Haley Stevens launches Senate bid in Michigan
'I'm running for Senate because just like that day I got these keys to that old Cutlass, we have the power to chart our own path. I'm proud of Michigan and I'll never get tired of saying it. It would be my honor to fight for you in the Senate,' she said in a video announcement released Tuesday morning.
Stevens is touting her background in the auto industry in the manufacturing-heavy state. Her announcement video features her role as a top aide on President Barack Obama's auto rescue task force — and an old video of Obama talking about her. She's also suggesting she'll emphasize an economic message in the race, saying that Michiganders are getting 'more chaos' while facing higher prices and increased housing costs.
A prodigious fundraiser, Stevens had quietly been making moves this year towards a bid to succeed retiring Democratic Sen. Gary Peters, but she'll be entering a crowded Democratic field to replace him. State Sen. Mallory McMorrow and Abdul El-Sayed, the former director of Wayne County's Department of Health, Human and Veterans Services, are already running, with former Michigan state House Speaker Joe Tate is also expected to declare his candidacy.
Other top-tier Democrats like former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Rep. Kristen McDonald Rivet opted not to join the race, leading many Democrats to see the contest as wide open.
Stevens is now likely to occupy a more centrist lane in the race as compared to her declared and expected competitors, drawing from her current position as the current chair of the political arm of the New Democrat Coalition. El-Sayed and McMorrow have positioned themselves as political outsiders, with El-Sayed winning the endorsement of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.).
She has previously backed Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, while other Democrats like McMorrow have openly said they would oppose him continuing in his leadership role over his handling of a GOP-backed government funding bill.
Stevens is no stranger to tough races. She flipped a seat in Detroit's northwestern suburbs in 2018, though redistricting after 2020 made it bluer. That redistricting cycle then forced her into a bruising member-on-member primary against Rep. Andy Levin, a member of a storied Michigan political dynasty.
The American Israel Public Affairs Committee spent heavily for Stevens in her 2022 primary, fueling fears among some Democrats that the deep-pocketed group could get involved in the Senate primary this year, too, and reopen deep Democratic divisions over Israel and Gaza.
Michigan is also likely to be one of the most hotly contested Senate battlegrounds this cycle. Republicans see it as a pickup opportunity after President Donald Trump won the state in 2024, and former Republican Rep. Mike Rogers, who narrowly lost the Senate race to Democrat Elissa Slotkin last year to replace retiring Sen. Debbie Stabenow, is already running again. Rep. Bill Huizenga has also been floated as a potential GOP candidate.
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