With early voting underway and Election Day a little more than a week away, Michigan’s gasoline prices — often viewed as a real-time measure of the economy — are surging, a result of soaring crude oil prices and troubles at a regional refinery in Illinois.
In metro Detroit, gas prices during the weekend edged to $5 a gallon and even more.
When Randy Bilot, 40, stopped early Monday, Oct. 26, in this Ford F-150 pick to get gasoline at the Mobil station at 22500 Woodward in Ferndale, gas was $5.19 a gallon, an amount that he characterized as "way too high" and too much to completely fill up his tank.
"I don’t know how it has gotten out of control even more in the past week," the Ferndale resident said, aiming to put in $60 worth of gas, but going
over by a penny. He added that price for fuel was "like, $4.60 just five days ago."
But, he added, he expected to keep paying more for fuel as long as "that war" with Iran persisted.
Statewide, motorists the same day were paying an average of $4.82 a gallon, up 33 cents from a week ago, according to AAA. That works out to be about $72 for a full 15-gallon tank of gasoline. Diesel — which hit an all-time high price in Michigan of nearly $7 in September — was $6.81 a gallon.
Refinery woes, high oil prices
Adrienne Woodland, a spokeswoman for Michigan’s AAA auto club, said that "elevated oil prices are adding significant upward pressure to what motorists are paying for gasoline," calling the increased fuel price this week "another hit to Michigan drivers."
In Michigan, the most expensive gas price averages on Sunday were in: metro Detroit, $4.89 a gallon; Ann Arbor, $4.81, and Flint, $4.81; the least, in: Marquette, $4.65; Benton Harbor, $4.75, and Jackson, $4.77.
The ongoing war in the Middle East also has led to extreme price volatility and oil to be in short supply. Crude prices spiked on Friday, reaching a new global price high since April of $116 a barrel. Prices had come down a few dollars by Monday, but were still more than $100 a barrel.
Nationally, the average price of gasoline, $4.29 a gallon, is the highest it has ever been this late in the year. This is the first year, AAA noted, that the national average has ever been higher than $4 a gallon in October. Until now, prices have fallen at the end of the summer travel season.
Prices also tend to come down because winter-blend gasoline is cheaper to produce.
Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, said that "the relief motorists and policymakers have been hoping for" heading into the midterm elections "remains elusive," even as several states have suspended fuel taxes and the "Trump administration has pulled virtually every lever available."
Fuel prices throughout the Midwest also were elevated because of a shutdown at the ExxonMobil refinery in Joliet, Illinois, according to a report by the BOE Report, which follows the petroleum industry. It was unclear when the refinery would be operational again.
This time, the report noted, a catalytic reformer at the refinery — a fuel supplier to several Midwest states including Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, and Wisconsin — was taken offline a week ago. This follows a power outage there in September, which led to a two-week shutdown and price spike.
Dueling political claims, rallies
High gas prices, which President Donald Trump railed against while running for a second term and promised to bring down to $2 a gallon and less, are now an issue that Democrats have seized. They are including it, along with other increased costs, that they blame on the president.
Trump’s approval rating has fallen to a record low of 31% according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll. It is the lowest level in either of his terms, with 68% of Americans disapproving of his handling of the economy.
Saturday, while at a rally in Detroit, former President Barack Obama lambasted Trump's policies, taking aim at the Mideast war, trade tariffs and pointing out oil and fuel prices were soaring. He blamed Trump for failing to fulfill campaign promises.
The same day, Trump said while campaigning for Republican candidates in Georgia, said that gasoline prices were "temporarily high," but told the crowd they would be "falling dramatically in a short period of time, as soon as that war is over."
TRUMP on HIGH GAS PRICES: We’re making money like we’ve never made before. They’ll say: President Trump is bragging about all the money they're making while people are suffering at the pump. I don’t give a damn. We’re making a freaking fortune. pic.twitter.com/KZ2pYsTPyR
— Acyn (@Acyn) October 25, 2026
But Trump also boasted at the rally that the United States is making a "fortune" from high oil prices. He said he was advised against highlighting gains, but then claimed, anyway, that U.S. oil industry was making trillions of dollars from the war.
"I can just see the fake headlines: 'President Trump is talking about all the money they are making while people are suffering at the pump,' " he said. "That’ll be the headline. But I said, 'I don’t give a damn. I’m going to say it: We’re making a freaking fortune.' "
Contact Frank Witsil: 313-222-5022 or fwitsil@freepress.com
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan gas prices, a campaign issue, are up as early voting starts
