Exclusive – Former Rep. Mike Rogers, a Michigan GOP Senate candidate in last year’s election, launched his second Republican run in the Senate in a key Great Lakes battlefield state.
Rogers, a former FBI special agent who later chaired the House Intelligence Email Committee during his tenure in Congress, announced his candidacy in the 2026 Senate race and announced that he would take over the retirement of the Democrat Senator in a nationally shared video with Fox News.
“As your next senator, I’m not just representing Michigan. I’ll fight for it,” Rogers emphasizes in his video release.
Rogers highlights his long career as the military, the FBI and elected state and federal lawmakers, saying, “Service is something I’ve always done, so I’m running to serve as your next senator. Michigan, let’s get to work.”
Once this candidate enters the race, the possibility of a Senate battle on the Michigan battlefield heats up
Former Rep. Mike Rogers, a Republican Senate candidate for Michigan, was interviewed on April 2, 2024 by Fox New Digital in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
And in his video, Rogers also highlighted his support for President Donald Trump, saying, “I’ll stand with President Trump. We’ll deliver the mission given to us by the American people… For me, it’s always America and Michigan.”
Rogers won the 2024 GOP Senator nomination in Michigan, but was slightly defeated by Democratic nominee Rep. Elissa Slotkin in the Democratic election last November for the long-time senator of retired Sen. Debbie Stavenow. Slotkin, who had far surpassed the Rogers, framed him with about 19,000 votes, or a third of a percentage point.
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The Michigan Senate seat is one of three Democrats held, and plans to target its targets as the National Republican Senators Committee (NRSC) aims to expand the GOP’s current 53-47 majority. The other two are in New Hampshire, and longtime Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen has retired, not running for reelection in 2026.
Michigan Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers began his second straight run in the Senate on Monday at a campaign event held in Flint, Michigan on Monday, November 4th, 2024. (AP Photo/Paul Sansy)
Rogers is the first major Republican in Michigan to join Senate race, but he may not have his own field.
“My phone started ringing and it didn’t ring,” longtime Republican MP Bill Huizenga told Fox News last week as soon as Peters announced he would not seek reelection earlier this year.
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Huizenga, who was first elected to the House of Representatives in 2010 and represents Michigan’s Fourth Congressional District, which covers parts of the state’s southwestern part, emphasized that he has received “encouragement” from “grassroots people” to seek the Senate.
Michigan Republican Rep. Bill Huizenga will speak at the current President Donald Trump campaign rally held in Portage, Michigan on November 1, 2024 (Bill Huizenga Campaign)
Regarding his timetable, Huizenga said:
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Trump’s support for GOP, which is now more agitated than ever, is expected to play a key role in the case of a Republican Senate primary in Michigan.
And while Trump hasn’t considered racing yet, Rogers hired veteran Republican strategist and 2024 Trump co-campaign manager Chris Lacivita as senior adviser earlier this year. Lacivita remains close to the White House president and his political team.
Michigan Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers, former Michigan Senate candidate, is working with then-Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump at a campaign event hosted by Trump at a folk production manufacturing facility held in Walker, Michigan on September 27, 2024 (Scott Olson/Getty Images)
Rogers in 2022 and early 2023 contemplated his own order for the Republican presidential nomination in 2024, and had some critical comments from Trump at the time. However, Rogers later became a strong supporter of the then-capable president, and after Trump won the GOP presidential nomination, he supported Rogers in the 2024 Michigan Senate race last March.
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In addition to Rogers and Huizenga, executive, conservative commentator and 2022 Republican governor candidate Tudor Dixon said he is seriously pondering another run for the governor or Senate in 2026.
And it is believed that Kevin Rinke, a Republican businessman and car dealer who ran for governor in 2022, will also be considering another statewide run next year.
Democrat Michigan Sen. Mallory McMorrow launched his 2026 campaign for the US Senate in the Great Lakes battlefield state earlier this month. (Reuters/Elizabeth Franz) (Reuters/Elizabeth Franz)
Earlier this month, Michigan Sen. Mallory McMorrow launched a campaign to make a democratic Senate nomination.
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Kristen MacDonald Rivet and Haley Stevens are considering running, similar to Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel.
Last month, 2020 Democratic presidential candidate Pete Battigieg, who served as Transportation Secretary in former President Joe Biden’s administration, ruled out the campaign after seriously considering his bid.
Paul Steinhauser is a political reporter based in New Hampshire.
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