Mike Duggan

Hello, I hope that you’re doing great. The current administration keeps fumbling the ball as economic optimism is slipping away; GDP officially shrank in the first quarter due to Trump's tariffs. Meanwhile, Democrats are infighting. More Americans are souring on each party as their popularity descends to record lows.

People ask me all the time what the future of Independent politics looks like in the United States. Recently, I’ve been responding with two words:

“Mike Duggan.”

Who is Mike? He’s the three-term mayor of Detroit who won his last race with 75% of the vote. “Before I was mayor I was the CEO of a failing hospital system that had hour-long waiting times and was concerned about getting reimbursed. I said, ‘let’s get the wait times to under 30 minutes.’ After we did that, morale improved and so did revenues. We became the #1 employer in the region. My employees started telling me that I should run for mayor.”

Mike ran for mayor of Detroit back in 2013 and won as a write-in. I met him while I was on the campaign trail. “I was the first white guy to run for mayor in 40 years. I wanted to get the streetlights back on. I wanted to get the 911 response times down. I went to people’s houses and sat down with them. If you invited me, I’d come. We did over 250 house parties. It turns out that most people want safe streets and to know their kids can walk home at night. I hired 350 police officers and funded violence prevention programs. Today, crime is down in the city.” He turned Detroit from a city that was losing population to gaining people and businesses.

How did he do it? “We got beyond politics-as-usual in the city and brought people together. Black, white, whatever, families all want the same things. But I saw what was happening in Lansing where you have two parties that are swung by the extremes. Bipartisanship gets punished. I realized that what I’ve done in Detroit for the last 12 years is what is needed in Michigan. I’ve lived in Michigan my whole life. People are sick of the division.” He could be talking about most of the country.

So Mike is now running for Governor of Michigan as an Independent. The popular mayor of a city that is 80% black turned in his Democratic party badge and said we need something different. “It’s only by having an Independent governor that I feel we can do what needs to be done in Michigan. I’ll work with people in both parties who want to make housing more affordable and get results. I get that feedback from voters every day, they are tired of the two parties.” Again, this is playing out in state after state.

As you’d expect, there has been some blowback from within his old party. But over 100 black faith leaders have come out to endorse Mike because they know him. He’s immensely popular in Detroit and people all over the state know that Detroit has been turned around due to his leadership. “Most everyone I talk to in the state wants pragmatic leadership that will get things done.”

Imagine an Independent governor of an all-important swing state. Michigan will help determine the next President; heck, Mike himself could be a contender though that’s not something he’s thinking about. I’ve donated to Mike’s campaign and I’d urge you to as well. Let your friends in Michigan know. Mike is going to compete for the governor’s seat in Lansing, and if he gets the resources to make his case he can win. Wouldn’t you vote for him?

Can an Independent give rise to a different, better form of politics in a major swing state? Mike has already done the improbable several times in Detroit and beforehand; I wouldn’t bet against him.

For my interview of Mayor Duggan on the podcast, click here. To donate to Mike’s campaign, click here. To see what Forward is doing in every state click here – we are growing quickly because people know we need a new approach. That’s the case Mike is making, let’s help him.