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Michigan Secretary of State Race 2026 Voter Guide

Explore the 2026 Michigan Secretary of State race, featuring candidates, their backgrounds, and key election details as voters prepare for November.

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Table of Contents

Last Update: May 30, 2026

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About the Secretary of State

Democratic Candidates

EndorsedCandidate
Unendorsed Candidates

Republican Candidates

Endorsed Candidate

Unendorsed Candidates

Dropped Out Candidates

  1. Adam Hollier (D), Army Reserves, Former MI State Senator
  2. Aghogho Edevbie (D), MI Deputy Secretary of State

More Insights

About the Secretary of State

Introduction

Michigan's next Secretary of State will run our elections. Who should it be?

Michigan Secretary of State Race 2026

Every time you vote, renew your license plate, or look up a campaign donation online, you're touching the work of the Michigan Secretary of State. It's one of the most consequential offices in state government — and in 2026, it's wide open.

Jocelyn Benson has held the position for eight years, but term limits mean she's out — and she's running for governor. That means Michigan will have a brand new Secretary of State in 2027, at a time when election administration, voter access, and government transparency are hotter topics than ever.

The November general election will be a head-to-head race between the two party nominees: Democrat Garlin Gilchrist, endorsed at the Michigan Democratic Party convention on April 19, 2026, and Republican Anthony Forlini, endorsed at the Michigan Republican Party convention on March 28, 2026. All other candidates have either dropped out or did not qualify. 

This guide breaks down who they are, what the job actually involves, and what questions are worth asking as you decide who should be next.

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Current Secretary of State: Jocelyn Benson (D)

Jocelyn Benson
  • Website: https://jocelynbenson.com/
  • Current Job: State of Michigan
  • Job Title: Secretary of State
  • Age: 48
  • Date of Birth: 10/22/1977
  • City: Detroit
  • County: Wayne

Jocelyn Benson, Michigan's current Secretary of State, is term-limited and cannot seek reelection in 2026 after serving the maximum two four-year terms. As a result, the office will be open in the next election cycle.

Benson has announced that she is running for governor, shifting her focus from election administration to a statewide executive campaign. Her decision to pursue the governorship is one reason the 2026 Secretary of State race is drawing early attention, as it marks a leadership transition in an office that plays a central role in Michigan elections and public records.

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How Long is the Term and Term Limits

  • Term length: 4 years
  • Term limits: 2 terms (8 years total)
  • Next Election: November 2026

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What Does the Michigan Secretary of State Do?

The Michigan Secretary of State is one of the state's most important administrative and election-related offices. The role combines election oversight, business services, and record-keeping, all of which affect nearly every resident.

At a high level, the Secretary of State is responsible for:

  • Overseeing elections
    • Administers statewide elections
    • Certifies election results
    • Provides guidance and oversight to local election officials
    • Helps ensure election laws and procedures are followed
  • Managing voter access and registration
    • Oversees voter registration systems
    • Maintains statewide voter rolls
    • Implements election-related policies approved by law or ballot initiative
  • Running Michigan's driver and vehicle services
    • Oversees driver's licenses and state ID cards
    • Manages vehicle titles, registrations, and license plates
    • Operates branch offices and online services
  • Maintaining public and business records
    • Registers businesses and nonprofits
    • Oversees campaign finance and lobbying disclosures
    • Maintains official state records and filings
  • Enforcing transparency and compliance
    • Administers campaign finance reporting systems
    • Ensures political committees and candidates file required disclosures
    • Makes election and finance data publicly accessible

While the office does not make laws, it plays a central role in how elections function in practice and how accessible and transparent key government services are for Michigan residents.

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What to Look for in a Michigan Secretary of State

Once you understand what the office does, the next question is: what kind of experience and leadership help someone do the job well? Because the Secretary of State primarily has an administrative and oversight role, a candidate's management ability and operational judgment matter a lot.

  • Operational leadership: Experience running complex systems, large teams, or public-facing services at scale.
  • Election administration knowledge: Familiarity with how elections are conducted, the role of local clerks, and how statewide guidance is implemented.
  • Transparency and compliance mindset: A track record of following rules, disclosing information properly, and protecting the integrity of public reporting systems.
  • Clear communication under pressure: Ability to explain processes and decisions calmly, accurately, and consistently during high-attention moments.
  • Role clarity: Understanding what the office can and cannot do under Michigan law, court decisions, and voter-approved policies.
  • Service delivery focus: Commitment to improving everyday services like IDs, titles, registrations, and online/branch office experiences.
  • Collaboration skills: Ability to work effectively with clerks, the legislature, the governor's office, courts, and the public.

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How Michigan Picks Party Nominees for Secretary of State

Michigan doesn't hold public primaries for most statewide offices—including Secretary of State, Attorney General, Michigan Supreme Court, and state university boards. Instead, each political party selects its nominees at conventions, where credentialed delegates decide who appears on the November general election ballot.

Read, How Michigan Chooses Nominees for Statewide Offices, to learn how the process works, how early endorsements have shifted the political calendar, and how you can participate in shaping who makes it to the general election.

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What Are the Candidates Talking About?

The 2026 Secretary of State race is shaping up around a few core themes. Here's a plain-language look at where the two parties generally stand.

Election Integrity & Voter Rolls

Both parties say they want secure, accurate elections — but they mean different things. Democrats argue Michigan's elections are already secure, have withstood multiple audits, and that claims of widespread fraud are overstated. Republicans argue more needs to be done to verify voter eligibility, particularly around citizenship verification, and want a Secretary of State who will actively investigate and clean up the voter rolls.

Proof of Citizenship to Vote

This is one of the sharpest dividing lines in the race. Republican candidates generally support requiring voters to prove citizenship when registering, pointing to federal efforts like the SAVE Act. Democratic candidates say noncitizen voting is already illegal with multiple safeguards in place, and that adding documentation requirements would make it harder for eligible voters to participate.

Modernizing State Services

This one crosses party lines. Candidates on both sides say the Secretary of State's office — including branch offices, vehicle registration, and the state's campaign finance reporting system — needs to be updated and made more user-friendly. Democrats tend to frame this as expanding access and improving the experience for all residents. Republicans tend to frame it as reducing bureaucracy and streamlining operations.

Federal Overreach & State Authority

Democratic candidates have been vocal about protecting Michigan's authority to run its own elections and pushing back against federal attempts to nationalize election administration. Republican candidates are generally more aligned with the current federal administration's direction on elections.

Issues, positions, and candidates can change as the race develops. Michigan Women will continue tracking the race and sharing updates.

Benson's Conflict of Interest and Election Oversight

One of the most debated questions heading into 2026 is whether Michigan's current Secretary of State can fairly administer an election in which she is a candidate.

Jocelyn Benson is running for governor while simultaneously serving as Michigan's chief election official. In November 2025, a group of 22 Republican state lawmakers wrote to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi requesting that the DOJ deploy monitors to Michigan vote-counting facilities, citing what they called "an inherent and unavoidable conflict of interest." Several Republican gubernatorial candidates, including Aric Nesbitt and Perry Johnson, publicly called on Benson to recuse herself from election oversight entirely.

In May 2026, Benson responded by announcing a formal "firewall" policy — developed with help from the nonpartisan Election Reformers Network — under which she recuses herself from all decisions and administrative tasks that have a direct impact on the gubernatorial race. Under the policy, the nonpartisan Bureau of Elections handles those functions independently and does not share its work with Benson until decisions are finalized.

Context worth knowing: Michigan's elections are administered at the local level by county and municipal clerks. State-level functions are carried out by nonpartisan civil servants in the Bureau of Elections. The Secretary of State does not handle ballots or signatures directly. The Republican chair of the Board of State Canvassers has noted that Benson has never attended a board meeting during his tenure. Past secretaries of state — including Republican Ruth Johnson — have also overseen elections in which they personally appeared on the ballot.

Democratic candidates in the SOS race generally support Benson's firewall approach and argue the system's existing safeguards are sufficient. Republican candidates have been more skeptical, arguing that external oversight is warranted regardless of the firewall policy.

Vote Counting and Election Equipment

How Michigan counts votes has become an increasingly contested topic — and the next Secretary of State will have real authority over the systems and standards involved.

Michigan uses a decentralized vote-counting system. Ballots are counted at the local level by municipal and county clerks using optical scan tabulators — machines that read paper ballots and produce a count that can be audited against the physical paper. Results are then submitted to county canvassers for certification before routing to the Bureau of Elections at the state level. The Secretary of State does not directly handle ballots, signatures, or tabulation equipment.

Despite that structure, the integrity of vote counting has become a live issue in this race. Republican candidates have generally emphasized the need for greater transparency in tabulation and stronger oversight of local clerks. Some have raised questions about electronic voting equipment, though Michigan's system uses paper ballots that provide an auditable record. Democratic candidates have pushed back on what they describe as unfounded claims about counting accuracy, pointing to Michigan's post-election audit processes and the multiple layers of bipartisan oversight already built into the system.

What to watch: Whether any candidates formally call for hand counting of ballots — a practice election administrators across both parties have warned is slower, more error-prone, and more expensive than machine tabulation — and how the next SOS responds to continued pressure around tabulation transparency.

Poll Watchers and Voter Intimidation Concerns

Republican U.S. Senate candidate Mike Rogers drew attention in May 2026 when an audio recording obtained by the Detroit News revealed he had called for recruiting off-duty or retired police officers as poll watchers in Detroit. Critics — including civil rights organizations — said the proposal echoed historical tactics used to intimidate voters of color at polling places. Rogers's campaign did not dispute the recording.

While Rogers is a Senate candidate rather than an SOS candidate, the episode is relevant to the SOS race because poll watcher rules, conduct standards, and enforcement fall within the Secretary of State's jurisdiction. How each SOS candidate responds to questions about poll watcher guidelines and voter intimidation prevention is a legitimate issue for voters to evaluate.

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Democratic Candidates

The Michigan Democratic Party held its endorsement convention on April 19, 2026, in Detroit, where party members voted to back Garlin Gilchrist for Secretary of State ahead of the November General Election.

DEMOCRATIC ENDORSED: Garlin Gilchrest (D)

Garlin Gilchrest
  • Website: https://garlingilchrist.com
  • Current Job: State of Michigan
  • Job Title: Lieutenant Governor
  • Age: 42
  • Date of Birth: 9/25/1982
  • City: Detroit
  • County: Wayne

Articles

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Unendorsed Candidates

Barb Byrum (D)
Barb Byrum
  • Website: https://barbbyrum.com/
  • Current Job: Ingham County
  • Job Title: Clerk
  • Age: 47
  • Date of Birth: 11/10/1977
  • City: [Not sure]
  • County: Ingham

Update (April–May 2026): Byrum did not receive the Democratic endorsement at the April 19 convention, where Garlin Gilchrist was endorsed. She has not conceded the race and can still collect petition signatures to appear on the November ballot. Following the convention, Byrum raised concerns about the process itself — specifically the use of electronic voting and a reported instance of a delegate voting from home rather than in person. She called for the convention to use paper ballots and renewed her support for moving SOS nominations to a primary election. Byrum said she supports a primary only if it happens earlier in the year, similar to the spring endorsement conventions both parties have already adopted, arguing that an August primary would disadvantage candidates on fundraising and messaging. 

Articles

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Suzanna Shkreli (D)
Suzanna Shkreli
  • Website: https://suzannashkreli.com/
  • Former Job: Michigan Lottery (Resigned to run for SOS)
  • Job Title: Former Commissioner
  • Age: —
  • Date of Birth: —
  • City: —
  • County: Oakland

Articles

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Republican Candidates

The Michigan Republican Party held its early endorsement convention on March 28, 2026, where party delegates voted to back Anthony Forlini as their preferred candidate for Secretary of State ahead of the November general election.

GOP ENDORSED: Anthony Forlini (R)

Anthony Forlini
  • Website: https://forliniforus.com/
  • Current Job: Macomb County
  • Job Title: Clerk
  • Age: 63
  • Date of Birth: 02/04/1962
  • City: [Not sure]
  • County: Macomb

Articles

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Unendorsed Candidates

Monica Yatooma (R)
Monica Yatooma
  • Website: https://monicaformichigan.com/
  • Current Job: GEIA
  • Job Title: Director of Development and Strategic Partnerships
  • Age: 38
  • Date of Birth: 1987
  • City: Commerce Township
  • County: Oakland

Articles

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Amanda Love (R)
Amanda Love
  • Website: https://www.loveformi.net/
  • Current Job: [Can't find]
  • Job Title: [Can't find]
  • Age: —
  • Date of Birth: —
  • City: Independence Township
  • County: Oakland

Articles

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Timothy Smith (R)
Timothy Smith

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Dropped Out Candidates

Adam Hollier (D)

Adam Hollier
  • Website: https://adamhollier.com/
  • Current Job: Army Reserves, Former MI State Senator
  • Job Title: Team Chief and Paratrooper, 412th Civil Affairs Battalion
  • Age: 40
  • Date of Birth: 09/26/1985
  • City: Detroit
  • County: Wayne

Articles

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Aghogho Edevbie (D)

Aghogho Edevbie
  • Website: https://aghogho.com/
  • Current Job: State of Michigan
  • Job Title: Deputy Secretary of State
  • Age: 38
  • Date of Birth: 07/27/1987
  • City: Detroit
  • County: Wayne

Articles

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Political Committees

Understanding political committees and campaign finance laws is crucial for informed voting. The following committees and organizations are political action committees (PACs) that have registered campaign activity related to the Secretary of State race. They are not candidates.

You can search the full list of active committees through the state's campaign finance portal at https://mi-boe.entellitrak.com/. 

    • Jaffe Snider Raitt Heuer and Weiss Political Committee — Michigan law firm PAC. https://www.jaffelaw.com/
    • Kevin Coleman Future Leaders Fund — Political leadership PAC. No public website identified.
    • UNITE HERE TIP Campaign Committee – Michigan — Labor union PAC representing hospitality workers. https://unitehere.org/
    • End Citizens United Non-Federal — National campaign finance reform PAC. https://endcitizensunited.org/
    • Conservative Voices — Ideological advocacy PAC. No public website identified.
    • Joe Aragona for Majority — Leadership PAC affiliated with Michigan State Rep. Joe Aragona (R, District 60, Macomb County). No dedicated PAC website; Rep. Aragona's campaign site is https://josepharagonaforhouse.com/
    • Michigan Legacy PAC — Michigan-based PAC. No public website identified.
    • CandicePAC — Candidate-named PAC. No public website identified.
    • Advancing for Detroit and MI PAC — Founded by former State Sen. Adam Hollier (D-Detroit). No public website identified.
    • Michigan Aggregates Association — Industry trade association PAC representing the aggregates (sand, gravel, crushed stone) industry. https://www.michiganaggregates.org/
    • Chaldean Chamber Political Action Committee — Political arm of the Chaldean American Chamber of Commerce. https://www.chaldeanchamber.com/
    • Michigan Boating Industries Association PAC — Marine industry trade association PAC. https://www.mibia.org/
    • Plumbers and Pipefitters Local 333 PAC — Labor union PAC. https://ua333.org/
    • Michigan Motorcycle Riders PAC — No public website identified. (Likely affiliated with ABATE of Michigan or a similar motorcyclist rights organization — https://abateofmichigan.org/ — but no confirmed direct link to this specific PAC.)
    • Michigan Manufactured Housing RV and Campground Assn PAC — Trade association PAC for the manufactured housing, RV, and campground industries. https://www.michhome.org/ (MMHA) / https://www.michiganrvandcampgrounds.org/ (MARVAC division)
    • Miller Canfield PAC — Law firm PAC. https://www.millercanfield.com/
    • United Food and Commercial Workers Active Ballot Club — Labor union PAC (UFCW). https://www.ufcw.org/
    • Plumbers and Steamfitters Local 85 PAC — Labor union PAC. https://www.local85.org/
Learn about their roles, regulations, and how to stay informed: What Are Political Committees (PACs) in Elections. 
 

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Content Disclaimer: Our team researches information from official websites, news outlets, and other public resources to make it easier for Michigan residents to stay informed. We strive to provide accurate, balanced, and up-to-date information, but we may occasionally miss updates or changes. Michigan Women is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and does not support or oppose any political candidate or party. This content is intended solely for civic education and public awareness.