Lockdown protesters in Michigan brought rifles and other weapons into the state capitol

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• On Thursday, hundreds of people descended on Michigan's state capitol to protest Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's extension of the state's stay-at-home order to May 15.
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• The protests were the starkest example yet of demonstrators actually entering a capitol while the legislature was in session - and bringing weapons with them.
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• As of Thursday, Michigan health officials had reported more than 41,000 COVID-19 cases in the state and 3,789 deaths, with new 980 new cases and 119 new deaths in the past day.
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On Thursday, hundreds of protesters descended on Michigan's state capitol to oppose Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's extension of the state's stay-at-home order by another two weeks, to May 15.

While Whitmer moved to extend the order, telling citizens to stay home and keeping nonessential businesses shut, she also relaxed some of the order's restrictions. Michigan residents are still required to practice social distancing but are now allowed to travel between their main and second homes, go out boating, and play golf.

Protesters have demonstrated against stay-at-home orders at state capitols in dozens of states. But Thursday's protests in Michigan were the starkest example yet of protesters actually entering a state capitol while the legislature was in session - and bringing weapons with them.

As of Thursday, Michigan health officials had reported more than 41,000 COVID-19 cases in the state and 3,789 deaths, with new 980 new cases and 119 new deaths in the past day.

Also on Thursday, the Republican-led Michigan House of Representatives declined to formally extend Michigan's state-of-emergency declaration for another 28 days as Whitmer requested, and it authorized a lawsuit challenging her emergency authority.

One particularly dramatic photo shared by state Sen. Dayna Polehanki showed protesters with guns confronting lawmakers in the state Senate chamber

-Mari Manoogian 🧼🤚🏽 (@MariManoogian) April 30, 2020

As both state Rep. Mari Manoogian and Michigan Live explained, long-standing Michigan capitol rules prohibit people from bringing signs into the building over fears that the sticks that often prop up signs and posters could scratch the paint on the walls.

There are no rules, however, barring people from bringing guns into the Michigan capitol.

Other photos and videos shot by journalists show protesters crowding into the state capitol - and not practicing social distancing

-Rod Meloni (@RodMeloni) April 30, 2020

-Leon Hendrix (@LeonHendrix) April 30, 2020

-Anna Liz Nichols (@annaliznichols) April 30, 2020

-Anna Liz Nichols (@annaliznichols) April 30, 2020

-Dan Zak (@MrDanZak) April 30, 2020

While the high-profile protests and backlash against Whitmer's aggressive measures to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 have garnered a significant amount of attention, public opinion in the state largely supports Whitmer, according to a poll released April 20 from the pro-business Detroit Regional Chamber and the Glengariff Group.

The poll, which surveyed 600 Michigan residents on April 15-16 with a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points, found that 57% of Michiganders approved of Whitmer's handling of the crisis compared with 37% who disapproved, giving her a net approval rating of plus 20 percentage points.

While Republicans disapproved of Whitmer's handling of the crisis by a large margin, 89% to 8%, self-described independent voters approved of Whitmer's performance by a margin of over 20 percentage points, 56% to 35%.

When it came to President Donald Trump's handling of the crisis, however, Michigan residents disapproved of the president's actions by a net margin of 6 percentage points, with 44% approving and 50% disapproving - a potential concern for his reelection bid with voters in the battleground state.

Republicans approved of Trump's handling of the crisis 88% to 9%, while independents disapproved of Trump's performance 52% to 40%.