Protesters waive Palestinian flags during a rally outside the Michigan State Capitol on Friday, April 11, 2025. Photo by Erick Diaz Veliz

Genesee County Sheriff Chris Swanson, a Democrat running for governor in 2026, on Monday issued a call for peace and humanitarian aid to flow freely in the war between Israel and Hamas-controlled Palestine.

Swanson, in a statement released by his gubernatorial campaign, said seeing children suffering in Gaza as the war rages on “hurts my soul, and I know I’m not alone.”

“For 33 years, I’ve seen people at their very worst moments,” Swanson said. “That’s what I’ve seen in Gaza, and my heart is broken by the desperation and suffering.”

Swanson said that a first step toward a lasting peace must be a ceasefire that enables the immediate delivery of food, medical aid and the release of all hostages.

“I recognize there’s been some effort to help feed and provide emergency supplies, but it’s not even close to enough,” Swanson said. “Air drops are not sufficient. The convoys of aid trucks that sit just miles away must be given immediate access.”

For Swanson, the issue wasn’t about supporting either side in the conflict, and he noted that he deployed Genesee County Sheriff’s Office patrol cars to safeguard worshippers at Jewish synagogues and Muslim mosques on Oct. 7, 2023.

“My duty is to protect and serve everyone in my community, no questions asked,” Swanson said. “As I travel the state of Michigan, I hear crushing personal stories from those who have friends and families living in the Middle East. They’re caught in the middle and have no voice. They too want an end to violence and bloodshed. Both sides deserve to live in peace and dignity.”

Swanson is in the Democratic side of the governor’s race alongside Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II and Marni Sawicki, the former mayor of Cape Coral, Fla. 

The Republican side of the race includes former Michigan attorney general Mike Cox, former Michigan Speaker of the House Tom Leonard, former congressional candidate Anthony Hudson, U.S. Rep. John James, state Senate Minority Leader Aric Nesbitt, William Null and Karla Wagner.

Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan is running as an independent candidate for governor, and will face the eventual winners of the Democratic and Republican primary contests in August of next year.

Three state Democrats call on federal electeds to stand against Israel’s genocide in Gaza

Meanwhile, on Saturday, three Michigan representatives sent a letter to the state’s U.S. senators and its delegation in Congress, urging them to “take a strong stand against Israel’s genocide against Palestinians in Gaza.”

The letter was authored and signed by state Rep. Alabas Farhat of Dearborn, Rep. Erin Byrnes, also of Dearborn, and Rep. Dylan Wegela of Garden City. It also calls for federal lawmakers to block any additional monetary or military aid, through weapons sales or otherwise, to Israel, and to stand against the U.S. Department of State’s decision to suspend visitor visas for people from Gaza seeking medical treatment.

Farhat, Byrnes and Wegela also indicated that there will be an upcoming resolution introduced by state representatives in the House, calling for an arms embargo against Israel, the full restoration of humanitarian aid, and for U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio to provide medical-humanitarian visas to those targeted in what Amnesty International and other scholars have called a genocide in Gaza.

The letter sent Saturday was addressed to U.S. Sen. Gary Peters (D-Bloomfield Township), as well as U.S. Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-Holly) and the state’s entire congressional delegation.

In response, Peters told Michigan Advance that he has continuously called for the U.S. to negotiate a lasting ceasefire.

“It is the most viable path to ensure desperately needed food and aid reaches innocent civilians in Gaza, secure the release of the remaining hostages, and support peace and stability in the region,” Peters said in a statement to the Advance. “I know this is an issue that deeply impacts a lot of people in our state, and I will continue pushing for an end to this conflict.”

Peters also recently joined a group of his U.S. Senate colleagues in urging the administration of President Donald Trump to resume diplomatic efforts in brokering a Gaza ceasefire – one that ensures a robust expansion of humanitarian aid deliveries to innocent civilians and secures the release of the remaining Israeli hostages taken in the Oct. 7, 2023, terror attack that started the most recent round of hostilities.

U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens (D-Birmingham) also responded to a request for comment on the letter, but her office deferred to a statement she made on the war issued in early August.