Detroit Free Press
May 12, 2026
Arpan Lobo
A new poll in the race for Michigan governor shows Democratic frontrunner and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson leading potential Republican challengers and former Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, who is running as an independent.
The poll, published Tuesday, May 12, shows Benson receiving support from 34.2% of respondents in a three-way hypothetical race with U.S. Rep. John James, R-Shelby Township, at 29.2%, and Duggan, at 23%.
Replace James with businessman and fellow Republican candidate Perry Johnson, and Benson still leads at 34%, followed by Johnson at 26% and Duggan at 23.3%.
The poll was conducted by the Lansing-based Glengariff Group on behalf of the Detroit Regional Chamber. The survey was conducted from April 28 to May 1 by live operators and had a sample size of 600 likely voters in the November general election, with 87.3% of responses captured via cell phones. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.
It’s worth noting the Detroit Regional Chamber has endorsed Duggan, a former three-term mayor of Detroit who left the Democratic Party in 2024 to launch a bid as an independent.
But the survey results may actually show warning signs for the Duggan campaign — he’s lost ground since the chamber’s previous poll in February, when he had a slight lead in a hypothetical race over James and Benson. He’s 7 percentage points worse off in the May survey compared with the February edition.