(The Center Square) – Democrat Rep. Elissa Slotkin has narrowly defeated her Republican opponent Mike Rogers in Michigan’s U.S. Senate race, with Slotkin leading Rogers 48.6% to 48.3% when the Associated Press called the race Wednesday at 3:12 p.m. Eastern with 99% of votes counted.
The win is a blow to Republicans who had hoped to flip the seat red as Democrat incumbent Sen. Debbie Stabenow is stepping down.
Rogers congratulated Slotkin on the win.
“Congratulations to Congresswoman Slotkin on her victory, I wish her the best as she serves the people of Michigan in the Senate,” Roger said in a statement. “Michigan will always be home, and serving our state has been the honor of my life. While it won’t be in the U.S. Senate right now, I will continue to serve Michigan now and into the future.”
Slotkin has pledged to increase abortion access, boost domestic manufacturing of electric vehicles, lower health care and prescription drug costs, and implement child tax credits for the middle class while in the Senate.
Slotkin served as a CIA analyst in Iraq and worked in the U.S. Department of Defense during the Obama administration. She ran for office in 2017 and has served as the congresswoman for Michigan’s 8th congressional district since then.
During her time in office, Slotkin voted for the HEROES Act, a $3 trillion stimulus package, the $2.2 trillion Build Back Better Act, and the Inflation Reduction Act, which a Goldman Sachs report projects will cost a total of $1.2 trillion. Slotkin also co-sponsored the Ban Corporate PACs Act, which would ban corporate Political Action Committees, and contributed to legislation that would ban China from buying farmland and manufacturing sites in the U.S.
Election analysts had dubbed the race one of the tightest in the nation. Both candidates spent millions on their campaigns, though Slotkin raised almost four times as much as Rogers, $45.7 million compared to $10.6 million, respectively, as of the latest data available from Oct. 16.
Roughly 22,000 new voters registered on Election Day and more than 2 million Michiganders voted in person on Election Day. More than 5.5 Michiganders in total voted in the 2024 election, roughly equivalent to record-breaking 2020 numbers.
