Republicans have reclaimed control of the state House, meaning the state government fully united under Democratic control for the past two years will be broken up come January.

The GOP will have the state House. Democrats will maintain control of the state Senate and the Governor’s Office (along with the Attorney General’s Office and the Secretary of State’s Office) for at least another two years.

With today’s hyper-partisan politics, a divided government runs the risk of complete and total stagnation. The Republican-controlled state House could refuse to pass anything the Democrat-controlled state Senate passes, the state Senate Democrats could refuse to pass anything state House Republicans send them, and Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer could refuse to sign or could veto whatever finally makes its way to her desk.

That would be bad for Michigan.

The state will undoubtedly face problems in 2025 and 2026 that need addressing. At the very least, state budgets that send money to local governments and school districts must come together every year.

That means Republicans and Democrats will have to find a way to work together. They’ll have to find compromise. Bills will have to pass with bipartisan support to make it into law.

That would be a good thing for Michigan.

Bipartisan bills tend to have more staying power. Come the 2026 elections, Republicans might reclaim the state Senate and get someone in the governor’s mansion, and they could then work to undo everything Democrats did while they had control these past two years.

But, if a bill is worked out through bipartisan negotiation, it’s less politically palpable for one side or the other to undo it.

As well, bipartisan bills tend to better represent the desires of a larger swath of the electorate, making them better policy.

Not always, but often.

So we voters and taxpayers must demand bipartisanship over the next two years. We must not tolerate stalemate and hardheaded brinksmanship. We must demand our lawmakers work together and compromise and continue to address the problems facing our state.

Anything else is a simple dereliction of duty.