GUBERNATORIAL GALLOP
While several aspirants consider their political future as senatorial candidates, a slew of others are lining up to run for the vacant governor’s seat when Gretchen Whitmer moves out of the mansion due to term limits. Democrat Jocelyn Benson, Michigan’s term-limited Secretary of State, has officially announced she’s running, and is already picking up a stack of endorsements, while other potential candidates are still considering a run. EMILYs List, the Democratic group aimed at electing female candidates, officially threw its support behind Benson in late January, as have several notable fundraisers, including Lisa Mark Lis and Marcie Hermelin Orley, who is her campaign finance director. Genesee County Sheriff Chris Swanson has also announced he’s running to be the Democratic nominee for governor. Swanson came to wider prominence in 2020 during the George Floyd protests, when he put aside his protective gear and joined protesters in a move that went viral. He was also invited to speak at the DNC convention last summer. At his announcement he suggested that Lansing be rebranded a “help center.” Also seriously mulling jumping in the Dem pool, by all accounts, is Lt. Governor Garlin Gilchrest II. Gilchrest ruled out a Senate run, with sources close to him reporting he is seriously considering a run for governor. The Democratic Lieutenant Governors Association announced they plan to spend seven figures – as much as $1.5 million – to support his run if he gets in. Some politicos believe Gilchrest, who is a Black Detroiter, will rally African Americans in Detroit to turn out for him. Nolan Finley of The Detroit News speculated that Gilchrest’s clout with Detroiters, along with Benson’s fundraising prowess, are large reasons that Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan announced his run for governor as an independent. While fundraising numbers for all of these candidates were slim or non-existent for late 2024, don’t count any of them – including Duggan – out. Word is Duggan has held fundraisers, or get-to-know-you’s, at wealthy Democrat homes where primarily Republican honchos have been invited.
