Republicans Smell Blood in Michigan Senate Race

After Michigan Democrat Sen. Gary Peters’ surprise announcement that he would not be seeking reelection Tuesday, Republicans in the Wolverine state are eyeing the possibility of their first Senate win in the swing state in the 21st century. 

Peters, 66, explained in a video statement that he would not run for a third term in 2026 in order to spend time with family.

Without Peters, a staunchly pro-union politician with working-class appeal, Democrats are now seeking a strong Senate candidate in a state they lost in the 2024 presidential election. 

Multiple Michigan Republicans, smelling blood, were quick to show interest in the seat. 

Tudor Dixon, who lost the governor’s race against Gretchen Whitmer in 2022, told a radio host that she was considering running either for governor or senator.

“I’m certainly looking at both of them right now,” said Dixon. “There is a real calculation on the Democrat side that this is not gonna be a good year for them.”

But Dixon is not the only one eyeing Peters’ Senate seat, per Michigan-based campaign strategist Jason Roe, who engineered Rep. Tom Barrett’s successful congressional campaign in the Lansing area.

Roe told The Daily Signal he has heard rumors that former Rep. Mike Rogers, who narrowly lost his Senate race against then-Rep. Elissa Slotkin, a Democrat, in November, is considering running for Peters’ seat.

“What I’m hearing from people I’m talking to today is Rogers is taking an increased look at it,” said Roe. “Apparently he met with the senatorial committee last week.”

In Roe’s estimation, Rogers would emerge as a frontrunner for the Republican nomination if he decided to run, after just narrowly losing to Slotkin.

“He just came off a campaign that he just barely lost by 19,000 votes out of several million casts. So, he’s got an infrastructure, he’s got name ID, he’s started these relationships, and I think now, with it being an open seat, and Michigan being so critical to the Republican Party, I anticipate donors would move quickly if someone like Rogers stepped forward to solidify him as the nominee,” said Roe.

Roe also sees Rep. John James, a young conservative Republican coming off of a resounding victory in his Detroit metro district, as a TV-friendly pick who could win the nomination for either the Senate or gubernatorial race.

“John [James] has a national fundraising base built off Fox News appearances and digital, direct mail prospecting. So, he can ramp up money pretty quickly when he needs to.”

Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Mich., is also reportedly eyeing the seat.

The difficulty for Democrats seems to be finding someone to replace Peters’ moderate and working-class appeal.

“[Peters] criticized [former DHS Secretary Alejandro] Mayorkas last year, he voted for the Laken Riley Act, he voted for Kristi Noem. He definitely was behaving like a purple state senator facing reelection. So I was surprised to see this happen,” said Roe.

On the Democrat side, Pete Buttigieg may be a top prospect for the Senate race.

Buttigieg, who became famous as the mayor of South Bend, Indiana, and as a 2020 presidential candidate, has lived in Michigan since 2022 and has craftily avoided the question of whether or not he would run for office in the state. He served as transportation secretary in the Biden administration.

Just hours after Peters’ withdrawal from the race, the Detroit Free Press quoted anonymous sources close to Buttigieg who suggested he may be interested in the open seat.

Michigan Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist, a Democrat, is also reportedly eying the Senate seat, according to Axios.

One high-profile Democrat who is not interested: Whitmer, who announced on “The View” that she would serve out her term as governor.

“What comes after that, I don’t know yet. I really don’t,” Whitmer said. “I might want to walk the Earth for a little while.”

Michigan Republicans and Democrats alike now face a decision—whether to make a gubernatorial or Senate run in 2026.

Republican state Sen. Aric Nesbitt has already started his run for the gubernatorial election nearly two years away, as has Democrat Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson.

Roe told The Daily Signal that possible Senate candidates such as Dixon, James, and Buttigieg are all potential candidates for the governor race as well.

“I think this makes Michigan the center of the universe in the 2026 election,” said Roe. “All the attention shifting to the Senate race and, I think, hundreds of millions of dollars.”

For its part, the Michigan Republican Party offered no preference other than a candidate who supported President Donald Trump’s priorities.

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