Winnie Brinks is Michigan’s Senate Majority Leader. She is the first woman ever to hold this position in the Michigan Senate and the first woman to represent Grand Rapids in the Michigan Senate since 1920.
Brinks cares deeply about clean drinking water in Michigan and has worked tirelessly on efforts to reduce the prevalence of toxic PFAS chemicals in it. In addition to accessible clean water, her policy passions include improving equity in maternal health care and reproductive rights, reducing prescription drug costs, and helping uplift local communities and organizations.
Before being elected to the state House, where she served two terms, Brinks was a caseworker at The Source, helping businesses and nonprofits improve workplaces and retain employees. She also worked as the director of a community-based corrections agency and as a school paraprofessional.
Brinks earned a bachelor’s degree in Spanish with a concentration in sociology from Calvin College.