Eaton County Prosecutor Doug Lloyd has announced he is running for Michigan attorney general in the November 2026 election.
The Republican candidate announced his campaign during an episode of the podcast The Right Side with Deb Drick, hosted by the chair of the Livingston County Republican Party.
Lloyd said his priority as Attorney General would be enforcing the law fairly.
“There are no favorites. You don't pick one over the other,” he said. “Your job is to actually take facts and make the determination whether those facts actually fit a crime.”
In a prepared statement, Lloyd said current Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel has made politically motivated decisions, and “every single Democrat in the race is in her mold.”
Nessel is in her second term and cannot run for the office again. Three Democrats are running to replace her.
Lloyd also said Nessel has not done enough to support law enforcement. “While law enforcement has to be held to the highest standards, just as everyone in their positions should be, we also have to support them,” he said.
And he said he would ensure victims were heard. Lloyd said he noticed that as statewide criminal justice reforms grew during his presidency at the Prosecuting Attorneys Association of Michigan, there was a lack of attention to the well-being of victims.
“I would look at these bills and they would have all these changes that were going to happen to the defendant and all these things that were going to make the defendant's life better. But I noticed that whenever these bills were created, there was never any mention of the victim,” he said.
“I noticed that the attorney general sat on the sidelines and didn't say a word, and never offered any input. In my opinion, if you are going to be the chief law enforcement officer of the state and you are going to represent all individuals in the state, then you need to stand up and say something. Nothing was ever said.”
(Nessel said in the past that she "has prioritized crime victim services, expanding efforts to ensure survivors receive the support and resources they need to navigate the criminal justice system.)
Lloyd joins Kevin Kijewski, a defense attorney from Birmingham, in seeking the Republican nomination. The three Democratic candidates who have entered their party's race are Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald, Washtenaw County Prosecutor Eli Savit and former federal prosecutor Mark Totten.
Lloyd said his experience of being the Eaton County prosecutor for 12 years and working as a prosecutor for 30 years will set him apart from his opponents.
“I know when people look at me and they compare me to other people, they're going to see that I am the candidate that actually has the experience to bring this office back to what it is supposed to be,” he said.
