Jocelyn Benson

Jocelyn Benson earned a bachelor’s degree from Wellesley College and a graduate degree from the University of OxfordUniversity of OxfordThe University of Oxford is a university in Oxford, England, where teaching existed in some form by 1096; it describes itself as the oldest university in the English-speaking world and is organised as a federal system of the university and dozens of self-governing colleges.Open the full entry, and she graduated from Harvard Law School.⁠[1][2]

Benson clerked for Judge Damon J. Keith, worked on election protection for the Democratic National Committee and worked for the Michigan Democratic Party from 2006 to 2008.⁠[1]

In 2010 she published State Secretaries of State: Guardians of the Democratic Process, the first major book on the role of the secretary of state in enforcing election and campaign finance laws.⁠[2][3]

That year she ran as a Democrat for Michigan Secretary of State and lost to Republican Ruth Johnson, 45.2% to 50.7%.⁠[1][3]

Benson was an associate professor and associate director of the Damon J. Keith Center for Civil Rights at Wayne State University Law School in Detroit, and later became the school’s dean. Appointed dean at age 36, she became the youngest woman in U.S. history to lead a top-100 accredited law school. She founded the school’s Levin Center with former U.S. Senator Carl Levin and as of 2020 was vice chair of its advisory board.⁠[2]

She then left the law school to become chief executive of the Ross Initiative in Sports for Equality (RISE), a national nonprofit that uses sports to improve race relations. She is also a co-founder and former president of Military Spouses of Michigan. In 2015 she became one of the youngest women to be inducted into the Michigan Women’s Hall of Fame.⁠[2][3]

On November 6, 2018, Benson defeated Republican Mary Treder Lang 52.9% to 44.0% to become Michigan’s 43rd Secretary of State, taking office in 2019.⁠[1][2]

In office she focused on making elections secure and accessible and on improving customer experiences at Secretary of State offices. In 2019 she became chair of Michigan’s Task Force on Women in Sports, created by Governor Gretchen Whitmer.⁠[2]

As Michigan’s chief elections administrator she oversaw the 2020 and 2024 elections, and she gained national recognition for defending the results of the 2020 election.⁠[4]

On November 8, 2022, she was re-elected, defeating Republican Kristina Karamo 55.9% to 41.9%.⁠[1]

On January 22, 2025, Benson formally announced her campaign for governor of Michigan to succeed Governor Gretchen Whitmer, then in her second term. In a press release she said: “I am running for Governor because our state needs a bold leader who will save all Michiganders time and money.”⁠[5]

On August 4, 2026, Benson won the Democratic gubernatorial primary over Chris Swanson, 83.3% to 16.7%. Her running mate was Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks.⁠[1][6]

Her campaign website said that as governor she would make Michigan more affordable and take its public schools into the top 10 in the nation.⁠[6]

Her main opponent in the November 3 general election was Republican U.S. Representative John James. The Associated Press declared Benson the winner at 1:45 a.m. EST on November 4, 2026. Unofficial returns showed Benson with 54.5% of the vote and James with 43.7%. She is due to take office on January 1, 2027.⁠[4][3][1]

Jocelyn Benson for Governor: Official website: https://www.jocelynbenson.com/ (opens in a new window).⁠[6]

X: Public account: https://x.com/JocelynBenson (opens in a new window).⁠[6]

YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is Google’s video-sharing and creator platform, founded in 2005 by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim and acquired by Google in 2006. Built around video uploading, viewing, and creator earnings, the platform has developed Shorts, YouTube Music, Premium, YouTube TV, and products for children, and is headquartered in San Bruno, California, United States.Open the full entry: Public channel: https://www.youtube.com/@BensonforGovernor (opens in a new window).⁠[6]