Dems use anti-GOP attack on each other in Michigan Senate primary
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Democrat Mallory McMorrow (left) and Rep. Haley Stevens (D-Mich.). Photos: Jacek Boczarski/Anadolu via Getty Images; Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images.
Democrats accused Republicans of carpetbagging in Senate races across the country in 2024. Now they're turning the attack on each other in next year's Senate primary contest in Michigan.
Why it matters: Just last year, Democrats poured nearly $4 million into TV ads attacking Michigan GOP Senate nominee Mike Rogers for having a home in Florida. They also accused Republicans of carpetbagging in Montana, Ohio, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania.
- Rogers was born in Michigan and represented the state in the House for over a decade.
⏩ Fast forward to 2025: Rogers is again running for Senate this year, after losing to now-Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) in the 2024 general election.
- State Sen. Molly McMorrow, born in New Jersey, wrote in a book released this year that she "relocated permanently" to Michigan in 2014. But she voted and had a home in California in 2016. McMorrow's campaign told Axios she bounced between the states due to her job in California and her fiancé's work in Michigan.
- Rep. Haley Stevens (D-Mich.), born in Michigan, voted in Kentucky in 2014 and Illinois in 2016, according to social media posts. She registered to vote in Michigan in 2017. Her campaign declined to comment.
- Abdul El-Sayed, a progressive favorite in the primary, spent time in New York as a professor, which briefly threatened to tank his 2018 gubernatorial campaign in Michigan. El-Sayed was born in Michigan, went to the University of Michigan and became a top public health official in the state.
McMorrow, Stevens and El-Sayed all ran for office for the first time in Michigan in 2018.
What they're saying: "I chose Michigan to put down roots, get engaged, get married, start a small business, and start a family," McMorrow told Axios in a statement. "I've never shied away from my story and I'm not about to start, and unlike a couple of my opponents, I didn't move here to run for office."
- The Stevens campaign declined to comment.
- "Abdul El-Sayed is proud of his Michigan roots. He was born and raised in Michigan and attended the University of Michigan. He was fortunate to earn a scholarship that took him out of state for medical and graduate school," El-Sayed campaign spokesperson Roxie Richner told Axios.
- Joanna Rodriguez, communications director for the campaign arm of Senate Republicans, told Axios: "Regardless of which of these Democrats wins their messy primary debate over who is the 'truer Michigander,' the fact is none of them will ever be the U.S. Senator for Michigan after Mike Rogers wins next November."
