Perry Johnson (R) “will make another bid to become Michigan’s governor, after spending $8 million years ago and failing to get on the ballot due to faulty nominating petitions,” the Detroit News reports.

“Before dismissing this as another quixotic quest by Johnson, who also made a brief run for president in 2024, consider this: He intends to spend $9 million of his own money over the next 60 days to rapidly raise his name identification and poll numbers. And he says he will continue spending at a heavy pace right up to the August Republican primary.”

“The Michigan Democratic Party is cutting off access to its main voter data program for Democrats who endorse Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan’s independent campaign for governor,” the Detroit News reports.

“The development marked an escalation by the Michigan Democratic establishment in its effort to oppose Duggan, the mayor of Michigan’s largest city and a former Democrat who’s seeking the state’s top political office in 2026.”

Former Detroit mayor Mike Duggan, who left the Democratic Party, told the Washington Post he can shake up Michigan’s gubernatorial race next year.

Said Duggan: “My goal is 20 percent from the Democratic side, 20 percent from the Republican side, and win with 40 percent of the vote.”

Rep. John James (R-MI) announced on Monday that he would run for governor, jumping into an increasingly crowded, high-profile contest, the New York Times reports.

Michigan Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist (D) is launching a campaign for governor Tuesday, arguing Michigan needs a “problem solver” and hoping to defy more than 40 years of struggles that lieutenant governors have had in seeking the state’s top political office, the Detroit News reports.

The Washington Post notes Michigan will be a big test for Democrats post-2024, as they look to defend the governor’s office and a Senate seat.

Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson (D), a former law school dean who oversaw two presidential elections in battleground Michigan, is launching a campaign Wednesday to become the state’s next governor, the Detroit News reports.

Detroit Free Press: “Michigan voters first elected Benson as Secretary of State in 2018 and then again in 2022 by a nearly 14-point margin — the biggest of any of the major statewide races that year. As Michigan’s chief elections officer during the 2020 election, Benson spoke out against President Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn his loss that year. She regularly appears on cable TV news programs as a national voice on protecting democracy in the U.S.”

“Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg has met in recent months with several prominent Michigan Democrats, some of whom believe the former presidential candidate is considering a campaign for governor,” the Detroit News reports.

“Some of the sources said they saw the meetings as an indication Buttigieg was seriously looking at the possibility of a gubernatorial run, while others said they believed Buttigieg’s plans might have been altered by the Nov. 5 presidential election.”

“Because Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris lost to Republican Donald Trump, Buttigieg will likely have to decide whether to run for governor of Michigan in 2026 or president in 2028.”

Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, a longtime Democrat, says he will run for Michigan governor as an independent in 2026, the AP reports.

Said Duggan: “It’s clear to me that there are a lot of people in this country who are tired of both parties and tired of the system. And so I want to offer people a choice.”

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg did not dismiss the possibility of a 2026 Michigan gubernatorial run, saying he’ll decide “how to make myself useful” after the election, the AP reports.

A new Detroit Free Press poll in Michigan finds Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) crushing challenger Tudor Dixon (R), 54% to 43%.

A new WDIV/Detroit News poll in Michigan finds Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) leading challenger Tudor Dixon (R) in the race for governor, 52% to 43%.

Michigan gubernatorial nominee Tudor Dixon (R) “invoked a conspiracy that the Covid-19 pandemic and protests in the summer of 2020 after the killing of George Floyd were part of a decades-long plan by the Democratic Party to ‘topple’ the United States as retaliation for losing the US Civil War, adding that the party wanted to enslave people ‘again,'” CNN reports.

Said Dixon: “Why wouldn’t that come from the party that lost the Civil War? The party that wanted to own people because they viewed them as less than human? Do you think that the Democrats are over losing to the north?” 

A new CNN poll in Michigan finds Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) leads challenger Tudor Dixon (R) among likely voters, 52% to 46%.

Michigan gubernatorial candidate Tudor Dixon (R) told a crowd Friday afternoon that single working women in Michigan are living a “lonely life” — and that’s exactly what Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) wants, the Michigan Advance reports.

Said Dixon: “Families look all different ways. They’re the ones telling me that on a regular basis, but apparently, they’re refusing to see one dynamic here. A lot of people want to have families. This state, we don’t have support from the governor for families unless they look exactly the way she wants.”

She added: “And you know what that looks like these days? Looks like single moms — no, not single moms. Single women working. That’s like, her dream for women. Single women working. Last time I checked, that was a pretty lonely life.”

“Michigan’s face-off on Thursday between incumbent Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Republican challenger Tudor Dixon was marked by frequent accusations of lying from both sides, as the candidates tried to paint each other as untrustworthy on issues ranging from abortion to schools with just a few weeks left before Election Day,” Politico reports.

The Detroit News has five takeaways.

A new Detroit Free Press/EPIC-MRA poll shows Whitmer leading the race, 49% to 38%.

A new Detroit News poll in Michigan finds Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s (D) lead over challenger Tudor Dixon (R) has reached 17 percentage points with five weeks remaining before the Nov. 8 mid-term election, 49% to 32%.

“Two months ago, former President Donald Trump and the Republican establishment joined forces to elevate Tudor Dixon in Michigan’s messy GOP primary for governor, signaling a united front against Democratic incumbent Gretchen Whitmer,” NBC News reports.

“But since then, national Republicans have largely abandoned Dixon, leaving her to fend for herself in a state that was supposed to be one of the party’s top targets in 2022.”

“Trump may be the exception. He’s scheduled to headline a Saturday rally for Dixon and other GOP candidates in the state. His visit comes at a time when Whitmer and the Democratic groups supporting her re-election are crushing Dixon and the GOP in ad spending, $16.5 million to $924,000 through Wednesday.”

Michigan gubernatorial candidate Tudor Dixon (R) made light of the 2020 kidnapping plot against Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D), CNN reports.

Said Dixon: “For someone so worried about being kidnapped, Gretchen Whitmer sure is good at taking business hostage and holding it for ransom.”