Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan’s choice to run as an independent in his bid for Michigan governor may be paying off, as a new poll shows him within single digits of the two major party candidates.
The long-time Democrat switched to become an independent in December 2024 when he launched his campaign to succeed term-limited Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D-MI).
“There are a lot of people in this country who are tired of both parties and tired of the system,” Duggan said in an ABC News interview as he launched his candidacy.
Duggan is gaining steam in polling data, now coming within single digits of the leading Democratic candidate, current Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, and the leading Republican candidate, Rep. John James (R-MI), according to a new Schoen Cooperman Research poll.
Benson leads in the potential horse race matchup with 30% of the vote, as James trails at 29% and Duggan follows with 26% of the vote, according to the poll, conducted for Duggan’s campaign and reported by Politico. Schoen Cooperman polled 600 likely Michigan voters in the round-up.
Duggan had trailed the two major party candidates by double digits in earlier polling, marking the Schoen Cooperman Research poll results as a shift in momentum for the Independent candidate as the race gets closer.
The poll also shows that each of the three candidates has a net positive favorability rating, but that Duggan has the highest favorability rating of the three at plus 27. The poll notably points out that “politicians in Lansing,” the Michigan capital, have the largest net negative favorability rating among prospective 2026 voters, “underscoring dissatisfaction with Michigan’s current partisan leadership,” the poll reads.
Duggan launched his campaign on ending hyperpartisanship in Michigan and “putting politics aside to put progress first,” he wrote in his announcement post on X.
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“What would happen if we upended the system and gave Michigan voters a new choice? A governor who didn’t run as a candidate of either party, who went to work every day with no goal except to get people to work together for all of Michigan,” Duggan said in his campaign announcement.
The primary elections for each major party will take place on Aug. 4. The general election will be held on Nov. 3., just over one year away.