¶ How To Win Against John James
John James voted to cut services and raise costs on Michiganders. He voted to kick more than 424,000 Michiganders off their health insurance, slash Medicare by $500 billion, and make it harder for Michigan families to buy food. John James cast the deciding vote to protect Trump’s tariffs, crushing small businesses and raising grocery prices. John James stood by while Trump fired Michigan workers and gutted Social Security. John James voted to repeal clean energy tax credits that supported Michigan jobs. James also failed farmers and failed to pass year-round E15 in Congress, voting for a council instead of actually helping Michigan farmers. He also threatened reproductive freedoms with his extreme anti-abortion agenda. In 2026, James was caught telling a voter he “never, ever” said the issue of abortion in Michigan was settled in Michigan and pledged that, as governor, he would “do everything” to pass the “most conservative, most pro-life bill” possible. Even after voting against releasing the Epstein files, he only supported their release once Trump approved it. James was an election denier who refused to concede his 2020 Senate loss, repeatedly pushed false claims that Trump won Michigan in 2020, and later declined to commit to certifying the 2028 presidential results. James campaigned on ethics reform while facing ethics complaints for allegedly using official resources to benefit his campaign and paying firms tied to alleged illegal coordination between Trump’s campaign and NRA advertising operations. James backed Trump’s war with Iran even as rising gas, grocery, fertilizer, and diesel costs squeezed Michigan families, farmers, and businesses across the state.
¶ John James Voted For Devastating Health Care Cuts
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In 2025, John James voted for Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill," which was estimated to kick 17 million Americans off their health insurance, including nearly 12 million Americans who rely on Medicaid. More than 424,000 Michiganders could lose their health insurance and hundreds of rural hospitals could close, including at least three hospitals in Michigan as a result of John James’ vote.
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John James opposed the Affordable Care Act and called the health care law a “monstrosity that hurts businesses and hurts the middle class.” James had also called the Affordable Care Act a “fiscal disaster” and a “nightmare for consumers,” despite more than 531,000 Michiganders enrolling in Affordable Care Act Marketplace health insurance plans in 2025.
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By 2034, 237,708 Medicaid recipients in Michigan were expected to lose their coverage due to John James’ support for Trump’s tax bill.
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In January 2026, John James voted against extending the Affordable Care Act subsidies for three years, despite the Citizens Research Council of Michigan warning that the expired enhanced subsidies would increase premium costs by about 70%, or more than $800 annually, during the ACA’s 2026 open enrollment period. More than 350,000 Michiganders relied on ACA subsidies to afford health insurance plans. In December 2025, James voted for Republicans’ health care bill which would weaken protections for people with pre-existing conditions and allowed ACA tax credits to expire. James did not sign multiple discharge positions aimed at extending premium ACA tax credits. James’ and Republicans’ inaction over ACA subsidies created a “subsidy cliff” whereby households could lose all eligibility for assistance if they earn even $1 more than a specified income threshold.
Message: John James voted to rip away health care from hundreds of thousands of Michiganders to fund tax cuts for the wealthy.
¶ John James Voted For Massive Cuts To Medicare
- In 2025, John James voted Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill," which the Congressional Budget Office estimated would trigger $500 billion in cuts to Medicare.
Message: John James voted to make massive cuts to health care services seniors rely on.
¶ John James WAS THE DECIDING VOTE TO PROTECT TRUMP’S TARIFFS
- From 2025 to 2026, John James voted six times to protect Trump’s tariffs. In February 2026, James voted against terminating tariffs against Canada and effectively voted to block votes on legislation terminating Trump's tariffs, even though the Tax Foundation found that Trump's tariffs resulted in a $1,300 tax increase on American households in 2026. In April 2025, James was the deciding vote to protect the tariffs from being repealed by Congress, dooming Michiganders who relied on him to a trade war and rising prices. Tariffs are contributing to higher food prices and are hurting Michigan small businesses, farmers, and families.
- John James said Trump’s tariffs “level the playing field,” even though the U.S. stock market crashed due to Trump’s escalating global trade war.
Message: John James was the deciding vote to crush Michigan small businesses and ensure Michiganders will pay more for groceries.
¶ John James Stripped SNAP Benefits From Michigan Families
- In 2025, John James voted for Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill," which made the largest cut to SNAP in history. In Michigan, nearly 575,000 households relied on SNAP to afford groceries.
Message: John James voted to make food more expensive for Michigan.
¶ John James stood by while trump attacked social security and fired hard-working Michiganders
- In 2025, John James supported Trump’s “Department of Government Efficiency” as DOGE-driven cuts and downsizing were affecting the federal government’s ability to deliver services to seniors. More than 2.3 million Michiganders relied on Social Security benefits.
- John James praised Elon Musk as a symbol of American innovation and promoted DOGE even though it resulted in massive federal funding cuts to Michigan programs and nonprofits. John James dismissed the layoffs while Trump’s DOGE initiative threatened the livelihoods of more than 76,000 federal workers across the state.
Message: While Social Security lines grew and Michigan workers were laid off, John James did nothing to help them.
¶ John James’ Votes Threatened Clean Energy Jobs In Michigan
- In 2025, John James voted for Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill," which repealed clean energy tax credits and made them harder to access, threatening clean energy jobs in Michigan. Prior to voting for the passage of the Republicans’ reconciliation bill, John James signed a letter urging House Republican leaders not to repeal the clean energy tax credits.
- Since the beginning of the Trump administration, clean energy projects that were projected to create hundreds of jobs in Michigan were cancelled or stalled.
- In 2023, John James voted against protecting the ban on oil and gas drilling in the Great Lakes.
Message: John James voted to kill job opportunities for Michigan to give tax cuts to billionaires.
¶ John James Failed Michigan Farmers And Failed To Pass Year-Round E15 In Congress
- Despite claiming to support Michigan farmers, John James failed Michigan farmers and failed to include year-round E15 in a federal funding package. In January 2026, James voted for a federal spending package that created an E15 Rural Domestic Energy Council in lieu of meaningful legislation to enact year-round E15. The National Corn Growers Association called the decision “weak and offensive.” and warned it would neglect 500,000 American corn farmers. The Michigan Corn Growers Association slammed the vote as the U.S. House choosing to “kick the can down the road […] when we already have legislation that was crafted after months of negotiation.” The biofuel trade group Growth Energy noted that failure to pass year-round E15 would “lead to farmers missing out on a critical market during the worst farm crisis in 40 years.” The Renewable Fuels Association emphasized the critical need of year-round E15 to support hard-hit farmers and lower gas prices.
Message: John James failed Michigan farmers and failed to pass year-round E15 in Congress, voting for a council instead of helping farmers.
¶ John James Was An Anti-Abortion Extremist
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At a July 2026 rally, John James was caught telling a voter he “never, ever” said the issue of abortion in Michigan was settled in Michigan and pledged that, as governor, he would “do everything” to pass the “most conservative, most pro-life bill” possible. The exchange directly contradicted his 2024 statement that Michigan voters had “already decided” the issue through Proposal 3, which had codified abortion rights in Michigan after Roe v. Wade was overturned and prevented Michigan’s 1931 abortion ban from taking effect.
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John James was an anti-abortion extremist who declared he was “100% pro-life” and compared abortion to “genocide.” John James supported the overturning of Roe v. Wade, claimed “life begins at conception,” and opposed abortion exceptions for rape and incest. He pledged to only support judges who supported abortion restrictions. While in Congress, John James voted to ban the abortion drug Mifepristone. John James supported efforts to defund Planned Parenthood and eliminating federal funding for abortion providers.
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In June 2026, John James visited and praised the Pregnancy Resource Center of Grand Rapids, an anti-abortion clinic that stated it did not offer, recommend, or refer patients for abortions. Medical experts at the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists warned that crisis pregnancy centers could deter patients from seeking certain reproductive health care options, including abortion care.
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John James has long aligned himself with the anti-abortion movement. He maintained deep ties with Right to Life of Michigan, which financially supported his campaigns and promoted their extreme anti-abortion movement. James also received backing from the anti-abortion Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, including its endorsement and an A+ rating. James promoted the March for Life and praised young activists who traveled to Washington, D.C. to “stand up for life.”
Message: John James threatened the reproductive freedoms of Michiganders.
¶ John James Voted To Release The Epstein Files After 11 Months, Only Because Trump Finally Approved Of The Release
- It took John James 11 months to vote for the release of the Epstein files, only after Trump told House Republicans he approved of the release.
- John James touted his vote for the release of the Epstein files, claiming he supported transparency, but he never signed the discharge petition, never co-sponsored the legislation, and previously voted against the release of the files. In July and September 2025, John James cast the deciding votes against releasing the Epstein files, protecting the accused pedophiles named within them.
Message: Despite previously voting against releasing the Epstein files, John James ultimately voted for the release of the Epstein files only because Trump approved of the release.
¶ James Was An Election Denier
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James posed a threat to Michigan elections when he refused to accept his 2020 Senate loss and continued undermining confidence in Michigan elections by amplifying false claims about the results. James claimed there was “enough credible evidence” to investigate the election despite failing to provide real evidence to support his claims. He also retweeted, then later deleted, a post claiming he had won and accusing Democrats of “making up numbers” and “cheating the system.” James later launched a legal defense fund with the Republican National Committee over alleged Wayne County irregularities before conceding nearly three weeks after Election Day.
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While running for governor, James has continued to revisit the 2020 election. In September 2025, he said he was “screwed” in his 2020 Senate race and promised “consequences for those who did you wrong.” In August 2026, James said the 2020 election was “rigged and manipulated” against both himself and Trump and falsely said Trump had won Michigan “three times.” In July 2026, James again falsely claimed Trump won Michigan in 2020 and offered no evidence for the claim.
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As James continued revisiting the 2020 election during his gubernatorial campaign, he increasingly focused those claims on his opponent, Jocelyn Benson. James compared her election administration to the conduct of “tyrannical dictators” and made unsubstantiated claims about deceased people remaining on Michigan’s voter rolls. He later even suggested Benson “screwed Trump in 2020,” and accused her without credible evidence of having “rigged an election twice before.”
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By August 2026, James would not say whether he would accept a loss in his current governor’s race as legitimate, and CNN reported that he did not answer whether he would certify the winner of the 2028 presidential election if elected governor of Michigan.
Message: John James was a threat to Michigan elections and promoted election conspiracy theories.
¶ John James Was An Ethics Nightmare
- In 2026, John James campaigned on eliminating political corruption while his Mission Michigan PAC paid Red Eagle Media Group, a firm tied to alleged illegal coordination between Trump’s campaign and NRA advertising operations through its connections to American Media & Advocacy Group.
- August 2025, John James received an ethics complaint of illegally using his congressional office and federal resources to promote his gubernatorial campaign.
- In 2024, John James faced an ethics complaint from End Citizens United for violating The STOCK Act and failing to disclose 145 stock trades.
Message: John James repeatedly faced ethics complaints for abusing his office and hiding financial dealings.
¶ John James Supported The War In Iran As The War Led To Increased Costs In Michigan
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John James supported Trump’s war with Iran and repeatedly praised Trump’s military actions against Iran. James defended the U.S. air strikes on Iran, declared “America’s worth fighting for,” and later admitted that gas prices above $4 per gallon “hurts everybody around the state, around the country.” Despite acknowledging those concerns, James doubled down on his support for Trump’s war with Iran and later voted against resolutions directing the president to end U.S. military involvement in Iran without congressional authorization.
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Trump’s war with Iran triggered an increase in gas prices for Michiganders and by mid-September 2026, gas and diesel prices had climbed across Michigan. In Metro Detroit, some stations were charging more than $5 per gallon, while diesel prices reached record highs at $7.09 per gallon at some Southeast Michigan stations.
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The Center for American Progress calculated that Michigan gas prices had risen at least $1.76 per gallon since the war began. By early September 2026, the group also estimated that the Iran war had already cost the average American household $1,650, with costs expected to keep rising. The war also drove up fuel and fertilizer costs for Michigan farmers, increasing financial pressure during planting season and threatening farm profitability.
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Experts also warned the Iran war could increase grocery prices, reduce crop yields, and further strain the food supply chain. Independent grocery store owners warned rising fuel surcharges and wholesale prices increased financial pressure during the Iran war.
Message: John James backed Trump’s war with Iran even as it drove up gas and fertilizer prices across Michigan and squeezed Michigan farmers and families.
¶ Issue Back-Ups
¶ John James' Policies Have Hurt Everyday People
| John James Supported Efforts To Cut Medicaid And Threaten Michiganders' Access To Health Care
| John James Voted For Medicare Cuts
| John James Backed Trump's Tariffs, Endangering Michigan’s Economy
| John James Cast Votes To Cut SNAP Benefits From Michigan Families
| John James Won't Defend Michigan Jobs Or Social Security From Trump
| John James Voted Against Protecting Michigan’s Clean Energy Jobs
| John James Failed Michigan Farmers And Failed To Pass Year-Round E15 In Congress
| John James Was An Anti-Abortion Extremist
John James Supported The War In Iran As The War Led To Increased Costs In Michigan
¶ John James Used His Power To Benefit The Powerful And Himself
| It Took John James 11 Months To Vote To Release The Epstein Files, And He Did Only After Trump Signaled To House Republicans That He Approved
| John James Was An Election Denier
| John James Was An Ethics Nightmare
| John James' Key Votes As A Member Of Congress