LANSING, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – Democratic Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, a longtime self-proclaimed crusader for transparency, has hit a pothole the size of Michigan’s campaign finance swamp regarding promises of transparency.

Benson’s office just dropped $9.3 million to revamp the state’s transparency portal, promising easier access to lobbying reports and campaign finance disclosures. The result? A shiny new site that a March report from Bridge Michigan says is worse than the one it replaced.

New website sparks transparency concerns.

MORE NEWS: Ice Storm Recovery Continues in Northern Michigan, Sparks Renewed Talk on Underground Power Lines

For those who want to follow the money in Michigan politics, it appears it will be a more daunting task with the new website than with the old one. The new portal has reportedly made it harder to find even basic information on how campaigns are funded, or who’s lobbying whom. That’s a problem, especially when the person overseeing the system has her eyes on the 2026 governor’s race.

Republican critics are calling foul. “I’m not sure how we could do worse,” said Rep. Bill Schuette (R-Midland).

Promises, promises.

Benson’s office insists more improvements are “coming soon” and that the site is a work in progress with upcoming upgrades to things like the public search function. That leads to the question: why was the website rolled out and announced before it was ready?

Too many irons in the fire?

Maybe Benson should focus less on polishing her gubernatorial campaign and more on the job she was elected to do – and ensuring the people she serves can actually see what’s going on behind the curtain.