Michigan Gubernatorial Debate Fallout as John James Withdraws from Oakland County Event

GOP Frontrunner Avoids Stage as County Party Accuses Campaign of Waffling

Michigan U.S. Representative John James, the leading candidate for the Republican gubernatorial nomination, has sparked controversy after his campaign asked the Oakland County Republican Party to remove his image from a debate flyer promoting an April 30 event in Auburn Hills.

The county party responded by accusing James of waffling on whether he planned to attend, something the James campaign denies.

Brian Szmytke, a senior advisor with the Oakland County Republican Party, expressed his frustration in an interview.

"It is honestly a slap in the face to the volunteers that got him elected, because our people put in a lot of blood, sweat, tears, and their money to get him elected. Now he is abandoning that seat, and he is not even showing up to a debate to explain why," Szmytke said.

The county party had scheduled the April 30 debate after Michigan's candidate filing deadline as part of an effort to meet James campaign concerns.

James has consistently led primary polls but has largely avoided sharing the stage with his opponents so far.

When asked for comment on the Oakland County debate, campaign spokesperson Hannah Osantowske pointed to a statement posted on social media.

"We will have a serious debate with serious contenders when the field is set," Osantowske wrote. "We have seen how early, unstructured debates play out. In 2025, a debate stage helped elevate a candidate who later left the GOP. In 2022, after premature debates, multiple participants were removed from the ballot due to the fraudulent signatures they turned in."

She said James will continue doing his community campaign stops in the meantime.

Candidate listings for the August primary election do not become final until early June.

Kristin Combs, who co-founded Bright Spark Strategies and has previously worked with the state Republican Party, said James could still have plenty of time to engage voters from the debate stage.

"I just do not think the regular voter is that tuned in right now. I think the delegate class and those that are active in party politics are paying attention but I am not sure the general public is that engaged at this point," Combs said.

In the meantime, she said not engaging yet lets James avoid taking shots from people he may or may not be running against down the stretch.

Other candidates in the race include businessman Perry Johnson, former Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox, state Senate Minority Leader Aric Nesbitt, former House Speaker Tom Leonard, and pastor Ralph Rebandt.

Johnson, who has largely self-funded his campaign, has already spent much of his effort attacking James and trying to close the gap in the weeks since he entered the race.

Others have also piled on James absence during past Republican debates. They may get their chance to challenge him on the stage in a couple months.

Michigan College Republicans recently pushed a debate that had been scheduled for Friday back until June. Whether James appears remains to be seen.