Michigan State Senator Mallory McMorrow announced Sunday that she is suspending her Democratic campaign for the U.S. Senate, transforming what had been a three-person primary contest in a crucial battleground state into a direct face-off between two very different candidates.
With McMorrow out of the race, centrist U.S. Representative Haley Stevens and progressive public health advocate Abdul El-Sayed are now the only two Democrats remaining in the fight for the nomination. The winner will go on to challenge Republican former U.S. Representative Mike Rogers in the general election.
McMorrow shared the news in a three-minute video posted to X, saying she would give her “full support” to whichever candidate wins the August 4 primary.
Her departure comes as recent polling had placed her in a distant third position, with El-Sayed holding the lead over Stevens.
El-Sayed responded to the news by welcoming McMorrow’s supporters, while sounding a cautionary note. He warned that Michiganders “cannot allow the establishment to decide our nominee for us.”
Stevens, meanwhile, offered kind words for her former rival, calling McMorrow an “important voice,” while making clear her own case for the nomination. “I’m the strongest Democrat to defeat Mike Rogers this November,” Stevens said.
The outcome of the Michigan Senate race carries significant weight for Democrats nationally. Losing the seat would make it considerably more difficult — though not impossible — for the party to flip control of the Senate in November. Republicans currently hold a 53-47 majority in the chamber. In the 2024 presidential race, Republican President Donald Trump carried Michigan by 1.4 percentage points.
