The 2018 Michigan Attorney General election took place on November 6, 2018, alongside elections to elect Michigan's governor, Class I United States Senator, Secretary of State, as well elections for Michigan's 14 seats in the United States House of Representatives, all 38 seats in the Michigan Senate and all 110 seats in the Michigan House of Representatives; to elect the Secretary of State of Michigan. Incumbent Republican Attorney General Bill Schuette was prohibited from seeking a third term due to term limits and unsuccessfully ran for Governor of Michigan instead. The Michigan GOP was unsuccessful in looking to win its 5th straight attorney general election. Along with the offices of Lieutenant Governor and Secretary of State, the nominees for attorney general were chosen by party delegates at their respective party conventions.
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Nessel: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% >90% Leonard: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% Tie: 40–50% No data | |||||||||||||||||
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Nessel defeated Leonard by 115,000 votes, becoming the first Democratic attorney general of Michigan since 2003, when Jennifer Granholm left office to become governor.
Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size[a] |
Margin of error |
Tom Leonard (R) |
Dana Nessel (D) |
Other | Undecided |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Glengariff Group | October 25–27, 2018 | 600 (LV) | ± 4.0% | 34% | 45% | 5%[b] | 17% |
EPIC-MRA | October 18–23, 2018 | 600 (LV) | ± 4.0% | 39% | 39% | 9%[c] | 13% |
Michigan State University | October 13–22, 2018 | 169 (RV) | – | 40% | 37% | – | – |
Marketing Resource Group | October 14–18, 2018 | 600 (LV) | ± 4.0% | 34% | 39% | 10%[d] | 16% |
Glengariff Group | September 30 – October 2, 2018 | 600 (LV) | ± 4.0% | 32% | 39% | 6%[e] | 24% |
EPIC-MRA | September 21–25, 2018 | 600 (LV) | ± 4.0% | 32% | 38% | 11%[f] | 19% |
Glengariff Group | September 5–7, 2018 | 600 (LV) | ± 4.0% | 29% | 42% | 5% | 24% |
Campaign finance reports as of October 21, 2018 | |||
---|---|---|---|
Candidate (party) | Total receipts | Total disbursements | Cash on hand |
Tom Leonard (R) | $1,988,558.29 | $1,900,406.09 | $88,152.20 |
Dana Nessel (D) | $1,573,966.91 | $1,329,134.98 | $244,831.93 |
Source: Michigan Department of State[10] |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | Dana Nessel | 2,031,117 | 49.04% | +4.85% | |
Republican | Tom Leonard | 1,916,117 | 46.26% | -5.81% | |
Libertarian | Lisa Lane Giola | 86,807 | 2.10% | +0.24% | |
Independent | Chris Graveline | 69,889 | 1.69% | N/A | |
Constitution | Gerald Van Sickle | 38,114 | 0.92% | -0.08% | |
Total votes | 4,142,044 | 100.0% | N/A | ||
Democratic gain from Republican |