No party, lots of cash: Duggan raises big dollars in run for governor
Duggan was the first major candidate to enter his name in the governor's race, and he shook up the traditionally red-blue affair with an announcement that sent shock waves through Michigan politics, abandoning his longtime affiliation with the Democratic Party to run as an independent. Michigan has never had an independent governor or a serious independent candidate for the office. Duggan has argued that he can break the logjam in Lansing and coalesce lawmakers across party lines to achieve shared policy goals.
Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, a Democrat, has brought in the biggest haul in the race so far with $3.5 million flowing into her campaign coffers since she launched her gubernatorial bid, a sum that includes over $1.1 million that she transferred from her Secretary of State campaign committee. The latest campaign finance reports cover candidates' fundraising so far in 2025 through July 20.
On the Republican side of the race, Senate Minority Leader Aric Nesbitt of Porter Township and U.S. Rep. John James of Shelby Township were neck and neck with each raising almost $2.3 million and Nesbitt having a slight edge over James. James' campaign has celebrated additional support from Mission Michigan, a pro-James PAC backed by the DeVos family.
Whitmer cannot run again due to term limits. Voters will have to wait more than a year before they can weigh in on who should succeed her, but the fundraising contest is already off to the races.
Duggan has almost as much cash as Benson, eyes national support
Entering the race early gave Duggan a longer runway to start raising money before his competitors. But first, he said he had to overcome some challenges. "We didn't have a portal to accept donations because of course we couldn't use ActBlue," he said, referencing the Democratic fundraising platform. "We didn't have a statewide donor list."
"The first three months or so was really just replicating the infrastructure that the candidates out of the parties had," he said.
Duggan touted how many of his donations came from Michigan. But he also has his eye on luring dollars nationally. "I have to get better at raising nationally," Duggan said. He said "massive national money is going to pour" into the Democratic and Republican campaigns once voters pick their nominees in the August 2026 primary. But he said his latest fundraising numbers should catch the attention of those outside Michigan.
Some of Duggan's biggest contributions came from the Michigan Regional Council of Carpenters' PAC, which gave $40,000. and Rocket State PAC, which is affiliated with the Rocket Companies.
Benson outraises Democratic opponents
Benson's campaign has compared her $3.5 million haul to the $1.5 million Whitmer raised during the same period in her 2018 run — Michigan's last open race for governor. "The numbers make it clear: Jocelyn Benson is the best candidate to take on any candidate, Republican or Independent, in November 2026," said Benson Campaign Manager Nikki Goldschein in a statement.
Benson has over $2.4 million cash on hand, the most of any candidate, with Duggan not far behind at over $2.3 million.
Genesee County Sheriff Chris Swanson has raised over $1 million so far, and his campaign has over $468,000 cash on hand. Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II's campaign has brought in more than $750,000 and has over $312,000 cash on hand.
Michigan Politics: Mediation ordered in Michigan House lawsuit against Secretary of State Benson on subpoenas
Nesbitt leads the GOP pack
Benson wasn't the only candidate to give her campaign for governor a boost from previous runs. A chunk of the $2.3 million Nesbitt's campaign brought in — about $114,000 — came from his own state Senate campaign. Another roughly $250,000 came from PACs tied to him.
"I'm incredibly humbled by the overwhelming support we've seen since announcing our campaign in January," Nesbitt said in a statement, adding that "these past few months have shown they're looking for bold, conservative leadership to put Michigan First in 2026."
A third of the nearly $2.3 million James brought into his campaign came from his congressional campaign committee. Nesbitt has over $1.9 million cash on hand, and James has over $1.8 million cash on hand.
Former Attorney General Mike Cox also has more than $1.8 million cash on hand and reported bringing in almost $1.4 million in 2025. Cox lent his own campaign $1.42 million last year and gave himself another $500,000 loan in July. Former Michigan House Speaker Tom Leonard's, R-DeWitt, campaign brought in over $646,000 and has over $609,000 cash on hand. The vast majority of his haul — almost $463,000 — came from his attorney general campaign committee.
Contact Clara Hendrickson at chendrickson@freepress.com or 313-296-5743.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Duggan's unique run for governor comes with considerable cash
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