LANSING, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – The questions over Democratic Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson’s ties to the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) persist, and now a nonpartisan watchdog group is calling for an investigation into her relationship with the federally-indicted group.
“Ample evidence” to investigate Benson.
Democracy Restored is asking the Michigan Attorney Grievance Commission to look into potential ethics violations regarding Benson. The Michigan Supreme Court appoints the nine-member commission of six lawyers and three nonlawyers for three-year terms.
In a June 1 letter, Democracy Restored Director Houston Keene pointed to the recent federal indictment that alleges the SPLC incited “violent or extremist groups” to move “more than $3 million in donated funds to fictitiously named bank accounts controlled by SPLC operatives.” In other words, the indictment accuses the SPLC of funding racist groups like the Ku Klux Klan and encouraging violence. Then, the SPLC would speak out against the very violence it incited.
The letter adds that because Benson served on the SPLC board for four years prior to her election to state office, there is “ample evidence” to investigate her.
“Serious scrutiny and investigation.”
Keene told Michigan News Source exclusively that Benson’s position on the SPLC board for four years prior to her election to state office provides enough of a reason to investigate her. “With the recent DOJ indictment of the SPLC for allegedly funding the hate groups they claim to oppose, serious scrutiny and investigation should be taken into Jocelyn Benson. Secretary Benson served on the board of the SPLC between 2014 and 2018, amid an uptick in white supremacist extremism that included the deadly 2017 Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.”
In addition, Keene added, “Being a barred attorney in any state requires one to follow the rules in action and spirit, especially if one is serving as an elected official.”
“History of dishonesty.”
The letter also cites Benson’s ongoing feud with the Michigan House and her refusal to turn over subpoenaed election training materials. In May 2025, the House voted to hold Benson in contempt. Democracy Restored cites what it calls “Benson’s demonstrated history of dishonesty” along with possible fraud during her tenure at the SPLC.
Benson’s time on the SPLC board isn’t her only tie to the organization. According to Benson’s biography The Purposeful Warrior, she worked at the SPLC in the late 1990s and posed as a freelance journalist to gain access to certain white supremacy groups.
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Benson is running for governor of Michigan. While Benson said she’s issuing a firewall to prevent any appearance of impropriety in her overseeing her own election, the Michigan House is taking up bills that would put those intentions in writing.
