Progressive El-Sayed goes on the offensive as Michigan Democrats clash in U.S. Senate debate

MACKINAC ISLAND, Mich. (AP) — Michigan Democrats hoping to avoid a bruising primary in a must-win U.S. Senate race found themselves with a fiery and sometimes combative debate Thursday, as progressive candidate Abdul El-Sayed repeatedly took offense to his rivals.

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The clash highlighted a broader struggle within the Democratic Party as it tries to recover from its 2024 losses and chart a path forward in a leading battleground state. Voters in Michigan’s Aug. 4 primary will choose from three candidates offering different visions for the party’s future.

“Democrats across our country and across Michigan are crying out for a new Democratic Party. We need accountability,” State Sen. Mallory McMorrow said from the stage Thursday.

The party must fill the seat vacated by Democratic Sen. Gary Peters if it hopes to reclaim the Senate majority in this fall’s midterm elections. Candidates for the nomination are Rep. Haley Stevens, McMorrow and El-Sayed, a former public health official.

Here’s what happened in the first televised statewide debate and where things stand in the race:

Financing of the campaign in question

The debate at Michigan’s annual bipartisan political conference laid bare the increasingly stark contrasts that have emerged in one of the nation’s last major Democratic primaries.

El-Sayed repeatedly attacked other candidates over campaign donations, arguing that he was the only candidate in the race who did not accept money from corporations.

“I’ll tell you, the revolution will definitely not happen if we don’t fight for it,” El-Sayed said before targeting both his rivals and a conference sponsor. “So let’s play a game. If you’re on this stage and you’ve never received a check from Blue Cross Blue Shield, raise your hand.”

El-Sayed then raised his hand, unlike the other two on stage, prompting laughter from the crowd.

Stevens, a fourth-term congresswoman representing a district just outside Detroit, is considered the more moderate and establishment-aligned candidate. She has described herself as a “staunchly pro-Israel Democrat” and has previously received support from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC.

A newly formed outside group, the Center for Democratic Priorities Inc., recently set aside more than $5 million in television advertising to support Stevens. AIPAC has denied any affiliation with the group.

Stevens focused largely Thursday on her record in Congress and what she presented as a results-oriented approach. Above all, she avoided directly attacking her rivals and then refused to answer questions from journalists.

“The people of Michigan deserve a functioning Congress,” Stevens said from the stage. “I write bills, I pass bills on behalf of the people of Michigan.”

McMorrow, meanwhile, has adopted a strategy somewhere in the middle of the rest – both in her campaign and on the debate stage. She emphasized unity and generational change while continuing to oppose El-Sayed in several exchanges.

“There are more things that unite us than divide us,” McMorrow said of the candidates on stage in his closing remarks.

However, she did not hesitate to sometimes react abruptly. After El-Sayed said he would rather “have a message” than give to donors, McMorrow retorted that “you actually have to know how to deliver” that message.

One of the issues the candidates aligned on during Thursday’s debate was eliminating the filibuster, the long-standing Senate rule that effectively requires 60 votes to advance most bills in a 100-member chamber. Trump has repeatedly urged Senate Republicans to eliminate him, but Senate Majority Leader John Thune has made clear there is not enough support within the GOP conference to do so.

The primary has become “more complicated than I would have liked”

Among the many elected officials present at the Mackinac Island conference were Michigan’s two Democratic senators.

Peters and Sen. Elissa Slotkin both told The Associated Press on Thursday that they had no plans to throw their support behind the primary and, while they thought the primary could be beneficial, it was becoming more contentious than they had hoped.

“It’s complicated. More complicated than I would have liked. I think it’s important in any primary for candidates to focus more on what they want to do and what their positive plan is,” Slotkin said.

Peters said the eventual nominee will have to bring the party together.

“What types of candidates are winning in purple states? That should be what we’re looking for,” Peters said. “Who can bring people together and build the kind of broad coalition to win in a purple state?”

Winner will face former Rep. Mike Rogers

Rogers lost to Slotkin, then a U.S. representative, in 2024 by fewer than 20,000 votes in a state that Republican Donald Trump chased on his way to a second term.

This time, Rogers will not benefit from Trump’s presence at the top of the poll. But Rogers heads into the general election with its own advantages, including an uncontested primary.

In a phone interview Wednesday, Rogers acknowledged the difficulties of the last campaign, saying the financial disadvantage he faced after a tough primary “made it really difficult” to win the general election.

But he said this year was different.

“This is an election for change. People want to talk about Washington. This is about Michigan,” Rogers said.

It could prove difficult to pinpoint a race shaped by national issues such as tariffs and gas prices, both of which are hitting Michigan hard. External spending is expected to reach nine figures. The Republican U.S. Senate campaign organization has set aside $45 million in advertising, compared to $20 million for Democrats.

“They’re going to spend a lot of money trying to make you not like me. We’re going to spend our money trying to tell people what we’re going to do for them and make their lives better in our state,” Rogers said.

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