Governor Gretchen Whitmer is making her mark on efforts to help Michigan’s auto industry make the transition into electric vehicles and new ways of getting from place to place.

Whitmer was in Detroit on Tuesday to sign the orders to create an “Office of Future Mobility and Electrification.”

Vice President Mike Pence was in Lansing Tuesday to talk about farming. Pence and U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue addressed members of the Michigan Farm Bureau at the agency’s annual legislative conference.

Pence said under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA, American farmers will have more market access.

Hundreds of volunteers gathered at the state Capitol on Tuesday morning. Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action advocated for two bills; one would make it illegal in Michigan for convicted domestic abusers to own or buy firearms. The other is meant to close the "boyfriend gap," which makes it harder to convict abusers who are not married to their victims.

Grand Rapids and Kent County have formed a new Lead Action Team. The team will help track and respond to cases of elevated lead levels in kids.

About 1 in 16 kids in Grand Rapids had elevated blood lead levels in 2018, according to figures released by the county. That’s down from previous years. And, countywide, the numbers are even lower.

Add another “second amendment sanctuary county” to the fast-growing list.

The Livingston County Board of Commissioners adopted a resolution Monday night via a 6-0 vote (with two members absent) after being asked to signify support for gun rights. The resolution isn’t legally binding. Upon its passage, the crowd, overflowing out of council chambers and into the hallway, burst into cheers.

Grand Rapids Public Schools has chosen its new superintendent.

The school board voted Monday night to select Leadriane Roby, who is currently the Assistant Superintendent in Richfield, Minnesota.  

The board says it chose Roby because it liked her experience as a teacher, and because she says she will do whatever she can to keep any financial strains on the district from affecting teachers and students in the classroom.

Governor Gretchen Whitmer says she’d sign a bill to allow faster processing of absentee ballots on primary election night.