Mike Cox drops out of GOP gubernatorial primary, leaving two-way fight between Johnson and James

Former Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox formally suspended his campaign for governor on Friday evening, sending a press release and posting to social media just after 5 p.m. to announce that he was dropping out of the race. 

“Today I leave the race for Governor with great sadness because I never found a better experience than serving the people of Michigan as I did for 21 years as a prosecutor and Attorney General (and before that, as a Marine),” Cox wrote. “While I achieved much greater material rewards outside of public service, those material rewards can never equal the joy and sense of purpose I felt serving the working men and women of Michigan in public office.”

His exit leaves a two-man race in the Aug. 4 Republican primary, between U.S. Rep. John James (R-Shelby Township) and businessman Perry Johnson. 

Cox is the second candidate to drop out from the Republican side of the race since the formal withdrawal deadline, about a month after Senate Minority Leader Aric Nesbitt suspended his campaign. Former House Speaker Tom Leonard withdrew from the ballot in April, while pastor Ralph Rebandt did not submit enough signatures to qualify for the ballot. 

Both Nesbitt and Cox referenced President Donald Trump’s endorsement of James in mid-June as spurring their decision to drop out of the race — Nesbitt dropped out just hours after the endorsement was announced.

“On June 22nd President Trump endorsed John James and lifted him out of a statistical tie with me. And while I did not fully appreciate it then, that endorsement placed him out of reach in a three-way Republican primary race,” Cox wrote in his statement. “That is the power of President Trump, and it is a testament to the enduring loyalty of Republican primary voters in Michigan to the President.”

He continued on to say that, for James, Trump had “ordained his primary victory,” and because of that, he would be throwing his support behind James and the other slate of Republican candidates in a general election. The statement stopped short of a formal endorsement in the primary and did not address Johnson’s candidacy directly. 

James, however, took to social media to thank Cox for his support and did call it an endorsement.

“This is exactly the kind of unity we need to win in November. President Trump has endorsed me and other former primary opponents Tom Leonard and Aric Nesbitt have united behind us,” James posted on X shortly after Cox’s announcement. “I am deeply honored by this broad show of support. Together, we will defeat the Democrats and put Michigan back on the path to prosperity.”

Johnson, however, appeared to still court Cox voters who oppose the idea of James as the GOP nominee in the general election. 

“Mike Cox ran a great race doing a very effective job demonstrating why John James should never be the governor of Michigan and would be defeated by Jocelyn Benson,” Johnson posted on X shortly after Cox’s announcement. “I am sad to see Mike leave the race, but this is a fantastic opportunity to unite voters who do not want to see John James as our nominee! All supporters of Mike Cox are very welcome on our campaign!”

Cox has heavily criticized James over the course of the campaign — earlier in July, he laid into James at a press conference for ties between James’ company, Renaissance Global Logistics, and Chinese manufacturing. That issue, among others, was the subject of intense personal blows shared between all three candidates in back-to-back debates last week. Johnson and Cox spent much more time in those debates attacking James than each other.

Cox’s name will remain on the ballot, as the deadline to formally withdraw from the ballot passed in April. Given that absentee ballots for the August primary were sent out in late June, some may already have cast their ballots for Cox — but are able to spoil that ballot and receive a new one, unless it was cast at an early voting site.