Sec. Jocelyn Benson says she’ll be a ‘governor who gets it,’ vows to protect reproductive health care in Michigan

In an exclusive interview, Secretary of State and gubernatorial candidate Jocelyn Benson said she’ll protect access to reproductive care—and make sure those rights are real for Michiganders across the state.

Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson isn’t afraid to go toe to toe with Donald Trump. 

While working alongside Michigan lawmakers to challenge what she calls an “illegal” executive order targeting mail-in voting, Sec. Benson is also charging ahead with her campaign for governor of Michigan. She tells The ‘Gander that, if elected, she will stand up to anyone—including the Trump administration—to protect rights like voting access and reproductive health care for all Michiganders. 

Related: Jocelyn Benson vows to fight Trump’s ‘illegal’ order on mail-in voting 

The following interview has been edited for grammar, style, and clarity. 

Lucas Henkel (LH): While Democrats had control over the Michigan Legislature, several laws were passed to enshrine reproductive health care access in our state’s constitution. There is concern that those rights may be taken away if Democrats don’t regain control this election cycle. How do you see that impacting the future of reproductive health care for Michiganders? 

Sec. Jocelyn Benson (JB):  Democrats have been at the forefront of ensuring reproductive freedom is enshrined in our constitution, and the majority of voters in Michigan voted wholeheartedly in support of that vision and that view. We need to keep reminding voters who have delivered and who are protecting those rights, but also to recognize that those rights have yet to be fully realized. 

Democrats are the only ones who have, as leaders and as a team, delivered on that front, but the work’s not done yet.

For me, this election is going to be about health care. It’s going to be about whether we have affordable access to health care for all. A key part of that is making sure maternal health care, reproductive rights, and Black maternal care disparities we see across the board—all of those are addressed in a real way as well.

Related: 7 big things Democrats did with their majority in Lansing

LH: We’ve heard that rural communities across Michigan are struggling to access reproductive health care as the Trump administration makes federal decisions that affect local resources. Can you talk about what you’ve seen on the ground?

JB: We’ve all watched as the Trump administration, as well as states around our country, have effectively gone backwards on this issue. As a result, we have young women in states right next door to Michigan with fewer rights than we have here, which creates a responsibility in Michigan to ensure that reproductive health is available to everyone in our region.

But even here in Michigan, access to reproductive health care comes up in every conversation I have in rural communities. I’ve talked to people who have to drive hours just to see a doctor. 

As someone who’s shared my own story about the importance of access to timely reproductive care, this is personal to me. It’s re-emboldened my desire and my commitment to standing up for all Michiganders’ freedoms, and that means protecting access to reproductive care.

Reproductive health care is about making sure we can get pre-cancer screenings, breast exams, and prescriptions when we need them—without fear, without a four-hour drive.

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LH: What has it been like traveling around the state and talking to Michiganders who do have access to reproductive health care because of the protections that were ushered in under Democratic control in recent years?

JB: It’s interesting because all of this is playing out in a moment of great uncertainty and anxiety for our nation, and everywhere I go in Michigan, I hear about that uncertainty, that anxiety, that fear, that worry. It feels like the government is showing up everywhere we don’t want it and not where we actually need it. 

This is a part of that where the citizens of Michigan, in a beautiful way, organized to enshrine that right. The importance of the government showing up to protect that right in our state constitution has underscored for me how critical it is to provide certainty and clarity in these times of uncertainty, that here in Michigan, your freedom is solid, it is protected. Every resident can have certainty and confidence that those rights will be protected. 

However, in this Trump administration, those rights can be stripped away. If you have rights on paper, it doesn’t mean that they’re actually real on the ground unless you have leaders in states like ours working to keep those rights protected. 

All of that requires a governor who gets it, who’s going to fight to protect these freedoms and then make them real for everyone in the state, no matter their background. 

As a mom, as a woman, and as someone who has heard countless stories across our state about other parents and other women who are similarly seeking that confidence, I’m ready to provide it as governor of the state and make sure that Michigan continues to be a beacon of reproductive freedom in a very real way.

LH: What should Michiganders be paying extra close attention to this year?

JB: It’s very clear to me that we are in the middle of a battle over the future of our economy, over our democracy, our rights, and our freedoms. The fundamental job of the next governor of Michigan is going to be to lower costs on everything from health care to housing to energy to food to childcare to raising wages and investing in an economy that will grow, diversify, and provide opportunities for all.

And then be willing to stand up to anyone, anytime, anywhere who would try to rip away our rights, our freedoms, or reduce access to care, access to protections, our own safety, our own privacy—all of that is on the ballot this year.

As Secretary of State, I have already done that work to administer government in ways that lower costs and save people time. I’ve intentionally and proudly stood up even to the president of the United States when he’s tried to interfere with our citizens’ voting rights. I’ll do the same as governor when he tries to interfere with the reproductive care of Michiganders throughout the state. And I’ll do it not just as a proud Michigander, but as a mom who knows firsthand how important it is that health care is accessible and affordable to all, and reproductive care is part of that, and provided not just on paper, but in reality, to everyone in Michigan.

LH: In a recent press conference, House Speaker Matt Hall (R-Kalamazoo) called Rx Kids, Michigan’s no-strings-attached cash prescription program for moms, a “scam” and said Republicans won’t back additional funding for it in the next state budget. What are your thoughts on his comments?

JB: As someone who’s overseen one of our state’s largest agencies and actually reduced waste, fraud, and abuse in our department, I know what it is and what it isn’t. I know what the people of Michigan need, and I know what the data shows. Programs like Rx Kids actually provide life-saving, life-changing investment in our next generation at a time when they and their parents need it most. 

In every community where Rx Kids has been implemented, this small, tiny investment has yielded significant growth, protections, and dividends for the health of our kids, the health of our families, and the health of the future of Michigan. It’s a program that works and that builds community and, ultimately, leads to a stronger economy as a result.

So I’ll be proud to have Rx Kids throughout the state through my first budget as governor, and I’ll be proud to stand with the Republican and Democratic leaders at the local level who have seen firsthand the importance of investing in our youngest families at their earliest stages.

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