{"id":28279,"date":"2026-08-05T07:32:35","date_gmt":"2026-08-05T02:32:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=28279"},"modified":"2026-08-05T07:32:35","modified_gmt":"2026-08-05T02:32:35","slug":"trump-endorsed-rep-john-james-wins-michigan-gop-primary-for-governor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=28279","title":{"rendered":"Trump-endorsed Rep. John James wins Michigan GOP primary for governor"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div id=\"beyondwords-wrapper\" data-layout-index=\"5\" class=\"beyondwords-wrapper\">\n<p><span class=\"label-bg\">NEW<\/span>You can now listen to Fox News articles!\n  <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\" class=\"speakable\">President\u00a0<a data-omtr-intcmp=\"fnc_politics_article_main-content_article-body_6_269695\" href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/category\/person\/donald-trump\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Donald Trump&#8217;s<\/a>\u00a0kingmaker status in Republican primaries was on the line Tuesday in Michigan&#8217;s GOP gubernatorial nomination showdown \u2013 and the president passed the test.<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\" class=\"speakable\">Republican Rep. John James, a two-time U.S. Senate nominee in the crucial Great Lakes battleground state who was endorsed by Trump in late June, topped multimillionaire businessman Perry Johnson to win the <a data-omtr-intcmp=\"fnc_politics_article_main-content_article-body_6_269696\" href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/category\/politics\/elections\/republicans\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">GOP primary<\/a>, the Associated Press reported.<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">The West Point graduate and Army Ranger who served multiple combat tours as an Apache helicopter pilot in the Iraq war will face off in a high-stakes and expensive general election battle with two-term Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, the Democrats&#8217; gubernatorial nominee, in the race to succeed term-limited Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\"><a data-omtr-intcmp=\"fnc_politics_article_main-content_article-body_6_269697\" href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/elections\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><strong><u>DEMOCRACY \u201926: STAY UP TO DATE WITH THE FOX NEWS ELECTION HUB<\/u><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<div data-layout-index=\"5\" class=\"image-ct inline\">\n<div class=\"m\"><picture><source media=\"(max-width: 767px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/a57.foxnews.com\/static.foxnews.com\/foxnews.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/343\/192\/John-James-Harrison-Township_-Michigan-August-3_-2026.jpeg?ve=1&amp;tl=1, https:\/\/a57.foxnews.com\/static.foxnews.com\/foxnews.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/686\/384\/John-James-Harrison-Township_-Michigan-August-3_-2026.jpeg?ve=1&amp;tl=1 2x\" height=\"192\" width=\"343\"><source media=\"(min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1023px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/a57.foxnews.com\/static.foxnews.com\/foxnews.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/672\/378\/John-James-Harrison-Township_-Michigan-August-3_-2026.jpeg?ve=1&amp;tl=1, https:\/\/a57.foxnews.com\/static.foxnews.com\/foxnews.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1344\/756\/John-James-Harrison-Township_-Michigan-August-3_-2026.jpeg?ve=1&amp;tl=1 2x\" height=\"378\" width=\"672\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/a57.foxnews.com\/static.foxnews.com\/foxnews.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1200\/675\/John-James-Harrison-Township_-Michigan-August-3_-2026.jpeg?ve=1&amp;tl=1\" alt=\"John James is battling Perry Johnson for the 2026 Michigan GOP gubernatorial nomination\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\"\/><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>\n<div class=\"info\">\n<div class=\"caption\">\n<p><span>Rep. John James of Michigan, a Republican candidate for governor, speaks to a voter at a campaign event in Harrison Township, Michigan, on August 3, 2026.<\/span> <span>(Luke Trevisan\/Fox News)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">The GOP primary between James and Johnson, a former gubernatorial and presidential candidate, turned combative. Johnson, who is White, referred to James, one of the few Black Republicans in Congress, as a &#8220;DEI candidate&#8221; and in a recent debate accused James of playing the &#8220;race card.&#8221; James, meanwhile, called Johnson &#8220;desperate.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">Johnson, who shelled out millions of his own money into his campaign, dramatically outspent James in the primary showdown.<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\"><a data-omtr-intcmp=\"fnc_politics_article_main-content_article-body_6_269698\" href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/fox-news-power-rankings-top-races-watch-36-states-choose-next-governor\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\"><strong>CHECK OUT THE FOX NEWS POWER RANKINGS IN THE 2026 RACES FOR GOVERNOR<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<div data-layout-index=\"5\" class=\"image-ct inline\">\n<div class=\"m\"><picture><source media=\"(max-width: 767px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/a57.foxnews.com\/static.foxnews.com\/foxnews.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/343\/192\/perry-johnson-2024.jpeg?ve=1&amp;tl=1, https:\/\/a57.foxnews.com\/static.foxnews.com\/foxnews.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/686\/384\/perry-johnson-2024.jpeg?ve=1&amp;tl=1 2x\" height=\"192\" width=\"343\"><source media=\"(min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1023px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/a57.foxnews.com\/static.foxnews.com\/foxnews.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/672\/378\/perry-johnson-2024.jpeg?ve=1&amp;tl=1, https:\/\/a57.foxnews.com\/static.foxnews.com\/foxnews.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1344\/756\/perry-johnson-2024.jpeg?ve=1&amp;tl=1 2x\" height=\"378\" width=\"672\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/a57.foxnews.com\/static.foxnews.com\/foxnews.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1200\/675\/perry-johnson-2024.jpeg?ve=1&amp;tl=1\" alt=\"Perry Johnson\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\"\/><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>\n<div class=\"info\">\n<div class=\"caption\">\n<p><span>Perry Johnson, a former Republican gubernatorial and presidential candidate, is running for the 2026 GOP nomination for governor in Michigan.<\/span> <span>(Eva Marie Uzcategui\/Bloomberg via Getty Images)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">But James told Fox News on the eve of the primary that &#8220;nobody outworks a ranger,&#8221; and &#8220;money isn&#8217;t the only thing. People want someone who resonates with them, someone who has the proven leadership capability to turn the state around.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">James and Johnson were the final two Republican candidates in a nomination race that previously included former <a data-omtr-intcmp=\"fnc_politics_article_main-content_article-body_6_269699\" href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/category\/us\/us-regions\/midwest\/michigan\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Michigan Attorney General<\/a> Mike Cox and state Senate Republican leader Aric Nesbitt. They both suspended their GOP gubernatorial campaigns, but their names remained on the primary ballot.<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\"><a data-omtr-intcmp=\"fnc_politics_article_main-content_article-body_6_269700\" href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/newsletters\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\"><strong>SIGN UP TO GET THE POLITICS NEWSLETTER<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<div data-layout-index=\"5\" class=\"image-ct inline\">\n<div class=\"m\"><picture><source media=\"(max-width: 767px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/a57.foxnews.com\/static.foxnews.com\/foxnews.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/343\/192\/Jocelyn-Benson-on-stage.jpeg?ve=1&amp;tl=1, https:\/\/a57.foxnews.com\/static.foxnews.com\/foxnews.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/686\/384\/Jocelyn-Benson-on-stage.jpeg?ve=1&amp;tl=1 2x\" height=\"192\" width=\"343\"><source media=\"(min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1023px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/a57.foxnews.com\/static.foxnews.com\/foxnews.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/672\/378\/Jocelyn-Benson-on-stage.jpeg?ve=1&amp;tl=1, https:\/\/a57.foxnews.com\/static.foxnews.com\/foxnews.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/1344\/756\/Jocelyn-Benson-on-stage.jpeg?ve=1&amp;tl=1 2x\" height=\"378\" width=\"672\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/a57.foxnews.com\/static.foxnews.com\/foxnews.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/1200\/675\/Jocelyn-Benson-on-stage.jpeg?ve=1&amp;tl=1\" alt=\"Jocelyn Benson Michigan official\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\"\/><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>\n<div class=\"info\">\n<div class=\"caption\">\n<p><span>Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, a Democrat, is running for governor in the 2026 race to succeed term-limited Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.<\/span> <span>(Bill Pugliano\/Getty Images)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">Trump gave James a boost last month as he campaigned with the congressman at a rally in Michigan.<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">The brute force of the president&#8217;s endorsement power has been on display in GOP primaries this spring and summer, with his candidates ousting incumbents he targeted in showdowns in Indiana, Kentucky and Texas, as well as the Louisiana primary.<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">But Trump&#8217;s endorsement streak in statewide and congressional Republican primaries was snapped in early June when his last-minute endorsement of Republican Rep. Randy Feenstra of Iowa in the race to succeed retiring GOP Gov. Kim Reynolds wasn&#8217;t enough to propel the three-term congressman to victory.<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">Feenstra was narrowly edged by Zach Lahn, a businessman, farmer and former political strategist who was backed by the political wings of MAHA \u2014 the acronym for the Make America Healthy Again movement aligned with Trump&#8217;s Health Secretary <a data-omtr-intcmp=\"fnc_politics_article_main-content_article-body_6_269701\" href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/category\/person\/robert-f-kennedy-jr\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Robert F. Kennedy Jr<\/a>. \u2014 and Turning Point USA, the powerful conservative organization co-founded by the late Charlie Kirk.<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">Trump-backed candidates <a data-omtr-intcmp=\"fnc_politics_article_main-content_article-body_6_269702\" href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/trump-wins-two-loses-one-georgia-billionaire-delivers-rare-blow-endorsement-machine\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><u>won two of the three<\/u><\/a> top races in key GOP primary runoff elections in Georgia and Alabama in June, with the one setback coming against billionaire businessman Rick Jackson, who shelled out over $100 million of his own money to boost his campaign.<\/p>\n<div data-layout-index=\"5\" class=\"image-ct inline\">\n<div class=\"m\"><picture><source media=\"(max-width: 767px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/a57.foxnews.com\/static.foxnews.com\/foxnews.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/343\/192\/Donald-Trump-Mike-Rogers-John-James-Milford-Michigan-July-27_-2026.jpg?ve=1&amp;tl=1, https:\/\/a57.foxnews.com\/static.foxnews.com\/foxnews.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/686\/384\/Donald-Trump-Mike-Rogers-John-James-Milford-Michigan-July-27_-2026.jpg?ve=1&amp;tl=1 2x\" height=\"192\" width=\"343\"><source media=\"(min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1023px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/a57.foxnews.com\/static.foxnews.com\/foxnews.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/672\/378\/Donald-Trump-Mike-Rogers-John-James-Milford-Michigan-July-27_-2026.jpg?ve=1&amp;tl=1, https:\/\/a57.foxnews.com\/static.foxnews.com\/foxnews.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1344\/756\/Donald-Trump-Mike-Rogers-John-James-Milford-Michigan-July-27_-2026.jpg?ve=1&amp;tl=1 2x\" height=\"378\" width=\"672\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/a57.foxnews.com\/static.foxnews.com\/foxnews.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1200\/675\/Donald-Trump-Mike-Rogers-John-James-Milford-Michigan-July-27_-2026.jpg?ve=1&amp;tl=1\" alt=\"Trump campaigns for Mike Rogers and John James in Michigan\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\"\/><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>\n<div class=\"info\">\n<div class=\"caption\">\n<p><span>President Donald Trump, center, and GOP Senate candidate former Rep. Mike Rogers, left, listen as Rep. John James, a Republican gubernatorial candidate, speaks at an event at the General Motors Proving Ground Monday, July 27, 2026, in Milford, Mich.<\/span> <span>(Paul Sancya\/AP Photo)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">A week later, Trump-backed first-time candidate Anthony Constantino, a businessman and former boxer, defeated Robert Smullen, a retired Marine Corps colonel and New York assemblyman who had the backing of the state party, in the upstate New York race to succeed retiring GOP Rep. Elise Stefanik.<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\"><a href=\"https:\/\/foxnews.onelink.me\/xLDS?pid=AppArticleLink&amp;af_dp=foxnewsaf%3A%2F%2F&amp;af_web_dp=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.foxnews.com%2Fapps-products\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\"><strong><u>CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP<\/u><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">Meanwhile, in South Carolina&#8217;s Republican gubernatorial runoff, Trump couldn&#8217;t lose.<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">That&#8217;s because, besides backing Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette a few weeks earlier, he also gave a last-minute endorsement to state Attorney General Alan Wilson, who ended up winning the late June showdown in a landslide.<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">The president also enjoyed victory in Louisiana, where Sen. Bill Cassidy, who voted to convict Trump in his 2021 impeachment trial, was ousted as he sought renomination. Trump-backed Rep. Julia Letlow ended up winning the nomination in the runoff election.<\/p>\n<p data-layout-index=\"5\">And last month, Trump-backed Rep. Andy Biggs, a former House Freedom Caucus chair, won Arizona&#8217;s primary for governor in a landslide.<\/p>\n<p> <!----> <!----> <\/p>\n<div class=\"article-meta\">\n<div class=\"author-bio\">\n<p>Paul Steinhauser covers the national campaign trail from coast to coast for Fox News\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! President\u00a0Donald Trump&#8217;s\u00a0kingmaker status in Republican primaries was on the line Tuesday in Michigan&#8217;s GOP gubernatorial nomination showdown \u2013 and the president passed the test. Republican Rep. John James, a two-time U.S. Senate nominee in the crucial Great Lakes battleground state who was endorsed by Trump in late&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":28280,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/static.foxnews.com\/foxnews.com\/content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Donald-Trump-Mike-Rogers-John-James-Milford-Michigan-July-27_-2026.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-28279","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-hub"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28279","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=28279"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28279\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/28280"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=28279"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=28279"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=28279"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}