John James wins Michigan Republican governor primary

U.S. Rep. John James won Michigan’s Republican nomination for governor Tuesday, setting up a fall contest against Democratic Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson in one of the nation’s most closely watched battleground states.

NBC News and CBS News projected James, a two-term congressman who represents Detroit suburbs, as the winner over wealthy businessman Perry Johnson. CBS News reported that unofficial results as of 10:47 p.m. showed James leading with 155,109 votes to Johnson’s 111,942.

James prevailed despite being heavily outspent. Johnson poured more than $31 million into advertising, according to the ad-tracking firm AdImpact, while James’ campaign spent $2.8 million. Johnson, 78, self-funded his campaign and declined political donations, pitching himself as a political outsider with a business background.

“In the state of Michigan, people are really tired of the politicians,” Johnson told NBC News last month. “I am an outsider. Nobody denies this fact. I’m the outsider of outsiders.”

James, 45, had the backing of President Donald Trump, who endorsed him despite early concerns that a statewide campaign could put James’ competitive House district at risk. Trump traveled to Michigan last week to campaign for him. James also was endorsed by Rep. Aric Nesbitt, who suspended his campaign in June, CBS News reported.

Former Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox dropped out of the Republican primary on July 17 and backed James. Several polls had shown Cox drawing a significant share of Republican voters, raising the possibility of a three-way split that could have helped Johnson.

James is an Army veteran who served as an aviation officer for eight years and later worked in his family’s logistics business. Before winning his House seat in 2022, he lost U.S. Senate races in 2018 and 2020 to Democratic incumbents Debbie Stabenow and Gary Peters. He later defeated Democrat Carl Marlinga in House races in 2022 and 2024.

During the primary, James emphasized his military, business and congressional experience and criticized Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who is barred by term limits from seeking another term.

“This is an amazing state with all the great ingredients, but for the past seven-and-a-half years, under Gretchen Whitmer, we’ve been led to higher taxes, more crime on the roads — and frankly, the roads we have aren’t fixed yet,” James said during a televised debate last month, referring to Whitmer’s 2018 pledge to “fix the damn roads.”

“We’re going to work together to make sure that our children can read, to make sure that we put criminals in jail, and we hold those accountable who continue to let them back out,” he added.

Johnson campaigned on eliminating Michigan’s income tax, saying a typical family would keep about $4,747 a year. He said he would audit state government spending and focus on efficiency to manage the revenue loss, while also seeking property tax changes. CBS News reported that Johnson, who built his career in the auto industry, said his business experience “brought quality and efficiency to help save the auto industry.”

Benson won Tuesday’s Democratic primary and now faces James in a state where voters have not elected a Democrat to succeed a Democrat as governor in more than 65 years. Democrats’ general election path became clearer in May when former Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan ended his independent bid.

Benson deputy campaign manager Alyssa Bradley said the secretary of state “begins the general election with something no other candidate can claim: a record of delivering.” A Benson campaign memo said James and Johnson spent the primary “lobbing personal attacks at each other and competing for Donald Trump’s attention,” while Benson focused on issues affecting Michigan families.