Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan upends Michigan governor race with independent campaign [Video]

• Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan announced he is running for governor as an independent 
• The three-time mayor said he wants to give Michigan voters ‘a new choice’ 
• Duggan’s candidacy potentially ‘changes the math’ for other possible contenders in the 2026 race 

Detroit’s Democratic Mayor Mike Duggan is running for governor of Michigan — as an independent, an unexpected political pivot that one former state official called a “potentially seismic event” for the 2026 race.

Duggan announced his bid Wednesday in a YouTube video, asking: “What if we upended the system and gave Michigan voters a new choice? A governor who didn’t run as a candidate of either party but went to work every day with no goal except to get people to work together for all of Michigan.”

The announcement comes weeks after Duggan announced that he would not seek re-election for a fourth term in Detroit, sparking speculation that he would run for governor.

Duggan was elected mayor of Michigan’s largest …