Mr Progressive launches attacks as Michigan Democrats clash in US Senate debate

MACKINAC ISLAND, Mich. (AP) — Michigan Democrats who had hoped to avoid a bruising primary in a must-win U.S. Senate race found themselves facing a fiery and at times combative debate Thursday, with progressive candidate Abdel Sayed repeatedly attacking his rivals.

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The clash highlighted a broader battle within the Democratic Party as it tries to recover from its losses in 2024 and chart a path forward in a key battleground state. In Michigan’s Aug. 4 primary, voters will choose from three candidates who offer different visions for the party’s future.

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

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

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

Campaign financing is at issue

The discussion at Michigan’s annual bipartisan political convention laid bare the increasingly sharp contradictions emerging in one of the nation’s last major Democratic primaries.

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

“I will tell you that the revolution will definitely not come if we do not fight for it,” Al-Sayed said before targeting his rivals and the conference sponsor. “So let’s play a game. If you’re on this stage and you don’t get a check from Blue Cross Blue Shield, raise your hand.”

The master then raised his hand while the other two on stage did not, sparking laughter from the audience.

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

A newly formed outside group, the Center on Democratic Priorities, has booked more than $5 million in television ads in support of Stevens. AIPAC has denied its affiliation with the group.

Stevens focused largely Thursday on her record in Congress and what she framed as a results-based approach. She has mostly avoided attacking her rivals directly and declined to answer reporters’ questions afterward.

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

Meanwhile, McMorrow has taken a strategy somewhere among the others, both in her campaign and on the debate stage. She emphasized unity and generational change while still opposing the Master during several exchanges.

“There is more that unites us than divides us,” McMorrow said of the candidates on stage in his closing remarks.

However, she was not shy about responding sharply at times. After El-Sayed said he would choose to “carry a message” instead of donors, McMorrow responded, saying, “You actually need to figure out how to deliver” that message.

One issue the candidates agreed on during Thursday’s debate was eliminating the filibuster, the old Senate rule that effectively requires 60 votes to advance most legislation in the 100-member chamber. Trump has repeatedly urged Senate Republicans to remove it, but Senate Majority Leader John Thune has made clear there is not enough support within the GOP conference to do so.

Primary school became ‘more chaotic than I had hoped’

Among the many elected officials who attended the Mackinac Island conference were two Democratic state senators from Michigan.

Both Peters and Sen. Elissa Slotkin told The Associated Press on Thursday that they do not plan to make an endorsement in the primary, and while they believe the primary could be beneficial, it has become more contentious than they had hoped.

“It’s messy. More messy 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 their positive plan,” Slotkin said.

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

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

The winner will face former Rep. Mike Rogers

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

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

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

But he said this year is different.

“It’s a change election. People want to talk about Washington. It’s about Michigan,” Rogers said.

It may be difficult to localize in a race shaped by national issues such as tariffs and gas prices, both of which are hitting Michigan hard. External spending is expected to rise to the nine figures. The US Senate Republican Campaign Organization allocated $45 million for ads, 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 in our state better,” Rogers said.