Gretchen Whitmer announces Garlin Gilchrist II as running mate

(WJBK) - The Democratic candidate for governor Gretchen Whitmer has announced her running mate will be former Detroit City Clerk candidate Garlin Gilchrist II. 

A native Detroiter, Gilchrist narrowly lost to incumbent City Clerk Janice Winfrey in 2017. He's a graduate of the University of Michigan and worked as a software engineer for Microsoft before managing social media for President Barack Obama's re-election campaign.

Gilchrist, who is 35 years old, also served as a political organizer for MoveOn.org. 

He was on a short list of Democratic candidates that also included State Senator Vincent Gregory and Representative Rudy Hobbs, both of Southfield, and who have more political experience. But analysts say that Whitmer needed a spark when picking her running name. A formal announcement is expected in Lansing later Monday morning. 

Whitmer defeated ex-Detroit health director Abdul El-Sayed and chemical-testing businessman Shri Thanedar to advance to the November race to succeed term-limited Republican Gov. Rick Snyder.

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Bill Schuette announces running mate Lisa Posthumus Lyons

On Aug. 15,  Republican Bill Schuette announced his running mate as Kent County Clerk Lisa Posthumus Lyons, a three-term member of the Michigan House of Representatives and the daughter of former Lt. Gov. Dick Posthumous.

Schuette defeated Lt. Gov. Brian Calley, state Sen. Patrick Colbeck and Dr. Jim Hines in the GOP primary. 

Whitmer and Schuette will square off on the ballot on November 6.