“I've never covered the president in any way other than that he is ultimately responsible.”
- Helen Thomas -
Michigan’s race for governor is now officially set. Democratic nominee Jocelyn Benson on Wednesday selected Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks as her running mate, while Republican nominee John James tapped state Rep. Jay DeBoyer the week before. The November matchup is set: Benson and Brinks versus James and DeBoyer, and while both tickets bring legislative experience, they each offer sharply different visions for Michigan’s future.
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Jon King - Editor-in-Chief
YOUR TOP MICHIGAN ADVANCE STORIES OF THE WEEK
Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks speaks next to Jocelyn Benson as she is announced as Benson’s running mate on Aug. 19, 2026. (Photo by Katherine Dailey/Michigan Advance)
By Katherine Dailey
Democratic gubernatorial nominee Jocelyn Benson announced that Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks (D-Grand Rapids) will be her running mate in the November general election, citing Brinks’ successes in the state Legislature and her representation of the western side of the state as key factors in her decision.
A Christian nationalist protest led by Jan. 6 rioter Jake Lang prompted approximately 2,000 protesters and counterprotesters to gather in front of the Henry Ford Centennial Library in Dearborn on Aug. 18, 2026. (Photo by Tyler Scott/Michigan Advance)
By Tyler Scott
Great Replacement conspiracy theorist and pardoned Jan. 6 rioter Jake Lang brought his racial grievances and “Christian Crusader March” to Dearborn and its city council meeting on Tuesday, where the right-wing provocateur told council members Muslim people are “looking to outbreed” white people and “steal our wealth.”
Chairman of the House Select Intelligence Committee, Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI) (R) listens to testimony from national security officials June 18, 2013 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
By Ben Solis
Michigan Republican U.S. Senate nominee Mike Rogers collected nearly $100,000 from key players in the telecommunications industry while serving in Congress and during his current Senate bid, including from companies whose interests aligned with legislation he introduced on government data sharing, according to federal campaign finance records and his congressional record.
Kurt O’Keefe, one of the organizers behind Americans for Citizen Voting Michigan, a ballot committee dedicated to enacting voter ID and citizen-only voting in Michigan, lords over several boxes of petition signature sheets as the group prepares to deliver them to the Michigan Department of State. The group said it collected more than 750,000 signatures, which still need to be reviewed for validity by the state’s Bureau of Elections on March 4, 2026 (Photo by Ben Solis/Michigan Advance)
By Kyle Davidson
A proposed amendment to the Michigan state constitution requiring residents to prove their citizenship when voting may not make the ballot, with the Michigan Bureau of Elections issuing a report determining it may not have submitted enough valid signatures.
Zion Lutheran Church in Ann Arbor. Aug. 17, 2026. The church hosted an event in April 2026 that records indicate was infiltrated by undercover agents with the Department of Homeland Security. (Photo by Katherine Dailey/Michigan Advance)
By Katherine Dailey
An undercover Homeland Security Investigations agent attended an April event in Ann Arbor focused on resistance to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, according to federal investigative records.
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