LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers is launching another Republican bid for the U.S. Senate in Michigan, following a narrow loss to Democratic Sen. Elissa Slotkin last year in a hotly contested open race.
This time, Rogers is vying for the seat being vacated by Democratic Sen. Gary Peters, who announced earlier this year that he will not seek reelection in 2026. Rogers is aiming to become the first Republican to win a Senate seat in Michigan in more than 30 years — falling just 19,000 votes short of doing that in 2024.
In a video announcing his candidacy on Monday, Rogers quickly aligned himself with President Donald Trump, pledging to “stand with” him. Trump endorsed Rogers during the 2024 race and carried the battleground state of Michigan on his path back to the White House.
“Alongside President Trump, I’ll fight to bring good, high-paying manufacturing jobs back to Michigan,” Rogers said in the launch video.
Michigan’s U.S. Senate race is shaping up to be one of the most fiercely contested in the nation, as Democrats fight to hold a seat without the advantage of an incumbent while also seeking to reclaim control of the chamber.
While a number of people have been eyeing a run for the seat, it's been slow to fill up after Peters' surprise announcement in January. State Sen. Mallory McMorrow announced a Democratic bid earlier this month, and U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens is also weighing a bid.
On the Republican side, Rogers is the first high-profile candidate to announce a bid.
An Army veteran and former FBI agent, Rogers was elected to Congress in 2000 and served seven terms in the House, the last two as chair of the committee that oversees U.S. intelligence agencies. He left office in 2015 and served briefly on Trump’s transition team as a national security advisor.
Rogers enters the race in a stronger position than last cycle, with increased name recognition and several extra months to campaign — unlike the previous cycle when he joined nearly six months after Slotkin.
Joey Cappelletti, The Associated Press
