Jocelyn Benson

Where Benson stands

Grouped by topic by Vote Book; headings and quoted words are the candidate’s own, with the source under each one. “As reported” items are a news outlet’s description, not an exact quote.

Health care

Healthcare

Healthcare should be a right, not a privilege. With all of the chaos, corruption, and confusion emerging from Washington, D.C. — where elected officials are ripping away Medicaid for hundreds of thousands of people, women's health care is under attack, and many Michiganders have to travel across multiple counties just to get to their doctor, a Democratic Governor in Michigan will be the last line of defense against …

Education

Childcare

We have a childcare affordability crisis in Michigan. Some parents are stuck on waiting lists for months; others are paying more for care than their mortgage. And too often, women are pushed out of the workforce because affordable, reliable care simply doesn't exist. As a working mom and public servant, I understand the stress, the tradeoffs, and the urgency families feel every single day.

Education

Michigan's next governor has a moral responsibility to transform our public schools — for our kids, our economy, and our future.

Energy & environment

Energy Costs

Every day I hear stories of people struggling with rising energy costs. Single parents worry about facing an electricity shutoff and choosing which bill to pay. Families who have to throw out the contents of their refrigerator or find a hotel room when the power goes out for days on end.

As governor I will use every tool available to me to bring our energy costs down.

That starts with reforming a broken system where too many politicians are more beholden to the corporations funding their campaigns than the mom who’s trying to buy groceries and pay her electric bill at the same time.

Housing

Housing

No matter what city I'm in or what event I'm attending, housing is the number one issue people bring up. In places like Traverse City, where the average cost of a house is creeping into the millions, farmers can't find a place to live and raise their families. In larger cities like Detroit, rent costs are out of control and families who have lived in the city for generations are being priced out. This is not …

Jobs, wages & cost of living

Affordability

Michigan created the middle class and put the world on wheels. We pride ourselves on our innovation, our resilience, and our hardworking communities. But as I listen to people around our state, it's clear that too many families are struggling to make ends meet. And too often, government is showing up everywhere we don't need it and nowhere where we do.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Everywhere I go in Michigan, I hear stories about the struggles families are enduring as costs continue to skyrocket. Moms are having to choose between whether to eat or pay rent. Seniors are anxious about covering the rising cost of their prescriptions on a fixed income. My affordability agenda details how we can streamline government to provide more support for everyone struggling to make ends meet in this economy, and in my first days in office I will begin putting this plan into motion.

Background & priorities

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

As governor, lowering costs will be a top priority. Everywhere I go in Michigan, it’s clear that people are struggling to pay for childcare, pay for groceries, and buy a home, as the cost of everything continues to skyrocket and government feels too much like an obstacle. I've run one of our state’s most important agencies, saving residents time, saving them money, making their lives easier. Making government work for you and bringing costs down will always be a priority for a Benson administration. • As we work to bring costs down, raising wages will be equally important. As Secretary of …

What organizations or individuals have endorsed your campaign?

I’ve spent the last 18 months building a broad, statewide coalition to win in November. This growing coalition of state and local leaders, nonprofits, and advocacy organizations supporting my campaign to be Michigan’s next governor includes six major statewide labor unions, over 40 state legislators, and dozens of local leaders, faith leaders, and community organizers across the state, among others. You can find a full list of endorsements here: https://www.jocelynbenson.com/endorsements.