• Democrats will decide next week if it’s Haley Stevens or Abdul El-Sayed facing Mike Rogers in the US Senate general election 
  • Money in politics has dominated the debate as outside spending continues to flow in, primarily on Stevens’ behalf
  • Other issues on voters’ minds include health care, affordability, immigration and response to the Trump administration

In the Michigan race to replace retiring US Sen. Gary Peters, there’s been no shortage of major issues for candidates to address: What is the future of health care? What to do about the high cost of living? Should the rules around money in politics be changed?

Those and other policy questions have emerged as key points of debate in the contentious Democratic primary between US Rep. Haley Stevens and former Wayne County Health Director Abdul El-Sayed.

The race is one of the nation’s most closely watched primaries as Democrats fight for majority control of Congress and chart the party’s ideological future.

Michigan’s open US Senate seat is a must-win for a party aiming for more checks on President Donald Trump. But Mike Rogers, a longtime GOP member of Congress who only narrowly lost to Sen. Elissa Slotkin in 2024, will not make it easy.

Stevens has garnered support from establishment Democrats like Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Peters, while El-Sayed is a favorite of progressives like US Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. 

Related:

Rogers is running on a message of bringing down housing costs and supporting the working class — but his close alliance with Trump could complicate his second attempt to return to Washington.

As part of Bridge Michigan’s 2026 election coverage, we’ve turned to readers to help us define the top issues facing Michigan.

As voters weigh in on Michigan’s consequential US Senate primary, here’s a look at how several of those issues have shaped the race, and where the major party candidates stand. 

Money in politics

No issue has dominated Michigan’s US Senate primary quite like campaign finance, particularly the role that outside groups like the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (or AIPAC) have played in the race. 

As of last week, Stevens’ campaign had spent about $9 million, but AIPAC and other outside groups supporting her had poured in more than $45 million, primarily for ads touting her or criticizing El-Sayed. 

By comparison, El-Sayed’s campaign has spent nearly $12 million, while outside groups supporting him have spent $3.3 million. He’s made it a point to swear off corporate PAC money but does have a super PAC supporting him. 

Those figures do not include TV air time reserved for the final weeks of the primary campaign, which is expected to push Stevens’ total support to more than $60 million, according to recent AdImpact data.

In Michigan’s $200 million 2020 race for US Senate, super PACs spent about $56 million through the primary and general election to benefit Gary Peters, who is retiring at the end of the year. 

El-Sayed and his allies, including US Sen. Bernie Sanders, claim the race has gone beyond policy disputes and is now a question of whether special interests can buy a US Senate seat. 

He’s been especially critical of spending from AIPAC, the pro-Israel group that’s worked against El-Sayed and other critics of US aid to the Israeli government. 

Abdul El-Sayed, Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
Michigan US Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed rallied with progressive favorites Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in mid-July. (Ella Miller/Bridge Michigan)

During a Monday debate, El-Sayed pointed to a recent vote by Stevens opposing a failed amendment to block US funding to Israel as proof of “the pro quo that comes with the quid of $30 million spent by AIPAC.”

Stevens has dodged direct questions about the AIPAC support but supports a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine. More broadly, she’s previously argued that anyone supporting her campaign “is doing so because of my proven record of fighting for Michigan” and has also called for federal campaign finance reforms.

Asked Monday whether there would be less outside spending in the race if the proposals she’s championing were law, she told reporters yes and said she is “just as frustrated as every Michigander” by the imbalance of money in politics. 

Rogers, the presumed Republican nominee, has raised about $7.6 million so far. Without any primary competition, he’s managed to keep $4.4 million of that in the bank headed toward the general election. Stevens had $2.8 million in remaining cash as of July 15, while El-Sayed had $2.5 million. 

Rogers has had a steady trickle of positive advertising on his behalf paid for by groups such as the Republican-backed Senate Leadership Fund, which has pledged to spend more than $45 million to support him through the general election. 

Affordability and economy

Costs of living in Michigan and nationally have skyrocketed in recent years, driven by inflation and economic volatility, and the job market is tight. 

Michigan’s median household income lags nationally, and families here continue to weather higher costs of groceries, rent, child care and other necessary expenses. 

A longtime proponent of Michigan manufacturing, Stevens has been a staunch critic of Trump’s tariff policies, arguing the president’s strategy has contributed to higher prices and damaged the state’s manufacturing sector. She introduced a “No Tariffs on Groceries” bill aimed at blunting the impact of rising food prices. 

Michigan Democratic US Senate candidate Haley Stevens campaigns ahead of the Democratic primary during a Juneteenth event hosted at Ralph Wilson Park in Detroit on June 19, 2026.
US Rep. Haley Stevens has touted her support for Michigan manufacturing as she runs for US Senate. (Ella Miller/Bridge Michigan)

Stevens’ economic policy agenda includes additional investments in manufacturing and infrastructure and greater access to job training for underserved communities.

El-Sayed has primarily focused on reducing the cost of health care, pitching for Medicare for All as a potential solution, but he also argues that “life has become deeply unaffordable because corporations have rigged our system to make it harder for you to afford your life.” 

He’s called for increased support of union membership, more investment in research and development, stronger enforcement of anti-monopoly laws, elimination of corporate tax breaks and a “steady, thoughtful and targeted” approach to tariffs to protect US manufacturing jobs. Like Sanders, El-Sayed favors a wealth tax on the nation’s highest earners. 

Both Democratic candidates have called for lower utility costs and more support for homes and businesses experiencing power outages, though El-Sayed has hammered Stevens over past contributions from DTE Energy’s political action committee. 

On the Republican side, Rogers is advocating for tax cuts for working families and recently launched a “Let’s Get to Work!” series highlighting worker experiences across the state. 

Rogers contends Michigan’s high energy costs were helped along by Democratic policies at the state and federal level, arguing regulations and state energy standards caused an “artificial increase” in energy prices.

Artificial intelligence

With a new $56 billion data center complex in Saline underway and other communities considering similar projects, the hyperscale facilities and the artificial intelligence they fuel have emerged as hot topics. 

El-Sayed has called for public ownership of AI and regulating AI firms like public utilities, suggesting a system along the lines of federal banking oversight could be a good framework. He wants to go beyond Sanders’ recent call for a one-time, 50% tax on AI firms’ stocks to give the government a stake in their business.

In an interview with Bridge, El-Sayed said he believes that Sanders’ approach to community ownership of AI is “a really good way forward” but believes it needs to be paired with a strong, government-backed regulatory enforcement mechanism, whether that be as a public utility or through co-governance at the board level of AI companies. 

Stevens, who has worked on AI safety and research bills in Congress, has said the US is competing with China and she wants to see “Michigan continue to lead on the moon shots of the 21st century.”

Her main goals now are ensuring AI doesn’t lead to job loss in Michigan and developing a “clear, responsible policy framework” for the technology. 

In a previous statement to Bridge, Stevens said AI companies “need to have real skin in the game in supporting our tax base and making sure that all Americans share in the wealth we’re seeing created.”

On data centers, El-Sayed has proposed “terms of engagement” holding developers and utilities to binding agreements for keeping electric rates down, guaranteeing energy reliability and adhering to clean energy laws, with penalties if they don’t comply. 

Stevens has said her top priority when it comes to data centers “is making sure costs don’t go up for Michigan families and that we are protecting good-paying union jobs.” She’s called for a clear policy framework that prevents utility companies from passing new costs onto customers. 

Rogers — who became an internet meme when an AI-doctored image making him look more muscular went viral — has endorsed President Donald Trump’s artificial intelligence policy framework, which calls on Congress to prevent increased electricity costs as a result of data center construction and streamline federal permitting for AI infrastructure. 

In March, Rogers said in a statement that AI is already making powerful advancements in medical outcomes, manufacturing efficiency and agriculture innovation, adding that a consistent national framework gives the US “an opportunity to take it all to the next level.” 

Immigration

The Trump administration’s aggressive immigrant deportation tactics — including the January killings of two US citizens by Border Patrol agents in Minnesota — prompted calls for reform by both Democratic US Senate candidates, though their approaches differ. 

ICE arrested 2,349 people in Michigan from January through October 2025, nearly triple the number arrested in the state in the same timeframe in 2024, according to ICE data provided to the Deportation Data Project through Freedom of Information Act requests.

ICE had detained 3,338 people in Michigan — most of them at the North Lake Correctional Facility in Baldwin, which reopened as a detention center in June 2025 — last year through October, nearly triple the number detained in the same timeframe in 2024. Most came from Mexico.

El-Sayed, who visited Minnesota in January as anti-ICE protests escalated, wants to abolish the agency entirely, arguing ICE agents are being deployed as a “paramilitary force” and that retraining or reforming won’t address the issues.

Stevens hasn’t gone that far, calling for accountability and reform instead. Both candidates want to redirect the recent influx of federal funding for immigration enforcement.

Prior to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s firing, Stevens co-sponsored articles of impeachment against her, citing Noem’s refusal to answer questions to Congress about Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations, the killing of an unarmed protester and a rise in deaths in ICE detention facilities, including the death of a detainee who died at the North Lake Processing Center in Baldwin.

El-Sayed has criticized Stevens for voting “to thank ICE and increase their budget.” But both votes were for broader legislation, one of which condemned a terrorist attack and another that staved off a partial government shutdown, details he failed to mention.

Rogers, a former FBI agent, has defended Trump’s immigration strategy and is critical of ongoing congressional debate over funding the Department of Homeland Security. In comments to Fox News, he said that keeping the agency fully funded is vital to national security. 

Health care

When it comes to health care, Stevens and El-Sayed agree that increasing insurance costs and recent federal changes affecting rural hospitals, Medicaid and previously subsidized insurance plans are making it harder for Michiganders to access and afford care. 

The similarities end there. 

El-Sayed has long advocated for moving beyond the Affordable Care Act to a single-payer health care plan, commonly known as “Medicare for All,” that would guarantee health care for all US residents regardless of age. 

Advocates contend that US residents pay far more for health care than other nations without the same level of benefits. And they argue Medicare for All could ultimately lower total costs by cutting private insurer profits, streamlining health care administration and empowering the government to negotiate lower drug prices and provider payments.

Critics contend switching to a single-payer system would force tax hikes and could reduce overall access to care, citing increased wait times in other countries that have a government-run health system. Unions, too, have been wary of Medicare for All over concerns that it could impact employer-sponsored health plans negotiated in the bargaining process.

In his campaign, El-Sayed has said he supports allowing an option for workers to keep supplemental private insurance provided by unions or employers. 

Stevens is calling for expanding and protecting both the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid, going beyond reversing recent cuts and expanding programs to ensure more vulnerable families can stay covered. She also said there is “more to do” on lowering prescription drug costs, calling rapidly rising costs of health care “unconscionable.” 

She supports a public option — a government-run health insurance plan that would compete in the market alongside private insurers, as well as protecting Medicare and Medicaid from additional funding cuts. 

At least three states have rolled out some form of public option for their residents, though some researchers warn that recent federal changes could blunt the impact. 

Rogers opposed the creation of the Affordable Care Act while serving in Congress and more recently opposed extending an enhanced premium tax credit program for health insurance plans bought through HealthCare.gov.

In December, he suggested in a podcast interview that recent insurance rate hikes caused by the expiration of government subsidies can be tied to the original policy: “This should be an albatross around their neck.”

The Trump factor 

Observers in Michigan and nationally are closely watching how public opinion of Trump and his second-term policy agenda will impact the US Senate race. 

As in his 2024 campaign, Rogers is closely aligning himself with Trump, vowing to “stand with” Trump and deliver on what Rogers called “a mandate given to him by the American people.” 

Mike Rogers on a stage. Trump supporters are behind him.
Republican US Senate candidate Mike Rogers joined President Donald Trump on stage Monday at the General Motors Proving Ground in Milford (Ella Miller/Bridge Michigan)

The Democratic candidates have been critical of Trump’s policy agenda, vowing to do what they can if elected to challenge his most controversial actions and look to the future. 

During a Monday debate on Fox 2 Detroit, Stevens called herself “Michigan’s manufacturing geek” and said she would take her “passion for the bread and butter of our state and her unique understanding of it” to the Senate to combat Republican policies. 

“So when Donald Trump and Mike Rogers go to lick the bootstraps of China and start a trade war with Canada, screwing us over and selling us down the river, I will be standing up for us,” she said.  

Her campaign has also claimed Republicans are helping El-Sayed because they’d rather run against him, even going so far as to publish a satirical Rogers endorsement of El-Sayed. 

Rogers lost his last US Senate bid in 2024 by just over 19,000 votes, underperforming Trump in Michigan by about 123,000 votes. But without Trump at the top of the ticket, and in a political climate less favorable to the party in power, experts say the close alliance could be a tougher sell. 

This election cycle differs for Rogers in that he isn’t facing competition in the primary, meaning he’s been able to consolidate Republican support and turn his attention to the general election sooner. 

That puts Democrats on defense in a state that’s gone blue in US Senate races for decades, and bruises from one of the most contentious statewide primaries in recent memory could leave the eventual Democratic nominee vulnerable to a seasoned campaigner like Rogers.

Creative Commons License

Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under our Republication Guidelines. Questions? Email republishing@bridgemi.com