Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signaled willingness to work with Donald Trump in an interview this week, saying the president-elect clearly cared about her state.
“People in Michigan, like a majority of Americans, voted for Donald Trump, and my oath is to Michigan,” Whitmer told CNN at a meeting of Democratic governors in Los Angeles. “Obviously, I’ve got experience in this type of environment that will help inform how I continue to fight for Michigan. But I know Donald Trump cares about Michigan. And I’m hoping that because of that, we’ll be able to find some common ground in some important ways.”
Trump won back Michigan in the 2024 election en route to re-capturing the White House. Whitmer is widely seen as a possible White House contender in 2028 given her status as a 2-term governor of a battleground state.
Whitmer and Trump butted heads in the media during his first term, particularly over his administration’s COVID-19 response. She was floated as a possible running mate for Vice President Harris, but declined consideration so she could conclude her second term in office, which is up in 2027.
In the final weeks of the 2024 campaign, Whitmer was notably at the center of a hot mic moment with Harris. While the two Democrats were sitting at a bar in Michigan, Harris was overheard admitting she was struggling with male voters.
“So, my thing is we need to move ground among men,” Harris was heard telling Whitmer at the Trak Houz Bar and Grill in Kalamazoo. Harris immediately noticed the microphones and ended her conversation with the Democratic governor.
Another governor at the Los Angeles meeting who spoke to CNN, New York’s Kathy Hochul, revealed she’d already had a phone conversation with Trump where she played up his status as an iconic New Yorker.
Hochul called him a “president who is a New Yorker, has been a New Yorker, would understand how important it is for the success of our state.”
