Michigan sheriff in the spotlight in the 2026 gubernatorial race touts Kamala Harris' anti-crime campaign at the DNC

CHICAGO, IL — Under a national spotlight, Genesee County Sheriff Chris Swanson has pledged his support for Vice President Kamala Harris’s 2024 run for the White House.

Swanson, a Democrat who has hinted that he may run for governor in 2026, spoke to attendees at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Thursday, August 22.

In his two-minute speech, the sheriff referred to a nationally headline-grabbing event from his past as a police officer and linked it to the need to elect a president capable of uniting people in times of divisive tension.

Swanson first came into the national spotlight in 2020 when the sheriff removed his police helmet and joined a march protesting the death of George Floyd, who was killed during his arrest by Minneapolis police.

Swanson's decision to march with protesters in Michigan a few weeks later earned him nationwide praise from across the political spectrum, including from former President Barack Obama, the administration of former President Donald Trump and Governor Gretchen Whitmer, who said at the time that Swanson's handling of the protesters was “one of the things that inspired me.”

On Thursday in Chicago, Swanson wore his sheriff's uniform as he linked his 2020 march to the need to elect Harris.

“In 2020, righteous anger spilled over into Flint, Michigan,” Swanson told the crowd at the United Center. “Instead of hate, we chose hope.”

He said if there had been “a single wrong decision” on the part of protesters or police, “there would have been bloodshed.”

He compared that decision in Flint to the riots of January 6, 2021, which led many supporters of then-President Trump to storm the U.S. Capitol as lawmakers sought to certify the election that put Joe Biden in the White House.

“This day was marked by division, betrayal and vilification,” Swanson said. “It was a day when police officers were attacked. This could have been prevented.”

The sheriff said the United States needs a president who will stand for protection, service and unity in times of social unrest.

“Kamala Harris is that leader,” Swanson said.

The sheriff said the vice president's experience as a prosecutor and as California's attorney general gives her a reputation as a tough opponent of crime.

Swanson also appeared to respond to criticism – including from Trump, the 2024 Republican presidential candidate – of Harris for praising the “defund the police” movement in 2020. Harris has not said during her 2024 campaign that she supports cutting police funding.

Trump said in Howell earlier this week that the policies of the Biden and Harris administrations are leading to more crime and that Harris will defund the police if she is elected president.

However, Swanson denied such allegations.

“I can attest firsthand that where I come from, crime is down and police funding is up,” he told the crowd at the United Center. “As president, Kamala Harris will unite our country. She will bring us together, because our country needs a leader who will take on drug cartels and thugs head-to-head.”

Swanson's appearance on Thursday was not his first appearance as a Democratic advocate in the 2024 presidential campaign.

Harris entered the race as the Democratic Party's front-runner after Biden announced he would end his re-election campaign in July. Although Biden was still the likely nominee, Swanson was featured in a political ad supporting the president's campaign.

This commercial aired on television and streaming platforms in June in the hours before a debate between Trump and Biden.

In the ad, Swanson called Trump's response to the 2021 Capitol insurrection a “dereliction of duty.” Titled “Stopped,” the ad featured news footage of Trump urging his supporters to “fight like hell” in the lead-up to the insurrection.

Television programs and streaming networks were not new territory for Swanson at the time.

In July 2023, he appeared on the Public Broadcasting Service's “Off the Record,” where he said he might enter the race to succeed Whitmer, who is term-limited, as governor of Michigan in 2026.

When asked if there was at least a 50-50 chance that he would run for office, Swanson said, “I'll answer it this way: I never turn down an opportunity to help people.”

Swanson, a Fenton resident, was appointed sheriff in December 2019 and won his first full term in 2020, receiving nearly 70% of the vote in that year's general election.

Republican Jeff Salzeider of Montrose is challenging Swanson for sheriff in this November's election.

Swanson gained national recognition by helping other counties replicate his Genesee Human Oppression Strike Team (GHOST) and a prison education program called Inmate Growth Naturally and Intentionally Through Education (IGNITE).

Swanson also pushed for a statewide ballot initiative to create a registry of animal abusers in Michigan and end a current legal process that can leave pets injured by crimes without a home for years.

Other Michigan politicians who spoke at the Democratic National Convention this week included Democrats such as Traverse City native and U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, U.S. Sen. Gary Peters, U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin, state Attorney General Dana Nessel and state Sen. Mallory McMorrow. United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain spoke. Motown Records legend Stevie Wonder also addressed the crowd and sang his classic R&B hit “Higher Ground.”

Less than an hour after Swanson took the stage on Thursday, Whitmer addressed the crowd.

The sheriff – and Whitmer – received a prime-time slot on the convention's program and appeared during the closing stages of the final night of the four-day event.

His address followed an appearance on stage by comedian DL Hughley. Swanson's remarks came about 70 minutes before Harris – the main focus of the convention – addressed the crowd to close the event.