MI-SEN: How Democrats disarmed a brewing Senate battle in Michigan
Behind-the-scenes maneuvering by Stabenow and Schumer, a former Senate campaign arm chief himself, helped quell fears of a messy fight over succeeding Stabenow in a must-win battleground state. But it’s less likely that Democrats can or even want to similarly smooth internal headaches over other open Senate seats — simply put, the party is fine with a chaotic primary in deep-blue California but resolved early on not to let the GOP capitalize on a disorganized clamor in Michigan.
Without naming names, Stabenow explained that she directed other ambitious Democrats who might have been interested in replacing her toward alternative statewide offices, from the governor’s office on down, that will open up in 2026 due to term limits. She had given Schumer a heads-up on her retirement weeks in advance of the late February announcement, and Schumer conveyed to anyone that would listen that Slotkin was well-funded and forcing her to spend big in a contested primary would hurt the party, according to two people familiar with the senators’ work on the race.
It’s not all pretty for Democrats in potentially contested races, of course. Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) is running for Arizona’s in-cycle Senate seat after Sen. Kyrsten Sinema became an independent and declined to reveal her 2024 intentions, potentially setting up a three-way general election.
And there’s still plenty of time for Democratic candidates to enter the race before Michigan’s primary next year, though top-tier candidates like Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist and state Sen. Mallory McMorrow have already taken themselves out of the running. None of those Democrats has outright endorsed Slotkin yet, but the quiet interventions and their decisions helped quell fears of a messy fight over succeeding Stabenow in a must-win battleground state.
https://www.politico.com/news/2023/03/13/democrats-senate-michigan-stabenow-slotkin-00086655
