<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss version="2.0"><channel><title>How the 2026 Michigan Senate race unfolded</title><link>https://howitunfolded.com/incidents/michigan-senate-race-2026/</link><description>Ongoing. Senator Gary Peters announced in January 2025 that he would not seek reelection, opening one of Michigan&#x27;s two Senate seats. Former Representative Mike Rogers was unopposed for the Republican nomination, and Abdul El-Sayed won the 4 August 2026 Democratic primary by about one percentage point over Representative Haley Stevens after Mallory McMorrow withdrew. The general election is on 3 November 2026.</description><language>en</language><item><title>1 Nov 2026: Stevens endorses Rogers</title><link>https://howitunfolded.com/incidents/michigan-senate-race-2026/#e18</link><guid isPermaLink="false">michigan-senate-race-2026-9affeeecff</guid><pubDate>Sun, 01 Nov 2026 12:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>Haley Stevens, who lost the August Democratic primary, endorsed Mike Rogers in a video on Sunday, the Associated Press reported. Asked about it, El-Sayed told reporters he did not think about Stevens, AP reported.</description></item><item><title>21 Oct 2026: Final debate in Southfield</title><link>https://howitunfolded.com/incidents/michigan-senate-race-2026/#e17</link><guid isPermaLink="false">michigan-senate-race-2026-aeb24d0661</guid><pubDate>Wed, 21 Oct 2026 12:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>In a one-hour debate hosted by WXYZ, El-Sayed sought to tie Rogers to President Trump and Rogers repeated an allegation linking El-Sayed to the Muslim Brotherhood, the Associated Press reported. El-Sayed has denied any affiliation with the group and called Rogers&#x27;s questioning of his commitment to the Constitution shameful. Rogers called Trump&#x27;s tariffs a mixed bag and questioned those on Canada.</description></item><item><title>8 Oct 2026: First debate in Grand Rapids</title><link>https://howitunfolded.com/incidents/michigan-senate-race-2026/#e16</link><guid isPermaLink="false">michigan-senate-race-2026-7c0e91ffd5</guid><pubDate>Thu, 08 Oct 2026 12:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>Rogers and El-Sayed met in a debate broadcast by WOOD-TV and moderated by Rick Albin, the Associated Press reported. Rogers said the war with Iran needed to end and that immigration enforcement in Minnesota was probably not appropriate. El-Sayed said he opposed US funds subsidising wars abroad. The AP described the exchange as combative, with personal attacks on both sides.</description></item><item><title>7 Oct 2026: Trump attacks El-Sayed online</title><link>https://howitunfolded.com/incidents/michigan-senate-race-2026/#e15</link><guid isPermaLink="false">michigan-senate-race-2026-0510ef9745</guid><pubDate>Wed, 07 Oct 2026 12:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>In a Truth Social post late on the night before the first debate, President Trump referred to El-Sayed as Mohammed and called him a radical extremist and terrorist sympathiser, the Associated Press reported. El-Sayed said the president knew his name and was using his name and faith to distract voters. The AP did not report a response from Rogers to the post.</description></item><item><title>5 Aug 2026: McMorrow endorses El-Sayed as counting ends</title><link>https://howitunfolded.com/incidents/michigan-senate-race-2026/#e11</link><guid isPermaLink="false">michigan-senate-race-2026-51518d937c</guid><pubDate>Wed, 05 Aug 2026 12:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>McMorrow endorsed El-Sayed early on 5 August while officials were still finishing the count, Michigan Public and the Washington Examiner reported.</description></item><item><title>5 Aug 2026: AP calls the primary for El-Sayed</title><link>https://howitunfolded.com/incidents/michigan-senate-race-2026/#e12</link><guid isPermaLink="false">michigan-senate-race-2026-4c26fb8daa</guid><pubDate>Wed, 05 Aug 2026 12:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>The Associated Press called the primary for El-Sayed after counting continued overnight, NPR reported. AP later described his margin over Stevens as less than a percentage point. Groups supporting Stevens had outspent those supporting El-Sayed on the airwaves several times over, NPR reported, citing AdImpact.</description></item><item><title>5 Aug 2026: Stevens congratulates El-Sayed and pledges support</title><link>https://howitunfolded.com/incidents/michigan-senate-race-2026/#e13</link><guid isPermaLink="false">michigan-senate-race-2026-854227cedb</guid><pubDate>Wed, 05 Aug 2026 12:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>Stevens conceded on X and congratulated El-Sayed in a campaign statement, saying she would support him against Rogers in the general election, Gray DC reported.</description></item><item><title>5 Aug 2026: Rogers responds to El-Sayed&#x27;s nomination</title><link>https://howitunfolded.com/incidents/michigan-senate-race-2026/#e14</link><guid isPermaLink="false">michigan-senate-race-2026-35a48a6bd4</guid><pubDate>Wed, 05 Aug 2026 12:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>Rogers issued a statement calling El-Sayed an extremist, Gray DC reported. On NPR, Michigan Public Radio Network reporter Colin Jackson said the statement linked El-Sayed to the Muslim Brotherhood, a link Jackson described as baseless, and El-Sayed called the attacks baseless fearmongering. No response from Rogers to that criticism was found in the sources opened.</description></item><item><title>4 Aug 2026: Primary voting ends and counting continues</title><link>https://howitunfolded.com/incidents/michigan-senate-race-2026/#e10</link><guid isPermaLink="false">michigan-senate-race-2026-bf9d9af595</guid><pubDate>Tue, 04 Aug 2026 12:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>Rogers was unopposed in the Republican primary on 4 August. Counting in the Democratic primary continued overnight before the Associated Press called the race for El-Sayed on 5 August, according to AP and NPR.</description></item><item><title>24 Jul 2026: Whitmer endorses Stevens before the primary</title><link>https://howitunfolded.com/incidents/michigan-senate-race-2026/#e9</link><guid isPermaLink="false">michigan-senate-race-2026-5bd1b28aba</guid><pubDate>Fri, 24 Jul 2026 12:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>Governor Gretchen Whitmer endorsed Stevens on 24 July, Just the News and Michigan Public Radio Network reported. An El-Sayed spokesperson said the corporate establishment had made its pick and that Michigan voters would make theirs, MPRN reported. The Associated Press later also referred to Whitmer&#x27;s primary endorsement of Stevens.</description></item><item><title>13 Jul 2026: Peters endorses Stevens</title><link>https://howitunfolded.com/incidents/michigan-senate-race-2026/#e8</link><guid isPermaLink="false">michigan-senate-race-2026-2091fce1f3</guid><pubDate>Mon, 13 Jul 2026 12:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>Peters endorsed Stevens to succeed him, the Associated Press and Michigan Advance reported. Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel had endorsed Stevens on 5 July, the day McMorrow withdrew, CNN reported.</description></item><item><title>5 Jul 2026: McMorrow suspends her campaign</title><link>https://howitunfolded.com/incidents/michigan-senate-race-2026/#e7</link><guid isPermaLink="false">michigan-senate-race-2026-70b4d24830</guid><pubDate>Sun, 05 Jul 2026 12:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>McMorrow left the race a month before the 4 August primary, leaving Stevens and El-Sayed as the main candidates, CNN reported. She did not endorse either and pledged to back the winner. Because she withdrew after absentee ballots had already been printed and mailed, she still drew votes in the primary, Michigan Public later reported.</description></item><item><title>8 Aug 2025: Joe Tate leaves the Democratic primary</title><link>https://howitunfolded.com/incidents/michigan-senate-race-2026/#e6</link><guid isPermaLink="false">michigan-senate-race-2026-253fce7341</guid><pubDate>Fri, 08 Aug 2025 12:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>Former Michigan House Speaker Joe Tate, the fourth candidate to enter the race, ended his campaign after about three months, the Associated Press reported. He had raised about 193,000 dollars by 30 June. The AP described Stevens, McMorrow and El-Sayed as the front-runners.</description></item><item><title>24 Jul 2025: Trump endorses Rogers after Huizenga stays out</title><link>https://howitunfolded.com/incidents/michigan-senate-race-2026/#e5</link><guid isPermaLink="false">michigan-senate-race-2026-9268bbefc5</guid><pubDate>Thu, 24 Jul 2025 12:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>President Donald Trump endorsed Rogers in a Truth Social post on the evening of Thursday 24 July, the Washington Examiner and Yahoo News reported, and the Rogers campaign announced the endorsement. That evening Trump also urged US Representative Bill Huizenga, who had considered challenging Rogers in the primary, to seek reelection to the House. Huizenga had decided against a Senate run on the Wednesday, Yahoo News reported.</description></item><item><title>22 Apr 2025: Representative Haley Stevens joins the Democratic field</title><link>https://howitunfolded.com/incidents/michigan-senate-race-2026/#e4</link><guid isPermaLink="false">michigan-senate-race-2026-ecf3b50def</guid><pubDate>Tue, 22 Apr 2025 12:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>US Representative Haley Stevens, who represents Michigan&#x27;s 11th District, launched her campaign with a video and an event at a car dealership, citing her work on the Obama administration&#x27;s auto rescue task force and criticising President Donald Trump&#x27;s tariffs, Roll Call and FOX 2 Detroit reported.</description></item><item><title>17 Apr 2025: Abdul El-Sayed enters the Democratic race</title><link>https://howitunfolded.com/incidents/michigan-senate-race-2026/#e3</link><guid isPermaLink="false">michigan-senate-race-2026-78879807f1</guid><pubDate>Thu, 17 Apr 2025 12:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>Abdul El-Sayed, a former Wayne County and Detroit public health director who finished second to Gretchen Whitmer in the 2018 Democratic primary for governor, entered the race, the Associated Press reported.</description></item><item><title>14 Apr 2025: Mike Rogers launches a second Senate bid</title><link>https://howitunfolded.com/incidents/michigan-senate-race-2026/#e2</link><guid isPermaLink="false">michigan-senate-race-2026-b3f4daed33</guid><pubDate>Mon, 14 Apr 2025 12:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>Former US Representative Mike Rogers, a former FBI agent who chaired the House Intelligence Committee, announced a run for the Republican nomination in a video. Senate Majority Leader John Thune and National Republican Senatorial Committee chair Tim Scott endorsed him the same morning, NBC News reported. Rogers lost the 2024 Michigan Senate race to Elissa Slotkin by about 19,000 votes, the Associated Press reported.</description></item><item><title>2 Apr 2025: McMorrow becomes the first well-known Democrat to enter</title><link>https://howitunfolded.com/incidents/michigan-senate-race-2026/#e1</link><guid isPermaLink="false">michigan-senate-race-2026-c64692607a</guid><pubDate>Wed, 02 Apr 2025 12:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>State Senator Mallory McMorrow, a member of her caucus leadership in the Michigan Senate, launched her campaign in an interview with the Associated Press and a video. Roll Call reported she had said she would not support Chuck Schumer as Senate Democratic leader, and that Pete Buttigieg had decided against running.</description></item><item><title>28 Jan 2025: Peters says he will not seek a third term</title><link>https://howitunfolded.com/incidents/michigan-senate-race-2026/#e0</link><guid isPermaLink="false">michigan-senate-race-2026-ad11f08be2</guid><pubDate>Tue, 28 Jan 2025 12:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>Senator Gary Peters said in a YouTube video that he would not run for reelection in 2026, opening the seat he has held since 2015, the Associated Press reported. Governor Gretchen Whitmer said she was not interested in the seat, and state Senator Mallory McMorrow, Lieutenant Governor Garlin Gilchrist and former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg were among those mentioned as possible candidates.</description></item></channel></rss>