Michigan gubernatorial candidate Tom Leonard speaks to a crowd of Republican party fixtures at a dinner Aug. 8 honoring the late state Sen. George McManus at Great Wolf Lodge in Traverse City, Mich. (Ben Solis/Michigan Advance, file)

ESCANABA — Republican gubernatorial candidate Tom Leonard has announced that if elected governor he will appoint an “ambassador” to the Upper Peninsula and establish a dedicated executive office presence in the U.P. to ensure residents have a direct line to the governor’s office.

Leonard said the proposal was shaped by what he is hearing during his listening tour across the Upper Peninsula.

“In community after community, the overwhelming message people are sharing with me is that they feel Lansing has forgotten them,” Leonard said. “For too long, the Upper Peninsula has been treated as an afterthought. That ends when I’m governor.”

On this current listening tour, residents have raised concerns about rising energy costs, limited access to primary care and OB/GYN services, overworked sheriffs, lost mining revenue and the lack of real mental health options, he said.

Leonard, the former speaker of the Michigan House of Representatives, said creating an ambassador to the Upper Peninsula is one practical way to ensure those concerns are directly represented inside the governor’s office.

“The people of the U.P. aren’t asking for favors, they’re simply asking to be listened to,” Leonard said. “We are going to do more than listen. We’re going to give them a permanent seat at the table.”

Leonard said the ambassador would be a resident of the Upper Peninsula who would report directly to the governor and work directly with local leaders and stakeholders to ensure U.P. priorities are reflected in state policy and that concerns do not get lost in the bureaucracy.

“Listening is important,” Leonard added. “But being willing to publicly commit to bold solutions is the kind of leadership needed to create a real path forward for the Upper Peninsula and every community across our state.”

Leonard lives in DeWitt, Mich., with his wife and three young children. His career took him from a clerk’s desk in Genessee County to an assistant prosecutor role; he was later elected as a state representative and then House speaker.

Leonard’s priorities include tax reform, worker empowerment and government accountability.

Declared candidates for Michigan governor include Democrats Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, Marni Sawicki, Kevin Hogan and Genesee County Sheriff Chris Swanson; and Republicans Leonard, U.S. Rep. John James, Anthony Hudson, Karla Wagner, state Sen. Aric Nesbitt, Ralph Rebandt, Joyce Gipson, Evan Space and former Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox. Former Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, who was elected as a Democrat, is running as an Independent.

Democratic or Republican candidates must file to run by April 21. Independents have until July 16. The primary is Aug. 4, the general election Nov. 3.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer cannot seek re-election due to term limits.