Republican Michigan Rep. John James believes the fate of President Donald Trump’s agenda in the upcoming midterm cycle could run through the battleground state.
James, an Iraq War veteran and a vocal ally of President Donald Trump, announced his 2026 gubernatorial run to succeed term-limited Democratic Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer on April 7. The two-term lawmaker argued he is the best candidate positioned to flip the governorship red and advance the president’s America First agenda in Michigan, in an exclusive interview with the Daily Caller News Foundation.
READ: Unpaid Workers’ Protests Spread Across China As Factory Closures Mount Amid Tariff Tensions
“We have a remarkable opportunity to carry President Trump’s agenda into the states,” James, a former Army helicopter pilot, told the DCNF. “It’s very important. If we don’t win it doesn’t matter. Winning matters. And we have to start winning again in Michigan.”
“We can’t play small ball anymore. We can’t be cowardly conservatives,” the congressman added. “We have to be bold. Without a strong type of ticket, we will lose seats in Michigan that jeopardizes President Trump’s agenda.”
The need for a strong Republican candidate at the top of the swing state’s midterm ballot was at the top of James’ mind over the course of the interview. He argued that the party nominated “weak” Republicans candidates to face Whitmer in 2018 and 2022 and that those failed nominees dragged down GOP House candidates with them.
“If we have a weak top of ticket then we will lose [House] seats in Michigan,” James told the DCNF. “The best chance we have to protect President Trump’s America First agenda is having a strong top of ticket in the state of Michigan.”
READ: Bernie Sanders Snipes At Chuck Schumer Over Claim Senate Dems Are Unified
The nonpartisan Cook Political Report rates the races in five Michigan districts, including James’ seat, as competitive during the 2026 cycle.
James believes he’s the man for the job, telling the DCNF that he’s a proven fighter that can withstand Democratic attacks and will strengthen the Republican ticket to lead down-ballot candidates to victory and expand Republicans’ House majority.
“I’m the only Republican who can perform at the top of the ticket to make sure that we not only hold our conservative state House, but flip our state Senate and make sure that we hold two critical congressional seats and flip another two,” James added.
The congressman and gubernatorial candidate was the Republican U.S. Senate nominee in Michigan during the 2018 and 2020 election cycles, losing to Democratic incumbents both times. In 2020, he came within two percentage points of unseating Democratic Michigan Sen. Gary Peters, running just over one point ahead of Trump in the state.
A Democratic candidate has not won an election to succeed an outgoing Democratic governor in Michigan since 1960. Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, a former lifelong Democrat who is running as an independent, could split the Democratic vote.
READ :Mike Waltz Nominated For UN Ambassador; Rubio To Serve Interim Role
Trump is also paying special attention to the battleground state, which he narrowly won in 2024. The president celebrated the first 100 days of his second term in James’ district in Macomb County, Michigan Tuesday. He announced a new fighter jet mission at Selfridge Air National Guard Base and praised James’ work on the issue.
“I don’t forget my friends and Michigan has been my friend,” Trump said during the announcement.
James spoke to the DCNF shortly after giving a House floor speech touting his effort to repeal a Environmental Protection Agency waiver allowing California to dictate a de facto electric vehicle (EV) mandate that was issued in the last weeks of the Biden administration. Rescinding former President Joe Biden’s de facto EV mandates was a top priority of Trump’s while on the campaign trail.
Having received Trump’s endorsement during multiple previous races, James said he would be honored to have the president’s support again.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
You’re on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which deals with issues that are of great importance to your district in Michigan and the state as a whole. Why is this run for governor the next step for you?
I love my state. I was born and raised in Michigan, and it’s a state that my mom and dad moved to from the Jim Crow South. We came to Michigan for opportunity. They came for a better life. But now it seems that unless something changes, their grandchildren are going to have to leave for the opposite reason. They’re going to have to leave for a better opportunity. They’re going to have to leave for their life. And that’s unacceptable. The ten million people in the state of Michigan deserve better.
I’m going to be focusing on a prosperity agenda that centers on academic excellence, economic mobility and public safety. These are things that are very important to me and very important to the people of the state of Michigan, and I’m excited to use my military experience, my business experience, and the relationships I’ve developed with President Trump, his administration and my colleagues here in Congress.
You’re a longtime supporter of President Trump. He’s called you a friend. Tell me about your relationship with the president. Have you talked with him about your gubernatorial bid?
I’ve been called an ‘Always Trumper’ and I appreciate that because I’ve been in the President’s corner, and he’s been in mine since 2018 maybe a little bit earlier. We’ve endorsed each other in every single race, and recently I endorsed in July 2023 of his most recent presidential run.
President Trump is the most consequential political figure and best president of my lifetime. He’s the most powerful man in the world. He’s an epic negotiator. But even more, the reason why I love President Trump is because he’s a good father. He’s a good granddad. I’ve been around his family. Trump’s a billionaire with a beautiful, smart wife, five successful children, all of whom love him. He is the epitome of success. And it’s a shame that the left demonizes him because I actually think that President Trump is the type of American whom we should emulate.
And what about the possibility of a Trump endorsement down the line?
President Trump knows how to pick a winner. I’m confident that by doing the things that I need to do, to lower prices, to secure our border, to bring jobs back, and to bring world peace in support of President Trump’s America First agenda, I’m sure that we’ll be in a much better position.
President Trump is doing everything that he can to Make America Great again, and I’m going to be in a great position to do everything I can to make Michigan great. And I’d be honored to have the President’s endorsement.
This isn’t your first time running for a statewide position in Michigan. You’re a well known candidate. What have you learned from your previous bids running for statewide office?
This is the most important thing. Don’t run during a global pandemic. That’s not a good idea.
This is an open seat. Also, the Democrat mayor of Detroit, Mike Duggan, is running as an independent in the state of Michigan.
This is setting up that it will be a very strong year for Republicans, and having me at the top of the ticket, who has prior experience running statewide, I have sustained over $250 million worth in attacks over the past eight years, and I’ve raised over $100 million for my own campaign. And perhaps even because of that, my name ID statewide is in the mid to high 80s. And my name ID in the Detroit area, that comprises 45% of the entire voting population in Michigan is 95%.
While my opponents are introducing themselves to people for the first time and trying to explain why they failed to endorse President Donald Trump early or endorsed [Florida Republican Governor] Ron DeSantis, I’m going to be able to tell them what I’ve delivered for the state of Michigan. I’m going to be able to share my story of how I’m going to help them and make their lives better and easier. And that’s something that I’m very, very excited to do. I think that Michigan is ready for a change, and right now, the party in power in Michigan are Democrats.
People remember what Democrats did to them during COVID. They remember what they did to their jobs. They remember their grandmothers and their grandfathers. They remember their churches shutting down. They remember forced vaccinations and masking children. They remember the dams exploding and those houses in Central Michigan that never recovered. They remember the broken promises and the Green New Deal agendas that have pushed jobs and opportunity out of Michigan and ramped up our costs on everything.
They remember these things, but now they have a Republican candidate who can actually win, and I think that you see it in the polls out there. I’m ahead by 40 points [in the primary contest].
The president seems to understand that Michigan is key to protecting his agenda during the midterms. Do you agree?
You’re absolutely right, but again, Republicans in the past have played small ball. That’s why we’re in the situation we’re in right now.
We can’t play small ball anymore. We can’t be cowardly conservatives. We have to be bold. Without a strong type of ticket, we will lose seats in Michigan that jeopardizes President Trump’s agenda. The status quo is not good enough in Michigan.
The best way to continue with President Trump’s agenda is to hold the seats we have in Michigan and to pick up two additional right now, you have two Democrats in the state of Michigan that in one of them is in a district that President Trump won. And another one is a D+3 that just hasn’t had a strong Republican run in it.
The other one is [Republican Michigan Rep.] Tom Barrett’s seat. They’re going to come after him. And the other one’s mine, which we are going to win.
Under the right circumstances, [Democratic Michigan Rep.] Hillary Scholten is running for Senate. That seat might be approachable.
We have proof in 2018 and in 2022 where the weak top of the ticket cost Republican seats, and I have proof that in both of those races, I over performed, and given my position in the state of Michigan, I’m the only one who can say that I’m strong enough to carry the top of the ticket across the finish line, which is especially important because we don’t have the benefit of of having President Trump at the top of the ticket. That means somebody with a high name, ID, high favorables, someone who’s willing to put the work in, and somebody who’s delivered and somebody who’s over performed the top of the ticket every time he’s been tried.
What is the top message you want readers to take away from this interview?
We have a remarkable opportunity to carry President Trump’s agenda into the states. It’s very important. If we don’t win, it doesn’t matter. Winning matters. And we have to start winning again in Michigan.
Because of poor performance in previous primaries we lost in 2018. We lost [former Republican Michigan Rep.] Mike Bishop’s seat because the top of the ticket lost by ten points. Our last midterm, the last Republican nominee [Tudor Dixon] got blown out by ten and a half points.
The best chance we have to protect President Trump’s America First agenda is having a strong top of ticket in the state of Michigan. I’m the only Republican who can perform at the top of the ticket to make sure that we not only hold our conservative state House, but flip our state Senate and make sure that we hold two critical congressional seats and flip another two.
If we have a weak top of ticket then we will lose seats in Michigan. We cannot lose seats in Michigan by having anybody else on the top of the ticket than somebody who has proven to outperform, to fundraise and to make the ticket stronger. The priority is to make sure we have the strongest top of ticket. Because when we haven’t before we have lost seats, but with a strong top of ticket we will gain seats.
Please make a small donation to the Tampa Free Press to help sustain independent journalism. Your contribution enables us to continue delivering high-quality, local, and national news coverage.
Connect with us: Follow the Tampa Free Press on Facebook and Twitter for breaking news and updates.
Sign up: Subscribe to our free newsletter for a curated selection of top stories delivered straight to your inbox.
First published by the Daily Caller News Foundation.
