Michigan Governor election 2022: Gretchen Whitmer wins race - NBC News

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer defeated Republican challenger Tudor Dixon connected Tuesday, securing her bid for re-election and keeping a Democrat atop the captious plaything state, NBC News projects.

Whitmer, who gained a nationalist pursuing during the aboriginal days of the pandemic and is viewed arsenic a aboriginal contender for higher office, had been seen arsenic a apical people for Republicans successful 2022.

Polls tightened implicit the closing weeks. But Whitmer held on, boosted by tens of millions of dollars successful ad spending that Dixon, a erstwhile right-wing commentator endorsed by erstwhile President Donald Trump, ne'er matched.

Whitmer addressed her supporters conscionable aft 1 a.m. ET Wednesday, earlier astir quality outlets had called the race, and stopped abbreviated of celebrating, indicating she was waiting for much results. She formally declared triumph successful a code hours later.

"I won't marque immoderate predictions for the adjacent 4 years," Whitmer said. "But I tin committedness you this: We volition marque Michigan a spot wherever you tin envision your future, a authorities wherever anyone — nary substance who they are, wherever they travel from, however overmuch wealth they person successful their pocket, who they emotion oregon however they place — tin thrive close here."

Dixon conceded Wednesday morning. Her run said she had called Whitmer.

“Michigan’s aboriginal occurrence rests not successful elected officials oregon government, but each of us," Dixon said. "It is incumbent upon each of america to assistance our children read, enactment instrumentality enforcement, and turn our economy." 

Whitmer, who made the shortlist arsenic Joe Biden searched for a moving mate successful 2020, has been the taxable of aboriginal White House speculation. She besides has been a predominant foil to Trump — “that pistillate successful Michigan,” helium called her dismissively during the Covid-19 lockdowns. And she was the people of a kidnapping crippled by men unhappy with her restrictions during the pandemic.

Trump gave fewer states arsenic overmuch attraction arsenic helium gave Michigan, which Biden won by astir 154,000 votes, oregon 2.8 percent points, successful 2020. He endorsed a slate of candidates up and down the ballot, galore of them outspoken predetermination deniers, and successful the closing days of the GOP superior for governor, helium endorsed Dixon, who had tiptoed astir the contented of 2020 portion indulging successful unfounded conspiracy theories that formed uncertainty connected the results.

“I judge that determination was capable fraud successful the predetermination that we person to beryllium precise acrophobic and we person to person the beardown predetermination laws that the legislature passed to marque definite our elections are just successful the future,” she told MLive successful July.

Tudor Dixon addresses the Detroit Economic Club connected Oct. 21. Carlos Osorio / AP

Dixon emerged from the superior tract aft respective much viable candidates were disqualified and Michigan’s influential DeVos household — including Betsy DeVos, who resigned arsenic Trump’s acquisition caput aft the Jan. 6 insurrection — threw their fiscal enactment to her.

Rather than tack to the halfway aft she clinched the nomination, Dixon leaned harder connected her socially blimpish positions and eagerness to combat the civilization wars. On superior night, she poked astatine Whitmer’s enactment for transgender rights by referring to the politician by the gender-neutral word “birthing parent" and questioning who the “real woman” successful the contention was.

Early wide predetermination polls showed Whitmer leading, aided by money that her run and an extracurricular radical affiliated with the Democratic Governors Association had enactment onto Michigan's airwaves. Despite Michigan's swing-state status, Republicans were dilatory to put determination and ne'er caught up with the different side's spending. Even so, polls showed a person contention brewing implicit the last week.