Michigan's Democratic Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson announces her candidacy for governor in a bid to replace Gretchen Whitmer.

Michigan's Democratic secretary of state announced Wednesday that she is running to succeed Gretchen Whitmer as governor in 2026, as the party tries to find its footing after November's significant losses in the battleground state.

Ms. Benson, a Democrat, jumped into a high-profile and potentially crowded race to lead one of the country’s top battleground states.

The secretary of state is the first Democrat to announce a run for the seat, joining a field of three official candidates running for Michigan governor so far.

To almost no one’s surprise, Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson made it official Wednesday that she is a candidate for Michigan governor in 2026. In a video posted to social media, the Detroit Democrat said she was running for the state’s top office to “truly make government work for everyone,

Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson becomes the first major Democratic candidate to launch a bid to be Michigan's next governor.

Benson said she's running for governor to "bring real solutions, not political games, conspiracy theories, or inaction" to Lansing.

Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson announced that she will run for governor in 2026.

Jocelyn Benson, currently Michigan's secretary of state, announced her campaign Wednesday for the state's governor in the 2026 election cycle. Current governor Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat, is facing a term limit situation and therefore unable to run again for that seat.

Jocelyn Benson is the first Democrat to announce her candidacy for governor in 2026 after the state voted for Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election.