages.
Republicans Lena Epstein and Michael Schostak are running for the University of Michigan Board of Regents in the November 2026 election, according to published campaign materials and publicly available election coverage.
The Michigan Democratic Party did not release detailed vote tallies for individual endorsement contests in its post-convention announcement.
