By New York Post (Politics) | Created at 2025-04-02 21:21:22 | Updated at 2025-04-03 18:53:31
21 hours ago
Michigan State Sen. Mallory McMorrow launched her bid Wednesday to succeed retiring Democratic Sen. Gary Peters — tearing into her party’s leadership for its “lack of plan” and “lack of response” during President Trump’s second term.
McMorrow, 38, fashioned herself as an outsider frustrated with the “same old crap out of Washington,” saying she would be an energetic opponent against President Trump.
“We need new leaders. Because the same people in DC who got us into this mess are not going to be the ones to get us out of it,” McMorrow declared in her campaign launch video.
The mother of one, who gained prominence at the Democratic National Convention last summer by appearing on stage with an oversized copy of “Project 2025,” blasted Trump’s tariff policy and Elon Musk’s cost-cutting efforts.
“There are moments that will break you,” McMorrow said in the video, seeking to convey a sense of urgency. “This moment will challenge us, test us. And if it all feels like too much? That’s their plan.”
“We don’t have a minute to wait.”
She showed news clips about Trump transforming US trade policy and Musk’s efforts to overhaul the federal government.
McMorrow blasted Democrats’ “gimmicks,” saying voters are sick of them, and also voiced criticism of Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who voted in favor of Republicans bill last month, averting a government shutdown.
“I have been so frustrated seeing really a lack of a plan and a lack of a response coming from our current party leadership,” the Michigan Democrat told The Associated Press.
“It’s so lacking the urgency of this moment.”
Peters announced in January that he would not vie for reelection in the 2026 cycle, leaving a major opening in a state won by Trump in 2024.
Heavyweight Democrats such as former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer previously ruled out running for the seat.
McMorrow won her state Senate seat in 2018 in an upset victory against a Republican incumbent. She went viral in 2022 after lashing out at a Republican lawmaker who fundraised off claims she wanted to “groom” children.
She’s been an outspoken champion of progressive caucuses on gun control, abortion and more.
Former Rep. Mike Rodgers (R-Mich.) is rumored to be mulling another run for US Senate on the Republican side after narrowly losing to Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) last November.
Democrats are hoping to make up lost ground in the 2026 cycle after Republicans recaptured the upper chamber last November and won a 53–47 seat majority.
In the 2026 midterm elections, Republicans will have to defend 22 of the 35 Senate seats up for grabs.
Democrats have at least three major incumbents in competitive states not seeking reelection. Republicans only have Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) not vying for another term in 2026.
