I’d still bet on her winning re-election, but MI Govs have historically left office unpopular—Snyder, Granholm, Engle, the dude Engler defeated in 1990. It’s ungovernable
Snyder left in one of the most baffling and damaging political scandals of the decade and Granholm ended her term in the depths of a recession which hit Michigan worse than most other states in the union. It's not something unique to the state.
Let's review the last several MI Governors:
George Romney (R): 1963 to 1969: Popular when he resigned to become Nixon's US Housing & Urban Development Secretary.
William Milliken (R): 1969 to 1983: Left popular.
James Blanchard (D): 1983 to 1991: unpopular & lost reelection in bid for 3rd term in 1990.
John Engler (R): 1991 to 2003: unpopular
Jennifer Granholm (D): 2003 to 2011: Had so much political potential, but blew it & left unpopular.
Rick Snyder (R): 2011 to 2019: Obviously despised for obvious reasons (Flint Crisis, Scott Walker-esque tactics)
Engler had the benefit of a wave election in 1994 and a dream opponent in 1998. Geoffrey Fisher was a Sharron Angle-type bad candidate and if the Dems had nominated someone else, they might have had a chance.
