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The U.S. Senate Democratic primary race between former health official Abdul El-Sayed and Congresswoman Haley Stevens was one of the most contentious primaries in recent history, pitting progressives against the establishment wing of the party. As the dust settles, many are wondering: can Democrats now come together before the November general election and unite against Republican Congressman Mike Rogers. Democratic Congresswoman Debbie Dingell stayed out of the fray and didn’t endorse in the primary. We talked to her this week about what the results tell us and where the Democrats go from here.
Q: First, what does Abdul El-Sayed's very close win in this primary tell us about Democratic voters in Michigan right now?
A: Look, I think it's reflective of what you've seen across the country… No question that many young people supported Abdul. But there are many other people that want to see things shaken up. They don't think elected officials that are on either side - Republican or Democrat - are doing enough to take on the issues that they are concerned about, that they want somebody to do something about. And I think Abdul appealed to those people.
Q: Heading into the general, what do voters want right now from the Democratic Party?
A: Working men and women don't care about politics. What they care about is they want to be able to get a job. They want to feel safe, that their job is not going to be shipped overseas. And now we have more young people who are having a harder time finding a job. They want to earn enough money to be able to buy a house, or rent a house, or have a place to live in a safe neighborhood. They want to earn enough money to put food on the table. They don't want to have to worry whether they can actually even afford the gas they need to drive to work. They want to be able to go to the doctor when they need to go to the doctor and afford the medicine they need, educate their kids and have a safe and secure retirement.
Q: Let's look forward now that the results are in. How does the party come together before November?
A: Well, we have no choice… I think that there's far more in common between all of us than there [are] disagreements… I think everybody wants to make sure that we're not going to privatize Medicare or Social Security. We want to defend reproductive freedom. We want to hold up the Constitution. We want to support worker rights, and we want a strong national security. And we want to confirm judges who uphold the Constitution. So I think those are going to be the issues that pull us together. Our unity is our greatest strength.
Q: And whose job is it to make that happen?
A: It's on all of us. I think the governor will play a very important role. I stayed neutral to help play that role. There'll be a number of us who are leaders in the state that have to pull people together so that we can ensure that Michigan continues to have a strong voice, fighting for working families, protecting the values that we all hold in common, and building that future that offers opportunity for everyone.
Q: Can Democrats win the U.S. Senate?
A: Well, Michigan's got its job, and our job is to make sure we keep that Senate seat Democratic. And that's what I'm focused on, and that's what I'm going to do. And there is hope in a number of other states as well. And we also have to make sure that we get the House back. And there are several seats that will play a major role in that in Michigan.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Meantime, Democrats are gearing up for a let’s-come-together rally tonight in Detroit featuring the statewide Democratic ticket. It will be headlined by former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
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Have questions about Michigan politics? Or, just want to let us know what you want more of (less of?) in the newsletter? We always want to hear from you! Shoot us an email at politics@michiganpublic.org!
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What we’re talking about at the dinner table
Progressive week: No doubt about it, it was a good week for progressive candidates in Michigan. Political and climate activist William Lawrence beat two centrist candidates in Michigan’s 7th Congressional District’s Democratic primary Tuesday night. He’ll go onto the general election to face Republican Congressman Tom Barrett in one of Michigan’s true toss-up districts. In Michigan’s 13th Congressional District State Representative Donavan McKinney, a Democratic Socialist, beat two-term incumbent Congressman Shri Thanedar by about 4,000 votes in the Democratic primary. And in Ann Arbor’s mayoral election Washtenaw County Commissioner and Democratic Socialist Yousef Rabhi defeated incumbent Democrat Chris Taylor, the city’s mayor of a dozen years.
Dropout no more: Amir Hassan seemed to have everything aligned to win the Republican nomination to challenge Congresswoman Kristen McDonald Rivet (D-Bay City) for the swing 8th Congressional seat. The Navy veteran had President Donald Trump’s endorsement. Other state and national GOP leaders were behind him. His main primary opponent had suspended his campaign after endorsing someone else and had never even filed an official campaign finance report. Yet, to the surprise of, well, everyone, Flint small business owner Tom Smith emerged the victor in the GOP primary with just over 50% of the vote in a three-way race. Cook’s Political Report gives Rivet a slight edge for reelection in a district carried by Trump two years ago.
Supreme effort: The effort to keep a petition-initiated question from going to the November ballot is now before the Michigan Supreme Court. A business-backed group has asked the court to invalidate a petition campaign to ban campaign donations from political committees linked to regulated monopoly utilities and large government contractors. The complaint is technical, alleging a state election board erred when it certified that the campaign collected the necessary number of signatures of registered voters. But the substance is a fight over political spending and a get-out-the-vote advantage on the general election ballot. The effort has short- and long-term implications. Polls show MMOP has bipartisan support but is especially popular among left-leaning voters. The effects on campaign finance are obvious. But it could also serve as a draw to get more voters out to the polls, which conventional wisdom would suggest works to the benefit of the Democratic ticket.
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Yours in political nerdiness
Rick Pluta & Zoe Clark
Co-hosts, It’s Just Politics
