Former Rep. Mike Rogers is running for the U.S. Senate in Michigan, giving the GOP a well-known candidate in a growing field of contenders in an election that could shift control of the upper chamber.
Mr. Rogers said Wednesday in his announcement video that he thought he had put politics behind him. But he said he feels compelled to serve after watching President Biden and his “cronies” steer the nation in a misguided direction and the nation’s politics get “so small and so petty.”
“We can do better,” Mr. Rogers said. “That is why I am running for the U.S. Senate — to get government out of the way, unleash American innovation and take commonsense back to Washington.”
Mr. Rogers is running for the seat being vacated by Sen. Debbie Stabenow, a Democrat.
Mrs. Stebenow’s retirement announcement earlier this year shook up the Senate landscape by opening the door for Republicans to vie for a seat that otherwise would have been relatively safe.
Mr. Rogers joins other Republicans in the race. Nikki Snyder of the Michigan State Board of Elections is running, and former Rep. Peter Meijer has formed an exploratory committee. Mr. Meijer lost his House seat last year after voting to impeach former President Donald Trump for inciting the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.
Democrats landed a top recruit this year when Rep. Elissa Slotkin announced she is running.
Political handicappers give Democrats a slight edge in the race. Republicans have not won a Senate seat in Michigan since 1994.
Sen. Steve Daines, chairman of the Senate GOP’s campaign arm, said he was “pleased” to see Mr. Rogers step up.
“Mike is the type of candidate who can perform well with suburban Michiganders and be a strong part of the eventual ticket in Michigan,” said Mr. Daines, Montana Republican.
Conversely, Michigan Democratic Party Chair Lavora Barnes said Mr. Rogers “quit on Michigan nearly a decade ago.”
“He won’t be able to hide from his record: pushing the interests of China and big corporations at the expense of working families, putting Medicare and Social Security on the chopping block, and even backing an abortion ban with no exceptions for rape or incest,” Ms. Barnes said.
Ms. Barnes predicted a “nasty” GOP primary would leave Republicans with a “badly damaged nominee who is out of touch with Michigan families.”
Indeed, the race will serve as a test of the Michigan GOP. The state party has been divided between Trump loyalists and others over the former president’s insistence the 2020 election was stolen from him.
Mr. Trump won the state in the 2016 election but lost Michigan in 2020 by 154,000 votes.
Mr. Rogers is a former law enforcement officer who served in the U.S. House from 2001 to 2015 and led the House Intelligence Committee for four years. He went on to work in the cybersecurity industry and served as a commentator on CNN.
“I thought I put politics behind me, but like you, I know something is broken,” Mr. Rogers said in his announcement video. “America under Biden and his cronies is going in the wrong direction.”
Under Biden, the southern border has been “broken” and the justice system has become a mess, Mr. Rogers said, adding that the cost of gas and groceries have soared.
“No candidate is better prepared to have an impact on Day One,” Mr. Rogers said. “I’m ready to serve again.”
• Seth McLaughlin can be reached at smclaughlin@washingtontimes.com.