John James

John James returned from eight years in the Army to his family’s Detroit logistics business.¹ His father, an Army veteran born in Mississippi, had founded the company.² James and his wife, Liz, have three sons.³

A 2004 West Point graduate, James led Apache helicopter platoons during Operation Iraqi Freedom.¹ His Army record includes more than 750 combat flight hours, two Air Medals and a Combat Action Badge.³ He began graduate courses while in Iraq and later earned a supply chain management master’s degree from Penn State and an MBA from the University of Michigan.³

Back in Michigan in 2012, he led James Group International and became CEO of its Renaissance Global Logistics subsidiary.¹² He has represented Michigan’s 10th District in Congress since 2023.² In 2025, he introduced the bipartisan Patients Deserve Price Tags Act, proposing stronger hospital price disclosures and personalized cost estimates from insurers, including paper and telephone options for patients without reliable internet.⁴⁵

Against Democrat Jocelyn Benson, James proposes eliminating Michigan’s income tax, auditing state spending and reviewing the economic effects of new regulations.¹² He says his first year would begin with a reduction into the three percent range.⁶ He also proposes requiring local consent for data centers, protecting household utility bills and favoring former industrial sites over farmland.⁷ The election will replace Gretchen Whitmer, who is term limited.²