Jay DeBoyer could help John James avoid a nasty GOP convention fight

Several Republican consultants who spoke to Michigan Advance for this story said that was likely a wise choice following James’ tough primary fight against businessman Perry Johnson — who had launched a grassroots opposition campaign against James in the August election, and drove a wedge between him and James with GOP voters across the state.

Jason Roe, who previously served as executive director of the Michigan Republican Party, said DeBoyer has focused his work as chairman of the oversight committee “to highlight  excesses of Democratic leadership, the lack of transparency, and some of the waste, fraud, and abuse within government.” 

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That would make DeBoyer “a very good wingman for John James in terms of reminding people of the failures of Democratic leadership over the last eight years of Gretchen Whitmer.”

Roe said that he believed Lansing legislative experience — which James does not have — was an absolute top priority for a running mate choice. DeBoyer is in his second term in the Michigan House and likely could have an upward leadership trajectory if he chose to remain in the House. As a candidate for reelection this year, DeBoyer was set to defend his 63rd House District seat against Democrat Jamie Sonnenberger.

Gongwer News Service, a Lansing-based statewide political news outlet, noted that DeBoyer would give up his seat if officially nominated at the Michigan Republican Party’s Aug. 22 convention.

Andrea Bitely of Bitely Communications, and the previous spokesperson for Mike Duggan’s suspended 2026 independent gubernatorial campaign, also highlighted DeBoyer’s legislative knowledge, as well as his good reputation in the gun rights and pro-life communities, calling him a “help no hurt” candidate.

“He’s not somebody that has, as far as I know, a lot of baggage that he brings to the campaign,” Bitely said. “So he’s going to be theoretically helpful, but he’s not going to create drama for the James team, in any way, shape, or form.”

James came out on the top of a divisive primary against Johnson — as well as former attorney general Mike Cox and Senate Minority Leader Aric Nesbitt, who both suspended their campaigns prior to the Aug. 4 primaries. 

While James enjoyed the backing of much of the party establishment, including President Donald Trump, who endorsed him in June, Johnson rallied significant grassroots support, especially after Nesbitt and Cox dropped out of the race.

“They are working very hard to bring everybody back to the table, and a Jay DeBoyer pick is that,” Bitely said, adding that James might be hoping this will bring Johnson voters back onto his side. “It is uniting, not dividing.”

DeBoyer is also a strategic pick because of his role heading the House Oversight Committee, a role which he has used to investigate and question top Democratic officials, including Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, the Democratic nominee for governor. 

Both Bitely and Roe said that they expect DeBoyer to act as an “attack dog” for the campaign, with Roe noting, “he probably knows her vulnerabilities as well as anybody in Lansing, and so I think that’s going to be a huge benefit.”

On the other hand, Dennis Lennox, a Republican public affairs consultant, was more skeptical of DeBoyer as the choice for running mate, noting in a statement, “I would have named a woman because I believe that parties need to balance the ticket, but it wasn’t my selection to make.”

He added that James “chose a governing partner, not a geographic or demographic box-checker” in DeBoyer.

DeBoyer joins James on the all-male statewide Republican ticket, along with former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers as the U.S. Senate candidate, Eaton County Prosecutor Doug Lloyd as the attorney general candidate and Macomb County Clerk Anthony Forlini as the secretary of state candidate.

But concerns about the gender makeup of the Republican ticket were not shared by Roe or Bitely.

“I don’t think it’s going to make a difference at all, and I say that as someone who would prefer to have a woman on the ticket,” Bitely said. “I think it matters more on the Democratic side than it does on the Republican side at this point.”

Roe noted that, although it is the first time that Republicans have not had a female candidate on the top of their ticket in decades, he believes that voters are more focused on “competence and a commitment to reforming government.”

Lennox also said that DeBoyer was seen as a potential future leader in the legislature for the Republican Party, but must now give up his House seat to run for the position of lieutenant governor.

DeBoyer ran unopposed in the Republican primary for re-election to his seat in House District 63 this year –- a district which he won twice with over 60% of the vote in the 2024 and 2026 general elections. Republican officials in Macomb and St. Clair counties, which DeBoyer’s district covers parts of, will have to choose a replacement for him on the ballot.

All three consultants emphasized the importance of a smooth nominating convention, to be held in Mt. Pleasant later this month, to officially name their candidates in the general election.

“There’s always the potential of some mischief at convention and ratifying the lieutenant governor pick, and there were certainly some smoke signals being sent that there might be mischief at our convention,” Roe said. “I think Jay really puts all that conversation to bed. I think he’s got such broad support within the activist base that he should get approved without any challenge.”

Bitely agreed that James needs an easy convention, and Lennox similarly said there would be “no chance” that DeBoyer’s selection would be derailed at the convention because “malcontents would have to defeat the rules just to put forth an alternative candidate.”

Roe — who is also working with Republican campaigns for U.S. House and Michigan House seats — said that having DeBoyer stumping for incumbent Republicans in down-ballot races, especially his state House colleagues, is very helpful because he can speak about those candidates with authority.

“I also think because of his focus on waste, fraud, and abuse, and transparency, that he brings a very strong messaging resume to the ticket that I think all the candidates in the party, whether they’re at the state or federal level, will be talking about,” Roe said. 

That confidence is a contrast to the type of concerns raised by Lennox both before and after the primary: That James’ nomination as governor might hurt down-ballot candidates, as he had significantly less cash on hand at the end of the primary than Johnson, who almost entirely self-funded his campaign to the tune of around $30 million.