In new polling that was done in Michigan, the potential Republican pick for Senate finished behind a likely Democratic selection for next year’s general election ballot. The survey was conducted from June 8 through June 14, meaning recently.
Rep. Elissa Slotkin, the Democrat, has already confirmed her bid for Senate, while James Craig, the Republican who was included in the polling, has not done so. However, Craig previously waged an unsuccessful campaign for governor, and he has evidently spoken of considering an extension of his political ambitions to the Senate race that will soon go before Michiganders.
The pollster, EPIC/MRA (also written sometimes as EPIC-MRA), found 40 percent of overall respondents selected or leaned towards Slotkin, while 39 percent were generally behind Craig. While those numbers obviously leave a significant part undecided and don’t have Slotkin with an overwhelming lead, the idea of a Republican wave would clearly be a flatly false narrative. Slotkin, Craig, or anybody else who wins the general election next year will be replacing Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), who is retiring.
Though Dems added a seat to their U.S. Senate majority last year, the map in 2024 may prove particularly tough, as races will be on the ballot in Montana, Nevada, Wisconsin, Ohio, and other states where Democrats currently hold a seat but Republicans have come very close or outright won in recent statewide elections. In the 2020 elections, Trump was victorious in Montana by a leading margin of over 16 percent. The Democratic Senate incumbent there is Jon Tester, who frequently aligns himself with so-called moderate causes. Even Joe Manchin, the always antagonistic West Virginia Democrat, will have to face voters again in 2024, and it’s not that difficult to imagine a Republican replacing him in a state Trump won by about 39 percent.
