More Republicans Voted Against John James Than For Him

LANSING, Mich. John James is the Republican nominee for Michigan governor. The Associated Press called the race Tuesday night. But before Republicans start celebrating, they should take a hard look at the numbers.

According to the Michigan Department of State, approximately 986,000 Republicans cast ballots in Tuesday's primary. Of those, 465,926 voted for John James, just 47.3% of all Republican ballots cast.

That means more than 520,000 Republican voters, or 52.7%, either voted for another candidate or left the governor's race blank.

Let that sink in.

The man Republicans are sending into the November general election failed to win a majority of the voters who chose a Republican ballot.

Republican Primary Results

(Approximately 986,000 Republican ballots cast)

Candidate Votes % of GOP Ballots
John James 465,926 47.3%
Perry Johnson 327,705 33.2%
Mike Cox 120,939 12.3%
Aric Nesbitt 16,320 1.7%
No vote / Undervote 55,000 5.6%

Republican ballots not cast for John James: ~520,000 (52.7%)

James won because Michigan awards the nomination to the candidate who receives the most votes, not because he received a majority of Republican support. With Perry Johnson, Mike Cox and Aric Nesbitt dividing the opposition, James secured a plurality while most Republican primary voters either backed someone else or skipped the governor's race altogether.

Now he has to win a statewide election in a battleground state that has been governed by Democrats for the past eight years. Republicans argue that primary divisions usually heal before November. Democrats will likely argue these numbers show a lack of enthusiasm for the GOP nominee.

Whether the Republicans who did not vote for James in the primary ultimately rally behind him could become one of the defining questions of Michigan's gubernatorial race.

The Question: If John James couldn't win a majority of Republican primary voters, can he unite enough of them to win Michigan in November?