Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has come off the sidelines to throw her support behind Rep. Haley Stevens’ bid for the U.S. Senate, giving her a late-innings boost in her hard-fought race against Abdul El-Sayed for the Democratic nomination.
“As governor, I’ve had one strategy: get things done, and that strategy informs everything that I do,” Ms. Whitmer, a Democrat, said in a video endorsement posted Friday to Ms. Stevens’ campaign account. “Just like me, Haley will do whatever it takes to get things done for the people of Michigan, and we need her now more than ever.”
The endorsement caps weeks of speculation over whether Ms. Whitmer would wade into the contest before the Aug. 4 primary.
Ms. Stevens also has the support of former Democratic Govs. Jennifer Granholm and Jim Blanchard, along with outgoing Sen. Gary Peters, whose retirement created the open seat, and former Sen. Debbie Stabenow.
In her endorsement, Ms. Whitmer tied the race to national economic grievances, citing tariffs, Medicaid cuts and gas prices as evidence that Ms. Stevens is fighting to put “money back in Michiganders’ pockets.”
The El-Sayed campaign downplayed the endorsement.
“The corporate establishment has closed ranks and made their pick — now, Michigan voters will get to make theirs,” said El-Sayed spokesperson Roxie Richner.
Mr. El-Sayed, who ran against Ms. Whitmer in the 2018 Democratic gubernatorial primary, has claimed the liberal mantle in the race and won a series of endorsements from prominent left-wing officials, including Sen. Bernard Sanders of Vermont, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York and Rep. Rashida Tlaib, a fellow Michigander.
The winner of the primary will face former Republican Rep. Mike Rogers.
Republicans welcomed the news.
“The Democrat establishment is in full-blown panic mode,” said Republican National Committee spokesman Hunter Lovell. “Gretchen Whitmer’s endorsement of Haley Stevens is their latest attempt to stop Abdul El-Sayed’s socialist takeover.”
“No matter who wins this head-on collision Senate primary, Michigan voters will choose common sense over crazy and elect Mike Rogers to Get Michigan Working Again,” he said.
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