2026 Midterms State GuideMichigan
Hold on to your paczki and put away your hand you just held up to show us where you live in your state.
- PrimaryStatewideAugust 4This date has passed.
- Election DayGeneralNov. 3
Updated
Hi! It’s me, Shadrach. Apparently, I’m your civic guide today. If you’ve been complaining about how things are going (and I’ve heard you, the walls are thin), this guide will help you feel informed and able to vote in this year’s midterms. Now, hold on to your paczki and put away your hand you just held up to show us where you live in your state, and let’s get into it.
Michigan at a glance
Michigan votes on Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026, for governor, U.S. Senate, all 13 U.S. House seats and two statewide ballot measures.
- Election Day
- Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026
- Voter registration
- Oct. 19: Last day to register online or by mail
- Early voting
- Oct. 24 to Nov. 1: Statewide early in-person voting period
- Governor
- 6 candidates
- U.S. Senate
- 6 candidates
- U.S. House
- 13 seats
- Statewide ballot measures
- 2
Your to-do list
0 of 3 doneImportant dates
- Sept. 19Deadline for clerks to send absentee ballots to military and overseas voters (UOCAVA 45-day rule) This date has passed.
- Sept. 24First day to vote absentee in person at your city/township clerk's office This date has passed.
- Oct. 19Last day to register online or by mail
- Oct. 24 to Nov. 1Statewide early in-person voting period
- Oct. 30Deadline to request an absent voter ballot online or by mail
- Nov. 2Last day to vote absentee in person at your clerk's office
- Nov. 3Election Day
What’s at stake
In the polls, 60% of Michigan voters say the economy is weakening. The auto industry, which is the backbone of Michigan's identity, faces uncertainty from trade policy, the EV transition, and global competition. Democrats see the governor and Senate races as a chance to keep the state blue; Republicans see the Senate seat as a potential pickup, and August's double primary makes Michigan's picture unusually uncertain heading into fall.
Who’s on your ballot
Tap a race to see the candidates.
Michigan is choosing a governor
See whose priorities line up with yours
Here are the top priorities each candidate lists, in their own words. Pick the 3 that matter most to you. Names stay hidden until you see your results.
0 of 3 picked
- Top priorities
Jocelyn BensonDemocrat- Increase housing availability and affordability by streamlining regulations that slow down construction, incentivizing development of starter homes and affordable units, and cracking down on corporate investors who buy up properties and drive up rents.
- Treat housing as both an economic driver and a basic necessity.
- Work to increase options for low or no-cost preventive healthcare services across Michigan.
- Top priorities
John JamesRepublican- Ending corruption by rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse; ending the revolving door; and closing loopholes.
- Restoring trust, rebuilding integrity, and ensuring the government serves the people with honesty and accountability by exposing the truth, correcting past wrongs, and passing structural reforms.
- Protecting families and empowering parents in education, healthcare, and more.
- Top priorities
Anthony HudsonLibertarian- Ending property taxes to provide homeowners and businesses with long-term financial relief, making it easier for families to keep their homes and for entrepreneurs to invest in their communities.
- Eliminate state income tax to put more money back into the pockets of Michigan families and businesses, boosting the economy and encouraging investment.
- Switch to a part-time legislature with part-time pay to ensure that lawmakers stay connected to the real-world challenges of their communities.
- Get to know ’em
Donna BrandenburgU.S. Taxpayers Party - Douglas CampbellGreen
- Evan SpaceIndependent
Write-in
- Get to know ’em
Abdul El-SayedDemocrat - Get to know ’em
Mike RogersRepublican - Get to know ’em
Lydia ChristensenLibertarian - Walter KristyNatural Law Party in Michigan
- Timothy LongU.S. Taxpayers Party
- Douglas P. MarshGreen
All U.S. House of Representatives seats are up for election every two years. Find your district here.
- Shadrach’s big picture
Michigan sends 13 representatives to Congress. The delegation is closely divided with 7 Republicans and 6 Democrats, reflecting the state's battleground status. With the governor's race and Senate race both drawing intense attention, House races may get less national coverage but matter just as much for Michiganders.
- Open seats
Two Michigan House seats are open in 2026. MI-11 (Haley Stevens, D) is open after Stevens left to run for Senate. MI-10 (John James, R) is open after James left to run for governor.
- Competitive districts
Cook ranks two Michigan districts toss-ups: MI-7 (currently held by a Republican) and MI-10 (currently held by a Republican). MI-4 leans Republican but isn’t on ground as solidly red as MI-1, MI-2, MI-5, and MI-9. MI-8 is ranked likely Democratic, while MI-3, MI-6, and MI-11 to MI-13 are solidly Democratic. With House control hanging in the balance, parties will be depending on Michigan to flip the Lower Chamber or hold the line.
Statewide ballot measures
2 to read before you go. Tap one to open it.
Every 16 years, Michigan is required to ask voters one question: should the state rewrite its constitution? This is that year. If it passes, Michiganders would elect 148 delegates, one for each state House and Senate district, who would meet in 2027 to draft revisions. There's no set agenda and no limit on what they could change, but anything they write would come back to voters for final approval. Michigan's current constitution came out of the last convention, in 1961-62. Voters have declined the invitation the last three times it was offered (1978, 1994, 2010).
Voting yessupports holding a convention in 2027 where 148 elected delegates could propose any changes to the state constitution, which would then go to voters for final approvalVoting noopposes a convention, keeping the current constitution with no rewrite this cycleThis is a citizen-initiated law (a statute, not a constitutional amendment), so a future legislature could change it. It would do three things: (1) Bar campaign contributions to candidates and officeholders from state-regulated electric and gas utilities and from companies holding more than $250,000 a year in government contracts; (2) Extend campaign finance disclosure rules to ads that name a candidate or ballot measure without explicitly saying "vote for" or "vote against"; (3) Require online political ads to disclose who funded them. Supporters say it closes disclosure gaps. Opponents, including the Michigan Chamber, say it restricts employees' speech.
Voting yessupports banning campaign contributions from state-regulated electric and gas utilities and from companies with more than $250,000 a year in government contracts, and requiring disclosure of who pays for online political ads and for ads that name a candidate or ballot measureVoting noopposes the measure, so utilities and large government contractors can keep making campaign contributions and the new ad disclosure rules do not take effect
Also on the ballot
Other races Michigan voters will decide.
- Lieutenant Governor
- Attorney General
- Secretary of State
- State Board of Education (2 seats)
- Michigan State University Board of Trustees (2 seats)
- University of Michigan Board of Regents (2 seats)
- Wayne State University Board of Governors (2 seats)
- State Senate
- State House
- State Supreme Court
- Intermediate appellate courts
- School boards
- Municipal governments
- Recalls (removal of elected officials from office through a referendum)
Whose job is it?
Ten things government does. Tap the office that does each one.
Whose job is it to…
1 of 10
Declare a state of emergency after a hurricane or flood?
Pass it on
Know someone voting in Michigan?
Send them the guide. It takes one tap, and it saves them an evening of arguing in a group chat.
From the newsroom
How TPO has covered Michigan this cycle. Tap one to read it here.
Chipotle’s sweatin’ over salmonella cases linked to its jalapeños, swapping suppliers while health officials investigate. Meanwhile, the cyclosporiasis outbreak widened to 15 states Wednesday when the CDC tallied newly reported cases (see which states are on the list); officials are still looking for other potential sources of the parasite beyond the tip of the iceberg contaminated lettuce, explaining that gathering data takes weeks.
Lindsay Clancy’s trial is underway in Massachusetts. Charged with first-degree murder in the January 2023 deaths of her three young children, Clancy hasn’t disputed killing them but pleaded not guilty. Her lawyers cite undiagnosed postpartum psychosis; prosecutors say she acted deliberately. If found not criminally responsible, she’ll be committed to a psychiatric facility in lieu of life without parole. (Unsettled by this story? Pray with us.)
Abdul El-Sayed secured a one-point win in Michigan’s marquee matchup for the Democratic Senate bid. The former health official overcame centrist Rep. Stevens and her record-setting $65M campaign spending, rallying progressive Dems in the purple state’s primary. His November faceoff against Rep. Rogers (R-MI) will be closely watched, potentially determining which party controls the Senate.
Myspace wants to help you post like it’s 2005. In the new documentary “Myspace,” owners of the platform that once rivaled Facebook revealed plans to relaunch, ditching algorithms and ad-driven content in favor of user creativity, profile customization, and chronological feeds featuring your second cousin’s new baby. Nostalgic millennials are working on their top-8s wish lists for the platform’s resurrection.
Coming to a pharmacy near you: mRNA flu vaccines. Wednesday, the FDA approved the nation’s first mRNA flu vaccine for people 50+ after research found Moderna’s mFlusiva was 27% more effective than your standard flu shot. Moderna says the new vax tech* allows better strain targeting and faster manufacturing; skeptics, like HHS Sec. RFKJ, say it requires more scientific scrutiny.One story from that day’s newsletter.
Read the full day’s newsBlanche Backed
Read the full day’s newsActing Attorney General Blanche is ready to drop the “acting.”
GOP Senators Cornyn (TX) and Tillis (NC) said Monday they were ready to support Blanche’s confirmation as Uncle Sam’s top lawyer after Blanche formally terminated the DOJ’s $1.8B “anti-weaponization” fund. The fund, created in a settlement between President Trump and the IRS over leaked tax returns, had been repeatedly declared dead, but the Republican Senators wanted it in writing.
Blanche advanced through the Senate Judiciary Committee 12-10 along party lines and now awaits approval from the full chamber.
Meanwhile, five states headed to the polls yesterday. All eyes were on Michigan’s primary as Democrats chose whether to advance progressive Abdul El-Sayed or center-left Rep. Haley Stevens (D-MI) in a must-win Senate race for Democrats (see where things stand).
__CHOOSE LOVE
During any election season, it’s easy to see the shortcomings of our opponents and cast ourselves in the right. When you find yourself grumbling about others, remember to check your own heart.“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.”
Matthew 7:3-5 (CSB) (read full passage)IN OTHER BREWS…
- May 8Special election results
A prayer for Michigan
Lord of lands and lakes, Michigan is in Your hands. As this state is split into Upper and Lower, its voters are deeply divided. Draw near to Michiganders as they enter the ballot box, and unite them in the things that matter most. Give them unconditional love for their neighbors. Help them prioritize the good of their communities and the glory of Your name above all. May they cast their votes with conviction and hold the outcome with open hands.
Shield candidates from the temptation to win at any cost. May they lead with humility and remember that the people they seek to represent belong to you before they belong to any party. If they win, surround them with wise counsel and guide them toward decisions that serve their constituents. For those who lose, may they do so with dignity and a unifying spirit.
Guard the hearts and minds of Michiganders weighed down by the noise, grieved by the division, or afraid of what comes next. For you are not shaken by elections, you govern governors, and your kingdom will not be moved.
Amen.