{"id":2640655,"date":"2026-08-04T21:59:01","date_gmt":"2026-08-05T01:59:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/jocelyn-benson-wins-michigan-democratic-primary-to-replace-whitmer\/"},"modified":"2026-08-04T22:00:58","modified_gmt":"2026-08-05T02:00:58","slug":"jocelyn-benson-wins-michigan-democratic-primary-to-replace-whitmer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/jocelyn-benson-wins-michigan-democratic-primary-to-replace-whitmer\/","title":{"rendered":"Jocelyn Benson wins Michigan Democratic primary to replace Whitmer"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fjocelyn-benson-wins-michigan-democratic-primary-to-replace-whitmer%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2640655&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Jocelyn Benson, Michigan&#8217;s Secretary of State, secured the Democratic nomination for governor by defeating Sheriff Chris Swanson with 84.7% of the vote, positioning her to contest the seat held by term-limited Governor Gretchen Whitmer. Benson aims to break Michigan\u2019s 65-year streak of Democratic incumbents winning their bids for governor, despite the state&#8217;s historical tendency. Her campaign focused on affordability and lowering costs related to housing, healthcare, and childcare, and she is supported by many state legislators with over $6.4 million in campaign funds. Swanson campaigned on a &#8220;working class playbook&#8221; and attacking political corruption, positioning himself as an alternative to the establishment. Benson now awaits the Republican primary winner, with early leads from Rep. John James. The upcoming general election is highly watched, as Benson seeks to defy Michigan&#8217;s long-standing pattern and possibly flip the state\u2019s governorship from Republican to Democrat.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<article class=\"fn-body\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/michigan\/\">Michigan<\/a> Secretary of State<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/jocelyn-benson\/\"> Jocelyn Benson<\/a> defeated Genesee County Sheriff Chris Swanson on Tuesday in Michigan\u2019s Democratic gubernatorial primary, clearing the way for her to defend term-limited Gov.<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/gretchen-whitmer\/\"> Gretchen Whitmer\u2019s<\/a> blue seat.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Benson defeated Swanson with 84.7% of the vote compared to Swanson\u2019s 15.3%, according to the latest poll count from the <em>Associated Press<\/em>.<\/p>\n<section class=\"explore-more-section\" id=\"wex-recommended-widget\">\n<div class=\"magazine-container single\">\n<h1 class=\"magazine-title mt-2\">Recommended Stories<\/h1>\n<p>             <i class=\"fa-solid fa-play icon\"><\/i>         <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-grid\">\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/state\/4673926\/jocelyn-benson-wins-michigan-democratic-primary-governor\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Jocelyn Benson wins Michigan Democratic primary to replace Whitmer<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/state\/4674341\/francesca-hong-abolish-police-white-supremacy\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Francesca Hong says \u2018no\u2019 to abolishing police, backs away from 2020 \u2018white supremacy\u2019 claim<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/state\/4674274\/steve-hilton-xavier-becerra-debate-california-governor-race\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Steve Hilton tries to pin Xavier Becerra down to debate in California governor\u2019s race<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Benson now awaits the winner of the GOP gubernatorial primary, which saw Rep.<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/john-james\/\"> John James<\/a> (R-MI) leading Republican businessman Perry Johnson early on.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-1\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-1\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-15\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-1\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Benson is tasked with the difficult goal of breaking Michigan\u2019s 65-year streak of Democratic candidates failing to win their general election bids to replace outgoing, term-limited Democratic <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/governor\/\" data-type=\"post_tag\" data-id=\"1155\">governors<\/a>. The state has not elected a Democrat to replace an outgoing Democratic governor since 1960, according to <em>Sabato\u2019s Crystal Ball<\/em>. The election forecaster, however,<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/centerforpolitics.org\/crystalball\/three-gubernatorial-rating-changes-michigan-to-leans-democratic-new-mexico-to-safe-democratic-florida-to-likely-republican\/\"> ranks<\/a> the state as \u201cLeans Democratic.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Benson ran her campaign on 2026\u2019s campaign buzzword,<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/affordability\/\"> affordability<\/a>, offering voters her \u201cAffordable Michigan agenda\u201d focused on lowering costs on big-ticket items, including housing, healthcare, and childcare. Benson, backed by many state legislators throughout the Wolverine State, boasts over $6.4 million in the bank, per her<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/bridgemi.com\/michigan-government\/whos-funding-michigan-governor-candidates-new-filings-reveal-top-donors\/\"> July reporting numbers<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Swanson had run on what he<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/swansonformichigan.com\/issues\/\"> called<\/a> a \u201cworking class playbook,\u201d also<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/swansonformichigan.com\/issue\/a-better-lansing\/\"> targeting<\/a> political corruption in the state capitol as part of his agenda. He pinned Benson as the establishment candidate,<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/swanson4mi\/status\/2084061685162106979?s=20\"> writing on X<\/a> ahead of the election, \u201cthe establishment has had its chance. It\u2019s time for a different playbook.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-2\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-2\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-16\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-2\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/state\/4670006\/governor-race-replace-gretchen-whitmer-michigan\/\"><strong>THE RACE TO REPLACE GRETCHEN WHITMER IN MICHIGAN<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Benson and the Republican winner will now go head-to-head in the purple state\u2019s general gubernatorial election in November, as former Detroit mayor<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/state\/4578581\/mike-duggan-michigan-governor-run\/\"> Mike Duggan<\/a> ditched his independent bid for the seat.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Eyes will be locked on Michigan to see whether Benson can break the incumbent gubernatorial party\u2019s historic losing trend, or whether the Republican winner can eliminate Whitmer\u2019s 10-percentage-point lead from her 2022 reelection victory.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-3\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-3\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-17\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-3\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Benson wins Michigan Dem primary to challenge GOP in November<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3976,"featured_media":2640656,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/AP22313207101671-scaled-e1785873810738.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[32807,48990,37975],"class_list":["post-2640655","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-democratic-primary","tag-jocelyn-benson","tag-michigan-politics"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/AP22313207101671-scaled-e1785873810738.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2640655","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3976"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2640655"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2640655\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2640658,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2640655\/revisions\/2640658"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2640656"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2640655"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2640655"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2640655"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}