FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Aug 7, 2026
Contact: Alyvia Bailey
alyvia@johnjamesmi.com
JOHN JAMES CHALLENGES JOCELYN BENSON TO FIVE DEBATES ACROSS MICHIGAN
James Accepts 3 Debates, Calls for Benson to Answer for Funding the KKK
SHELBY TOWNSHIP, MI — John James today announced a five-debate challenge to his opponent, Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, who previously refused to debate James, calling on her to face Michigan voters and answer the serious questions surrounding her record.
James has already accepted three confirmed debate invitations: WOOD TV in Grand Rapids, WDIV in Detroit, and the Michigan Debate Commission in Ann Arbor. Negotiations are actively underway for two additional forums. Despite three opportunities to engage directly with voters, Benson has only agreed to two debates.
“Michigan families deserve to know why the SPLC funded the KKK on Jocelyn Benson’s watch, why her family is cashing in on the Saline data center deal, and why she opposes voter ID after 16 foreign nationals were allowed to cast ballots on her watch. After 8 years of Whitmer and Benson, working families got higher taxes and higher energy bills while they used their positions to land secret data center deals to benefit themselves. Michigan voters deserve to hear directly the difference between the Benson–El-Sayed radical socialist extremist plan to continue Michigan’s decline and my common-sense plan to protect freedom and grow jobs.”
— John James
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