Wolf hunting opponents declared victory Tuesday night in Michigan, where voters rejected two separate laws that paved the way for an inaugural season last year.

While the victory was decisive, the impact remains unclear.

Tomorrow, voters in Maine and Michigan will decide ballot measures with life-and-death significance for black bears and gray wolves.

THE PROPOSALS: Michigan Proposal 1 and Proposal 2 are both referendums on two separate laws. The first law designated wolves as a game species and authorized hunting seasons. The second law gave those same powers to the Natural Resources Commission, which approved the state’s first ever hunt last year. More >>

Actress announces support of efforts to stop Michigan’s wolf hunt 

In 2013, over 255,000 Michigan voters signed a petition to oppose a wolf hunt and put the issue on the 2014 ballot. Instead, a law passed silencing their voices.

A commission of political appointees would make decisions based on half-truths and misinformation to justify a trophy hunt. Even the Department of Natural Resource’s Wolf Digest states “a wolf attack on a human being has never been documented in Michigan.”

Proponents of wolf hunting in Michigan haven’t made their case for the two statewide ballot proposals. They talk in terms of protecting farmers in the UP. But hunting predatory wolves is already legal. They say a hunting season is needed so that wolves get the message to stay away, but there’s very little evidence that works.