United States Senate election in Michigan, 2026 (August 4 Democratic primary)
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← 2024
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| U.S. Senate, Michigan |
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| Democratic primary Republican primary General election |
| Election details |
| Filing deadline: April 21, 2026 |
| Primary: August 4, 2026 General: November 3, 2026 |
| How to vote |
| Poll times:
7 a.m. to 8 p.m. |
| Race ratings |
DDHQ and The Hill: Pending Inside Elections: Toss-up Sabato's Crystal Ball: Toss-up |
| Ballotpedia analysis |
| U.S. Senate battlegrounds U.S. House battlegrounds Federal and state primary competitiveness Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2026 |
| See also |
U.S. Senate • 1st • 2nd • 3rd • 4th • 5th • 6th • 7th • 8th • 9th • 10th • 11th • 12th • 13th Michigan elections, 2026 U.S. Congress elections, 2026 U.S. Senate elections, 2026 U.S. House elections, 2026 |
A Democratic Party primary takes place on August 4, 2026, in Michigan to determine which Democratic candidate will run in the state's general election on November 3, 2026.
| Candidate filing deadline | Primary election | General election |
|---|---|---|
Heading into the election, the incumbent is Gary Peters (Democrat), who was first elected in 2014.
A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. Michigan utilizes an open primary system, in which registered voters do not have to be members of a party to vote in that party's primary. All candidates appear on the same ballot and a voter may only vote for candidates of one party at any primary.[1][2]
For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.
Thirty-three of the 100 U.S. Senate seats are up for election, and another two seats are up for special election. Democrats hold 13 of the seats up for election, and Republicans hold 22. As of January 2026, nine members of the U.S. Senate announced they are not running for re-election. To read more about the U.S. Senate elections taking place this year, click here.
This is one of nine open U.S. Senate races this year in which an incumbent is not running for re-election. Across the country, four Democrats and five Republicans are not running for re-election — more than any year since 2012. In 2024, eight incumbents — four Democrats, two Republicans, and two independents — did not seek re-election.
This page focuses on Michigan's United States Senate Democratic primary. For more in-depth information on the state's Republican primary and the general election, see the following pages:
- United States Senate election in Michigan, 2026 (August 4 Republican primary)
- United States Senate election in Michigan, 2026
Candidates and election results
Note: The following list includes official candidates only. Ballotpedia defines official candidates as people who:
- Register with a federal or state campaign finance agency before the candidate filing deadline
- Appear on candidate lists released by government election agencies
Democratic primary
Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Michigan
Abdul El-Sayed (D), Rachel Howard (D), Mallory McMorrow (D), Haley Stevens (D), and Travis Zollner (D) are running in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Michigan on August 4, 2026.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Gary Peters (D)
- Joseph Tate (D)
Candidate profiles
This section includes candidate profiles that may be created in one of two ways: either the candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey, or Ballotpedia staff may compile a profile based on campaign websites, advertisements, and public statements after identifying the candidate as noteworthy. For more on how we select candidates to include, click here.
Party: Democratic Party
Incumbent: No
Submitted Biography: "Rachel Howard is a mother and step-mother of 4 sons and 2 dogs in a blended family. She was born and raised in Michigan, working as an EMT in Metro-Detroit before enlisting as a combat medic in the Michigan Army National Guard in 2005. Rachel deployed as a combat medic to Iraq and Afghanistan where she became 1 of less than 500 females to be awarded a Purple Heart. After he medical retirement in 2019, she went on to clinical research eventually choosing to continue her service at the Veterans Health Administration in Ann Arbor, MI. It was here that she joined a clinical and research team dedicated to helping veterans with deployment related respiratory illnesses. Rachel went on to resign from the VHA in 2026 after becoming frustrated at the lack of representation and actionable plans for Michiganders needs. Educationally, Rachel earned a bachelor's degree in allied health, a Master of Social Work in Leadership and Systems Change, and a Master of Public Health in Global Health."
Voting information
- See also: Voting in Michigan
Campaign finance
| Name | Party | Receipts* | Disbursements** | Cash on hand | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abdul El-Sayed | Democratic Party | $5,350,824 | $3,371,645 | $1,979,180 | As of December 31, 2025 |
| Rachel Howard | Democratic Party | $10,937 | $6,171 | $4,766 | As of September 30, 2025 |
| Mallory McMorrow | Democratic Party | $5,595,106 | $3,643,959 | $1,951,147 | As of December 31, 2025 |
| Haley Stevens | Democratic Party | $6,839,672 | $3,785,379 | $3,054,294 | As of December 31, 2025 |
| Travis Zollner | Democratic Party | $0 | $0 | $0 | Data not available*** |
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Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2026. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee." |
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Ballot access
The table below details filing requirements for U.S. Senate candidates in Michigan in the 2026 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in Michigan, click here.
| Filing requirements for U.S. Senate candidates, 2026 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| State | Office | Party | Signatures required | Filing fee | Filing deadline | Source |
| Michigan | U.S. Senate | Democrat or Republican | 15,000-30,000 | N/A | 4/21/2026 | Source |
| Michigan | U.S. Senate | Unaffiliated | 12,000-60,000 | N/A | 7/16/2026 | Source |
See also
- United States Senate election in Michigan, 2026 (August 4 Republican primary)
- United States Senate election in Michigan, 2026
- United States Senate Democratic Party primaries, 2026
- United States Senate Republican Party primaries, 2026
- United States Senate elections, 2026
- U.S. Senate battlegrounds, 2026
External links
Footnotes
