Elissa Slotkin wins Michigan's U.S. Senate seat

A number of state voters split their ticket between Trump and Democratic Party candidate

It wasn’t until Wednesday afternoon, with only a few precincts still out and many of them in Wayne County, that the Associated Press called the U.S. Senate race in Elissa Slotkin’s favor. The unofficial count would show her winning over GOP nominee Mike Rogers by around 18,000 votes. The Congresswoman, who represents the 8th District that includes Livingston County where our newspaper is headquartered and Ingham County where we reside, will replace longtime Senator Debbie Stabenow and her win keeps that seat in the Democratic Party column. However, enough changes occurred nationally that the Senate will be led by the Republican majority.

Her win came in the face of former President Donald Trump winning the Michigan Presidential contest over Vice President Kamala Harris by a comfortable margin of around 80,000 votes. Which meant, as they often do, that a goodly number of the state’s voters split their ticket between these two.

Slotkin is no stranger to tight races. In 2018, he beat the GOP incumbent, Mike Bishop, in what was then the 7th Congressional District by a slim difference and was in a tight race against Tom Barrett two years ago in the newly-formed 8th that tilted in the Republican direction. Evidence of that leaning came last Tuesday with Barrett topping Curtis Hertel to flip the seat.

I met Slotkin during the 2018 campaign and a few times during her first years in Congress when she stopped in Fowlerville or Howell on official business. Constituent service was a hallmark of her approach—much more so that her predecessors who represented this area. These included the visits, but also a steady stream of news releases. By contrast, I only met Rep. Bishop once and never received a news release.

While I don’t expect to see her in Fowlerville, I anticipate the same approach will be employed now that she’s in the Senate as far as accessibility and attempting to keep her constituents informed, along with taking care of their concerns and needs.

Anyway, I received this news release from her campaign office shortly after she was declared the winner and am sharing it with you.

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Elissa Slotkin was elected to serve as Michigan’s next U.S. Senator, defeating Republican Mike Rogers. Slotkin will be only the second woman to ever represent Michigan in the U.S. Senate, and at age 48, she will be the youngest Democratic woman in the upper chamber. 

“Elissa won this race by showing up, listening to Michiganders of all backgrounds, and talking about the fundamental issue of our time – protecting and expanding the middle class,” said Elissa Slotkin for Michigan Communications Director Austin Cook. “Michiganders elected Elissa because they know she’ll fight to create new good-paying jobs, cut the cost of things like health care, housing, and child care, and work to create a tax code that lets middle class families keep more of their own money in their pockets.” 

Slotkin also had a strong showing in more conservative areas of the state such as Livingston and Bay Counties. This race was the first time in Michigan history that an open U.S. Senate seat was won by a candidate whose party lost the presidential race in the state.  

Slotkin assembled a diverse coalition to win the seat, over-performing the top of the ticket in 45 of 83 counties across Michigan, including in crucial swing regions of the state such as Oakland and Macomb Counties. Slotkin also carried Arab and Muslim majority cities including Hamtramck, Dearborn, and Dearborn Heights. 

Slotkin had a strong showing in West Michigan – an area she has not previously represented – carrying Muskegon County along with Donald Trump. She also won Kent County by the largest margin for a Democratic Senate candidate since 2008. 

Slotkin showed particular strength in 40 rural counties across Michigan, continuing her practice of trying to “lose better” in communities where Democrats typically struggle. A member of the House Agriculture Committee who lives on her family farm, Slotkin pledged to seek a seat on the Senate Agriculture Committee if she won the race and made particular appeals to farming communities. 

Steve Horton is a mid-Michigan journalist and editor-publisher of the ‘Fowlerville News & Views’—-a weekly newspaper.