Democrat Elissa Slotkin announces run for open Michigan Senate seat
Elissa Slotkin, 46, is running for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by retiring Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D), the Michigan representative announced Monday. She is the now first Democrat to enter what very well could be a heated "marquee general election fight" in a "major battleground state" during a presidential election year, writes The New York Times.
"We need a new generation of leaders that thinks differently, works harder, and never forgets that we are public servants," Slotkin, a former intelligence officer for the CIA, said in a campaign video posted on Twitter.
Slotkin's moderate politics have so far served her well among the Michigan electorate she represents — Indeed, "she flipped a Republican-held district in 2018, held it in 2020 and was widely seen as endangered last fall, but ultimately won by five percentage points," the Times writes. That she recaptures Stabenow's open seat would also prove crucial to Democrats' hopes of maintaining a narrow majority in the Senate, where the party currently boasts a 51-member edge, adds The Associated Press.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"We seem to be living crisis to crisis," Slotkin continues in the video. "But there are certain things that should be really simple, like living a middle-class life in the state that invented the middle class. Like making things in America so that we're in control of our own economic security. Like protecting our children from the things that are truly harming them. And preserving our rights and our democracy so that our kids can live their version of the American dream."
To that end, Slotkin's campaign is expected to focus on gun violence prevention and the economy, both the Times and AP write.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brigid Kennedy worked at The Week from 2021 to 2023 as a staff writer, junior editor and then story editor, with an interest in U.S. politics, the economy and the music industry.
-
Is Europe finally taking the war to Russia?Today's Big Question As Moscow’s drone buzzes and cyberattacks increase, European leaders are taking a more openly aggressive stance
-
How coupling up became cringeTalking Point For some younger women, going out with a man – or worse, marrying one – is distinctly uncool
-
The rapid-fire brilliance of Tom StoppardIn the Spotlight The 88-year-old was a playwright of dazzling wit and complex ideas
-
GOP wins tight House race in red Tennessee districtSpeed Read Republicans maintained their advantage in the House
-
Trump targets ‘garbage’ Somalis ahead of ICE raidsSpeed Read The Department of Homeland Security will launch an immigration operation targeting Somali immigrants in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area
-
Hegseth blames ‘fog of war’ for potential war crimespeed read ‘I did not personally see survivors,’ Hegseth said at a Cabinet meeting
-
Canada joins EU’s $170B SAFE defense fundspeed read This makes it the first non-European Union country in the Security Action for Europe (SAFE) initiative
-
Appeals court disqualifies US Attorney Alina HabbaSpeed Read The former personal attorney to President Donald Trump has been unlawfully serving as US attorney for New Jersey, the ruling says
-
White House says admiral ordered potential war crimeSpeed Read The Trump administration claims Navy Vice Adm. Frank ‘Mitch’ Bradley ordered a follow-up strike on an alleged drug-smuggling boat, not Pete Hegseth
-
Honduras votes amid Trump push, pardon vowspeed read President Trump said he will pardon former Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernández, who is serving 45 years for drug trafficking
-
Congress seeks answers in ‘kill everybody’ strike reportSpeed Read Lawmakers suggest the Trump administration’s follow-up boat strike may be a war crime
