AG Flags Benson For Austin Building Presser

(Source: MIRS.news, Published 05/19/2025) The Attorney General gave Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson "a reminder and warning" for hosting a press scrum as a new gubernatorial candidate earlier this year inside the Richard H. Austin Building, which houses the Department of State.

However, Attorney General Dana Nessel's office explained it could not pursue any penalties against her because Benson, as Secretary of State, would need to refer a recommendation to do so to the AG based on their interpretation of campaign finance law.

Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson received a warning and reminder about not using state building sites for campaign purposes.

On the day Benson launched her 2026 bid for governor, Jan. 22, Lansing was experiencing below-freezing temperatures. Traditionally, candidates speak to reporters outside the doors of the Austin Building after dropping off candidate petitions or submitting the paperwork to run.

Benson said at the time that due to the temperatures, she wanted to discuss her new gubernatorial campaign in the lobby.

"We didn't want you all to stand outside in the cold," Benson said when asked by Detroit Free Press reporter Paul Egan about similar candidate interactions taking place outside on the steps.

When asked if other candidates running in 2026 would be welcomed to use the lobby, Benson said "of course."

An eight-page resolution letter from Nessel's department was authored by Joshua Booth, the opinions division chief.

Booth noted that knowingly violating the Michigan Campaign Finance Act's (MCFA) ban on using public facilities and resources for political and fundraising reasons is a one-year, $1,000 misdemeanor. However, he adds that the AG department would need to be referred by the Secretary of State herself to enforce criminal penalties.

"Therefore, under this plan language, the MCFA itself seemingly gives no authority to the Attorney General to seek criminal penalties for a violation by the Secretary of State either," Booth said. "This may simply be a matter of legislative oversight in drafting the MCFA, but, for whatever reason, the Legislature has not provided the Attorney General with any authority as to penalties that can be imposed if, following a referral under MCL 169.215(9), it is determined that the Secretary of State has violated the MCFA."

In the letter, Booth also said Benson held the press conference inside to shield attendees from the weather, under the "mistaken belief that she, or any other candidate, could use the lobby for this purpose."

"There will almost certainly be situations in the future where the Secretary of State is a candidate for re-election or for some other public office while holding the office and is accused of violating the MCFA, yet the MCFA does not treat the Secretary of State the same as any other candidate in terms of being sanctioned for violating the MCFA," Booth said. "Such unequal treatment is something the Legislature may want to consider addressing."

However, Benson continued to receive flack for her use of the Austin Building by Republicans. For instance, Director Kollin Crompton of the Republican Governors Association said Benson betrayed taxpayers' trust on the day she kicked off her campaign.

"It is embarrassing that, as Secretary of State and a self-declared 'Purposeful Warrior,' she violated the very campaign finance laws she is supposed to oversee. Jocelyn Benson is not standing for what's right no matter the stake, she's just another Democrat getting away with bending the rules," Crompton said, referencing Benson's new book that became available on May 6.

For Rep. Angela Rigas (R-Caledonia), chair of the House Oversight Subcommittee on Weaponization of State Government, Nessel's resolution letter was "damage control," proving "everything we've said about Nessel's partisan double standards."

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Rigas was one of the hairdressers ticketed by the Michigan State Police in the "Operation Haircut" demonstrations, which protested the social-distancing mandates that affected the cosmetology and barber shop industry. 

"Let's be clear: Nessel only went after Benson to save face," Rigas said in a press release. "This is a weak, last-ditch attempt to look fair after years of protecting her Democrat allies and targeting conservatives."

For her part, Benson changed the conversation to the Republicans in Congress voting to cut Medicaid in a fundraising email.

“All of this is just a part of their plan to hand out tax breaks to their wealthy friends and big corporations,” Benson wrote. “This is a betrayal of the people who need help the most.”