Michigan governor

Candidates include Jocelyn Benson (D), John James (R), Douglas Campbell (G), Anthony Hudson (L) and Donna Brandenburg. Campaign figures come from each candidate’s filings with the Michigan Bureau of Elections. Each figure shows the date it runs through.

Campaign reports here run through Aug. 24, 2026. That’s the newest report Michigan requires. The next one is due Oct. 23, 2026 and covers through Oct. 18, 2026; this page is updated once it’s filed.

14 days until Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 3.

Voting in Michigan? Check your registration, deadlines and options on vote.gov (opens in a new tab)

Candidates · what each campaign reported

Jocelyn Benson (D)

Jocelyn Benson for Governor

Raised: $12.5M
Spent: $6.6M
Cash on hand: $5.9M

Through Aug. 24, 2026. State filing.

These figures cover her whole campaign. Raised includes $747,764 in interest, refunds and other money that isn’t a contribution.

Outside money

For$80K

John James (R)

John James for MI

Raised: $8.5M
Spent: $7.4M
Cash on hand: $1.1M

Jan. 1, 2026 through Aug. 24, 2026. State filing.

Raised includes $629,086 in public matching funds. He raised another $603,826 before 2026, and his campaign owes $306,805.

Outside money

For$3.3M
Against$42K

Also on the ballot: Douglas Campbell (G), Anthony Hudson (L), Donna Brandenburg (U.S. Taxpayers Party). Their fundraising isn’t tracked here.

Outside money · groups spending for or against the candidates

$3.5M from the groups below. In governor races, much outside money goes to the campaign or to a committee the candidate controls, so the table says how each dollar got into the race.

Outside money in the Michigan governor’s race
Group	For or against	How	Amount	When
Mission Michigan	For John James	Independent spending	$3,330,937	Through Oct. 7, 2026
Progress Michigan Political Action Fund	For Jocelyn Benson	Independent spending	$80,000	Through Oct. 7, 2026
Make Michigan Great Again	Against John James	Independent spending	$40,000	Through Oct. 7, 2026
Progress Michigan	Against John James	Independent spending	$1,843	Through Oct. 7, 2026

About these numbers

Michigan committees report spending for or against a candidate and name who it’s about, so that spending is listed here. Issue ads aren’t reported.
Campaign figures come from the post-primary reports, which run through Aug. 24.
Next report: Pre-general report, covering through Oct. 18, 2026, due Oct. 23, 2026. We’ll update this page once it’s filed.
Governor campaigns file with the state, not the FEC, so these numbers come from the Michigan Bureau of Elections and are read by hand after each state deadline, so a new filing can take a few days to show up here. National groups like the Republican and Democratic Governors Associations report to the IRS; their transfers are listed when they appear in state or IRS filings.
See a mistake or a filing we missed? Email corrections@paidforpolitics.com with a link to the filing.

Last checked Oct. 8, 2026. All governor races · How this works.