2026 Democratic Candidates

The son of two educators, Eli was born and raised in Ann Arbor. He attended Kalamazoo College in western Michigan, where he played four years of college basketball. Following his college graduation, Eli worked as a public school teacher—teaching both special-education and general-education 8th-grade U.S. history.

After graduating from the University of Michigan Law School, Eli worked for two federal judges. He was then selected to clerk on the United States Supreme Court for Justices Sandra Day O’Connor (ret.) and Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

A Fighter for Justice in Detroit

As Senior Legal Counsel for the City of Detroit, Eli quickly earned a reputation as a fighter who was unafraid to challenge powerful interests and used his unique aptitude to solve complex problems. In this role, Eli:

• Oversaw the City’s lawsuits against the opioid industry, netting nearly $50 million to remedy the opioid epidemic.

• Led the City’s efforts in the landmark right-to-literacy lawsuit on behalf of Detroit schoolchildren. He worked in partnership with labor unions, school officials, and community advocates— and served on the three-member negotiating team that secured nearly $100 million in funding for Detroit schools.

• Served as the top lawyer in international negotiations that facilitated the construction of the Gordie Howe International Bridge. This cleared the way for a multi-billion-dollar union construction project, and secured almost $50 million in community benefits such as workforce development, and environmental remediation—funded by the Canadian government—for residents of Southwest Detroit.

• Led the City’s successful lawsuits against tax-delinquent banks, slumlords, and land-speculators.

• Negotiated a deal that allowed thousands of low-income Detroit families to avoid tax foreclosure and remain in their home, working with the ACLU, the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, and housing advocates. 

A Transformational Prosecutor in Washtenaw County

• In 2020, Eli was elected Prosecuting Attorney for Washtenaw County, where he was born and raised. Under his leadership, the Prosecutor’s Office has:

• Established dedicated special-victims and domestic violence units, staffed by specialized prosecutors who can address sexual and intimate-partner violence.

• Led the successful investigation and prosecution of multiple “cold-case” rape cases— including at least one individual suspected of having been a serial rapist, who is currently serving a 28-46 year prison sentence.

• Used its authority to prevent sexual assault before it even occurs by successfully suing a fraternity whose parties were tied to over a dozen sexual assaults, proactively eliminating the conditions that led to those assaults in the first-of-its-kind case.

• Launched multiple successful programs that allow people dealing with behavioral health and substance-use issues to obtain rehabilitative services— while avoiding a criminal conviction.

• Established Washtenaw County’s first-ever conviction integrity and expungement unit, which remedies wrongful convictions and provides legally eligible residents free assistance in clearing old criminal records. To date, that unit has assisted over 1,000 residents in expunging their old records, giving those who have earned a second chance a fair opportunity to secure jobs, housing, and educational opportunities.

• Fought against unlawful corporate exploitation by establishing an Economic Justice Unit—the only Unit of its kind in Michigan—which ensures that corporations are held accountable for harm done to workers and consumers. The Unit specifically focuses on wage theft, consumer-protection, and suing to remedy the harm perpetrated by shady businesses on working families.   

A PUBLIC SERVANT

• In addition to his public service, Eli has dedicated significant time and effort to fighting for the rights of all people. Among other things, Eli litigated on behalf of the ACLU, the American Association of University Women, and the League of Women Voters to challenge the Michigan Legislature’s so-called adopt-and-amend tactics, which deprived Michigan families of paid sick leave and a boosted minimum wage.

• As Prosecutor, Eli has also used every tool at his disposal to fight for the rights of Michiganders. When Roe v. Wade was overturned, Eli personally litigated alongside Governor Whitmer to overturn Michigan’s antiquated abortion ban. As prosecutor, he has litigated at every level of the state and federal judiciary to protect reproductive freedom—including leading national coalitions of prosecutors and police leaders to advocate for abortion rights at the United States Supreme Court. And under Eli's leadership, the Prosecutor’s Office has regularly led and joined national coalitions litigating for consumer protection, gun safety, voting rights, immigrants’ rights, workers’ rights, and other issues important to our community.

• He also played a lead role in efforts to expand Michigan’s Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act, successfully advocating to have the Michigan Civil Rights Commission prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.

• Eli has also worked as a practicing environmental lawyer. Working on behalf of Maryland, New Jersey, and Puerto Rico, Eli has sued corporate polluters like Shell, Exxon, and DuPont over their unlawful contamination of the water and air. He has been part of a team that has secured hundreds of millions of dollars to restore and remediate the environment in those jurisdictions.

• In addition to his work as Prosecuting Attorney, Eli is a Lecturer at the University of Michigan Law School, and a proud member of Lecturers’ Employee Organization (American Federation of Teachers-Michigan Local 6244).