Rep. Elissa Slotkin is implementing the first congressional endorsement of the Michigan Senate Democratic primary, with the goal of consolidating support as a competitor with Hollywood credentials nears launching a campaign in a race where a serious Republican candidate is so far MY.
Slotkin’s colleague, Rep. Haley Stevens, a Democrat who represents a swath of suburban Detroit, will endorse her on Wednesday. Stevens declined to launch her own Senate bid in February, but she called Slotkin “the best in our state” and said “no one is more prepared to lead.” Both Slotkin and Stevens entered Congress five years ago after flipping red seats in suburban Michigan that helped elect Donald Trump to office in 2016.
Stevens’ high-profile endorsement comes as Hill Harper, an actor known for his roles on “The Good Doctor” and “CSI: NY,” contemplates a bid for the nomination to replace retiring Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow. . Harper, a transplant from Michigan, is expected to enter the Democratic primary after the start of a new fundraising cycle in July.
To date, Slotkin is the biggest name to enter the Michigan Senate race, which is a must-win for Democrats to maintain their tight control of the upper house in 2024. The party is also defending seats in Arizona, Nevada , Montana, Ohio, Pennsylvania. and West Virginia, but he hopes that Michigan, despite its record of close presidential elections in 2016 and 2020, may be an easier place, given the lack of a state GOP bank, the growing extremism of the state party and the sweep of the Democrats in both legislative chambers in 2022.
It’s a dramatic reversal from 2020, when Republican Senate nominee, now Rep. John James, fell within 100,000 votes of Democratic incumbent Gary Peters.
Stevens and Slotkin entered Congress in 2018 and won red seats in a critical presidential transition state. Michigan voted for Donald Trump in 2016 and Joe Biden in 2020. Slotkin, a 46-year-old former CIA analyst, represents a House district stretching from Lansing to just outside Detroit that voted for the Republican presidential nominee in recent three choices. Slotkin’s argument to Democrats is that he can win over Republicans and swing voters in a state where many of them decide elections.
“In 2018, Elissa Slotkin and I swapped out the red seats for blue ones,” Stevens said in a statement announcing her endorsement. “I have served with her through the COVID-19 pandemic, difficult elections, and the violent attack on our democracy. I have seen firsthand her deep understanding of the economic needs of our state; she identifies the problems and addresses them head on.”
Slotkin made waves in his most recent re-election with a backup from Republican and former House member Liz Cheney, critic of Republican extremism and Donald Trump’s incitement to the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol.
Slotkin’s outspoken challengers on the Democratic side include Pamela Pugh, president of the Michigan Board of Education; Nasser Beydoun, a restaurant owner; and Leslie Love, former state legislator.
Harper has not officially announced her candidacy, but has been participating in Democratic events around the state. he recently established a $24,000 back property tax bill on his Detroit mansion, a sign to some that he’s cleaning the decks for a campaign. Harper could not be reached for comment Tuesday night.
Meanwhile, Republicans are scrambling to recruit a serious candidate, whose absence could wipe the state off the GOP battle map and all but guarantee the seat remains in Democratic hands.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) did not mention Michigan in a recent CNN interview discussing the 2024 electoral map. McConnell detailed the GOP’s efforts not to “screw this,” a reference to the list of extreme, ineligible Trump-backed candidates that prevented Republicans from winning the House in last year’s midterm elections.
National Republicans, struggling in their search for a competent candidate, are reportedly trying to recruit John Tuttle, the vice president of the New York Stock Exchange and a native of southeast Michigan.
John James, who won a congressional seat from Michigan last year and was the Republican Party’s nominee for Senate in both 2018 and 2020, turned down another state run. The party’s declared candidates include Michael Hoover, a business owner, and Nikki Snyder, a nurse and member of the state board of education.
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