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Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson’s political action committee is contributing big bucks to elect Democratic state Supreme Court justices, despite the court overseeing critical cases involving her office.

“I think there would be an ethical question for the judge and there’d probably be an ethical question for the secretary of state side as well,” Brad Smith, law professor at Capital University Law School in Ohio, told The Detroit News.

“Whether it’s illegal is a different question,” Smith said. “But there are a lot of things that aren’t illegal or even exact violations of an ethical code that voters might want to take into account.”

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Campaign finance records show Benson’s Michigan Legacy PAC in April gave Supreme Court Justice Kyra Bolden $82,500 for her campaign to retain her seat on the state’s highest court, which has the final word in cases involving the Secretary of State.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer appointed Bolden to the Michigan Supreme Court to replace former Chief Justice Bridget McCormack, who retired after nine years on the bench to become CEO of the American Arbitration Association. Bolden was celebrated at the time as the first black woman to serve on the Supreme Court.

Bolden, a former lawmaker, is running against Republican William O’Grady, a longtime circuit court judge in Branch County who has presided over nearly 14,000 criminal and civil cases, according to Bridge Michigan.

The winner will serve the remainder of McCormack’s term through 2028.

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Bolden played a key role in the high court’s Democrat majority allowing Benson to keep Robert F. Kennedy’s name on the Michigan presidential ballot despite the candidate dropping out of the race to endorse Trump. The decision is widely viewed as beneficial to Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee.

Campaign finance records for Michigan Legacy PAC also show an $82,500 donation in April to Democratic Supreme Court nominee Kimberly Thomas, as well as about $400,000 in donations to Democratic state House candidates and others running for judicial posts.

“It calls into question Benson’s claim to run her office in a bipartisan manner,” wrote Kaitlyn Buss, assistant editorial page editor for The Detroit News. “Worse, it fuels growing voter mistrust in the integrity and impartiality of the electrical process.”

Years ago, in Benson’s first failed campaign for secretary of state, the former “hate crimes” investigator for the discredited Southern Poverty Law Center argued on her campaign website “our Secretary of State must operate the office in a nonpartisan manner.”

“That’s why upon taking office I will take an Oath of Nonpartisanship, pledging to the citizens of Michigan a neutral and nonpartisan administration,” the website read. “That means you won’t find me co-chairing any campaigns or endorsing any candidates in elections which I serve as the final certifier of election results.”

In November 2023, Benson endorsed Adam Hollier in his unsuccessful bid to challenge first-term Congressman Shri Thanedar, D-Detroit.

Benson’s PAC has not donated to a single Republican since it launched in July 2023 with the promise to support “pro-democracy” candidates and initiatives. Political observers believe Benson is preparing to run for the Democratic Party nomination to replace Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in 2026.

The Secretary of State’s $82,500 donation to Bolden was the largest single contribution made by Benson’s PAC, and the largest single contribution received by Bolden’s Keep Kyra Harris Bolden for Justice campaign.

It’s the same situation with the matching donation to Thomas, who will face off against Republican state Rep. Andrew Fink in November for a full eight-year term to fill the seat vacated by retiring Republican Justice David Viviano.

Michigan Supreme Court races are considered nonpartisan, but candidates are nominated through a political process at state party conventions. Fink beat out Court of Appeals Judge Mark Boonstra to secure his nomination at the Republican state convention, while O’Grady’s competition, Republican Matthew DePerno dropped out and endorsed him.

Both Bolden and Thomas were automatically nominated at the Democratic state convention because they ran unopposed.

The Michigan Supreme Court is currently split 4-3 with a Democratic advantage that has repeatedly ruled in favor of Benson and Democrats on recent major cases.

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled judges are not required to recuse themselves from cases involving donors, but noted in the 2009 case Caperton v. Massey Coal Co. such situations could create issues “when a person with a personal stake in a particular case had a significant and disproportionate influence in placing the judge on the case by raising funds or directing the judge’s election campaign when the case was pending or imminent,” according to The Detroit News.

“Given the controversy surrounding the 2020 election count in Michigan – which has been repeatedly verified as above-board – the potential is heightened that the state’s vote will again be the subject of litigation should the fall election be close,” Buss wrote. “The Supreme Court could well end up hearing cases that involve Benson’s handling of the election. A perceived conflict arising from the sizable campaign donation is problematic.”

Employing a legal phrase, Buss concluded: “That’s all the more reason for Benson and Bolden to avoid even the appearance of impropriety.”