Michigan State Sen. Mallory McMorrow suspended her campaign for the Democratic nomination for the state’s open U.S. Senate seat, leaving former Wayne County and Detroit health director Abdul El-Sayed and U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens as the remaining choices with th
Mallory McMorrow’s campaign didn’t just fade out—it stopped, and fast, with absentee ballots already in motion.
On July 5. the Michigan State senator and first major Democrat to enter the race for the state’s open U.S. Senate seat announced she was suspending her bid. ceding the field to former Wayne County and Detroit health director Abdul El-Sayed and U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens. The timing matters: the Democratic primary is set for Aug. 4. and absentee ballots have already been mailed to some voters. leaving no clear way to remove her name from the ballot.
In a 3-minute video posted on X. McMorrow said she was stepping away “with a ‘deep sense of gratitude’” to her supporters and campaign workers. thanking her husband. Ray Wert. and their 5-year-old daughter Noa. McMorrow said Noa reminded her recently. “It’s not about if you win. it’s about trying hard and having fun. She’s right.” She framed her decision around listening to voters and pushing Democrats to stay united through the final stretch.
“People are crying out for change and we need to listen,” McMorrow said. “Whoever wins this primary on Aug. 4th will have my full support… Let’s elect Democrats up and down the ticket and show the rest of the country what it means to fight like Michigan.”
She did not endorse one of the remaining candidates in the immediate aftermath of her decision.
McMorrow, of Royal Oak outside Detroit, leaves behind more than just a suspended campaign. She entered the race to replace retiring U.S. Sen. Gary Peters and raised more than $8.6 million by the end of the last campaign finance reporting period at the end of March. But her departure comes after changing dynamics in polling—she had been ahead or competitive in parts of the year. then began dropping as El-Sayed. campaigning as the progressive standard-bearer. and Stevens. backed by the Democratic establishment and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. moved closer to the front in recent polling averages.
Her decision also pointed to money as a closing door. McMorrow told the Detroit Free Press. part of the USA TODAY Network. on July 5 that she had hoped voters would support a candidate combining El-Sayed’s progressivism with Stevens’ policy background. She said that path had been “largely closed off by considerable outside spending in the race.”.
The race now becomes sharply limited for voters deciding how to coalesce—especially because it may already be too late to fully redraw the ballot. And while it’s not yet clear whether McMorrow’s exit will shift the numbers enough to change the standing of El-Sayed. her support has been reported in single digits in recent polling averages.
El-Sayed, of Ann Arbor, quickly moved to claim the moment. In a statement praising McMorrow’s campaign. he said she “showed what it looks like to fight back against a politics that rigs the system against too many of us.” He welcomed McMorrow’s supporters “to our movement to stand up against money in politics. to put money back in pockets and pass Medicare for All. We cannot allow the establishment to decide our nominee for us.”.
El-Sayed also accused Democratic insiders of bullying opponents and said. “The same party insiders she had the courage to challenge have been bullying anyone who opposes their chosen candidate. ” adding that after “spending $30 million to drown Senator McMorrow and me out. they’re now spending even more to attack me. It’s everything we are standing up against.”.
Stevens responded with respect for McMorrow’s role in the race. though she offered less of a direct pitch to McMorrow’s supporters. “Anyone who raises their hand to serve the people of Michigan and puts forward thoughtful ideas for how they would lead earns my respect. ” Stevens said. “Mallory McMorrow has been an important voice. both in this race and in the state Senate. for policies that benefit Michigan’s children and families. and I look forward to working with her in the future to build a stronger Michigan for everyone.”.
In her own remarks, Stevens tied the campaign’s final month to a direct contrast with the general election threat. “As we enter the final month of the primary election. I’m excited to continue to make my case to Michiganders why I’m the strongest Democrat to defeat Mike Rogers this November. lower costs. protect manufacturing jobs. and stand up to Trump’s abuses of power. ” she said.
The Republican she would face if she wins the Democratic primary is former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers.
A week-by-week shift in the Democratic field had already been reshaping expectations. In late June. the Wall Street Journal cited sources saying Peters. a close ally of Schumer but who had not publicly endorsed a candidate in the competition to replace him. told associates that McMorrow needed to consider dropping out so Democrats could coalesce around Stevens to face El-Sayed. The reports also pointed to questions Peters has faced for campaigning with influencer Hasan Piker. whom critics allege made antisemitic remarks.
There is also a separate fault line inside the Democratic coalition: Stevens’ support from staunchly pro-Israel groups. including the American-Israel Public Affairs Group (AIPAC)—which also supports Republican candidates who have voted to maintain U.S. support for Israel. That support has been controversial among Democrats. with many skeptical about whether the United States should continue giving Israel the support it has given amid its handling of the war against Hamas in Gaza.
What’s left after McMorrow’s exit is a narrower choice for Democrats still deciding under a ticking clock. Her departure forces a binary selection for voters still on the fence a month before the election—an outcome that may benefit Stevens. since it is presumed El-Sayed’s supporters are already largely committed to his surge.
But predictions about El-Sayed topping out have been wrong before in this campaign, and whether McMorrow’s remaining supporters follow the direction of either candidate may not be fully measurable until votes are counted.
For now, the primary fight moves on with a new reality: ballots already out, time short, and a race that has been narrowed not by voter preference alone, but by the sudden decision of one of its biggest names.
Mallory McMorrow Abdul El-Sayed Haley Stevens Michigan Senate race Aug. 4 primary U.S. Senate Gary Peters Chuck Schumer Mike Rogers outside spending AIPAC Medicare for All