NESBITT

MARQUETTE — The Michigan Senate’s Republican Leader, Aric Nesbitt, is one of the candidates running in the 2026 gubernatorial election.

A Michigander who was raised on his family’s six-generation dairy farm, Nesbitt earned a Master’s in International Business and served in the Michigan House of Representatives beginning in 2010. A former member of Governor Rick Snyder’s cabinet, Nesbitt was first elected to the Michigan Senate in 2018, and passed the 2019 Senate Bill One into law during his time in office – a bill that reformed auto insurance in Michigan. Currently, he serves as the Michigan Senate’s Republican Leader.

When deciding to run for Governor, Nesbitt said that it’s difficult to make a living in Michigan right now for families, workers, small business owners and children. He shared a personal anecdote about his wife’s miscarriage in 2020 and how, due to COVID rules, he wasn’t allowed to physically be with her during that time. He chose to run for Governor so no one will have to go through what he did during that time, and because Michigan needs to go “back to the basics” of making sure all generations can live in the state comfortably.

“It’s tough to make it in Michigan right now, and I want to make it easier for families and workers and small business owners to make it in Michigan. For me, it probably began during COVID. My wife was pregnant in 2020. We were expecting our second one, and I wasn’t even allowed to attend the OBGYN appointment with her. I’ll never forget the text I got while I was out in the parking lot – because I couldn’t go in with her – from Trisha, as I sat in the parking lot. She informed me that she had a miscarriage. She was experiencing the worst thing a parent can go through: losing a child. The Democrats said I could not be there and comfort her. As her husband and as the father, I’ll never be able to forgive the Governor for that, for what she did to my family, and I don’t think we can let that happen again, never again,” Nesbitt shared. “It wasn’t just COVID that (made it so) people can’t make it in Michigan anymore here. Our small business owners cannot make it in Michigan, our workers cannot make it in Michigan, our families cannot make it in Michigan. The next generation, I think, is having real trouble making it here in Michigan. I believe that this is really our chance to save our state and that’s why I’m running for governor because I want everyone to be able to make it in Michigan.”

Nesbitt says that a lot of his campaign strategy is focused on having a grassroots campaign and sharing his ideas with constituents across every area of the state, having been to 14 out of 15 U.P. counties and 70 out of Michigan’s 83 counties at the time of our interview. He wants to bring back “Made in Michigan” industries like a copper mine in the Western U.P., cars made in Detroit or Concord Jelly in southwest Michigan, similar to how President Donald Trump plans to bring back “Made in the USA” industries. He thinks that the government needs to “get out of the way” of workers and small business owners, and that he plans to get rid of the bundles of red tape that bureaucrats have made within the state government.

“(Also,) making sure families can make it here (and) kids can. Families should be able to make it out at the grocery store without taking out essential items out of their shopping cart. (I’ll) really fight to get costs down, insurance costs, energy costs down (so) that our families can make ends meet without maxing out their credit card. I’ll stand with President Trump and law enforcement to arrest and deport every criminal illegal alien in our state, ban sanctuary cities and go after the woke leaders protecting criminals in our communities. I’ll protect our Second Amendment rights (where) everyone is able to defend themselves because whether it’s somebody going on a jog or kids playing in our back park, they should be able to think about how they will make it in Michigan…” Nesbitt explained. “I look to eliminate this woke, hateful, dangerous DEI agenda poisoning our schools. I think we need to get back to the basics (so) that our kids are (learning) real lessons and skills to prepare them for the future. We need to get back to basics of reading, writing and arithmetic. Phonics, every kid by the end of third grade needs to be able to read at or above the grade level. I think we’ve lost a half a generation of kids, closing out the trades where everybody’s saying they have to go on to college. I think every young person of every skill set needs to be able to have a pathway to make it in Michigan…these are jobs that can’t be outsourced. These are jobs that AI can’t replace. These are good, family-supporting jobs; plumbers, pipe fitters, people that cut our hair. Our kids deserve a governor that will create a state that’s freer, safer and more prosperous. So I’ll be that governor and I’ll be one that’ll probably call Michigan home and make it here.”

Nesbitt and his team have worked to create a policy agenda specifically focused on the rural ways of life within the state. His Upper Peninsula-specific priorities include making the time and effort to listen to people who live in the U.P., ensuring equal access to healthcare, closing the economic gap that exists in the northern peninsula and making U.P. energy sources are more affordable and reliable. If he is elected as Governor, Nesbitt plans to take these priorities with him into office and act to create change.

“If we’re going to make it in Michigan, the Upper Peninsula makes up 30% of our state and is a central part of Michigan’s economy, culture, and way of life. Sadly, I think Yoopers, a lot of times, often ignored and out of touch politicians and bureaucrats down in Lansing come up to Marquette once or twice a year. The U.P. is a very diverse, great, great area – more than just timber and mines, but a lot of innovative manufacturers and creators (are) up there. As I look at it, there’s a part of my U.P. First policies to make it Michigan is (to) close the economic gap, work to speed up permitting, increase internet access and in Lansing, (end) the Democrat’s war on industries like mining, logging, farming so good paying jobs can return to the region. They make U.P. energy more affordable and more reliable. We’ve got to lower the cost of energy. That means (the) all of the above energy proposal(s). Build Line Five. Let’s get it done,” said Nesbitt. “U.P. families pay too much for energy. It’s unreliable, and this means more than just building the Great Lakes tunnel. This means making sure that new mines can open and that our loggers are defended. Repeal the Green New Deal. If we’re going to make it Michigan, we need to make sure we have good access to healthcare in the U.P. The U.P. is really ground zero for that urban/rural healthcare divide in our state. I’ve toured a few U.P. hospitals, one in St. Ignace, talking about, ‘What does access to care look like?’ I’ve met with head law enforcement around tables, (and) I think we need to bring back some state hospitals for mental health, just like what President Trump is talking about. And I would listen. I really need to listen. Too often people who live downstate or even out of state want to tell the U.P. what’s best for them. My agenda is about the U.P. (and who will) guide them by only people qualified away and Upper Peninsula residents.”

Key messages Nesbitt wants voters to take away from his campaign are that he’s focused on lowering the costs of things like energy, insurance and government-related items like taxes. His central idea is that he wants everyone – kids, families, workers, business owners and the like – to be able to build their lives in Michigan.

“As I say, it’s tough to make it in Michigan. A lot of that is the high cost of energy, high cost of insurance, the high cost of government. So, the plan is to lower the cost of energy, lower the cost of insurance, lower the cost of government so you can lower taxes, so people have an easier time (making) it in Michigan. That’s the driving point, and that’s the same thing with our kids. To make it in Michigan is getting back to basics; making sure that every third grader is able to read at grade level, providing career technical educational opportunities for our kids so that they can work in the trades, (so) they can be career ready. It also, as I look at it, is shaking up the status quo in Lansing to make sure that folks that want to make it in Michigan are able to be listened to and we get back to basics there.”

More information about Aric’s gubernatorial campaign can be found on his website at nesbittforgovernor.com. Information about his current time in the Michigan Senate can be found on his specific website at senatoraricnesbitt.com.

Abby LaForest can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 548. Her email address is alaforest@miningjournal.net.