Michigan state Senator Mallory McMorrow suspended her campaign for the Democratic Senate nomination on Sunday, the fourth of July, leaving the August 4 primary as a head-on collision between two very different visions of what the Democratic Party should be.
On one side, Representative Haley Stevens, the four-term congresswoman backed by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, AIPAC money and the party establishment.
On the other, Abdul El-Sayed, the former Wayne County public health director backed by Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and the progressive left.
McMorrow did not endorse either remaining candidate. She did not give a specific reason for dropping out.
A person with direct knowledge told the Associated Press the biggest factor was an influx of outside spending that boosted Stevens and squeezed McMorrow out, AIPAC alone poured millions into ads supporting Stevens, leaving both McMorrow and El-Sayed struggling to compete.
Recent polling had shown El-Sayed and Stevens consolidating support while McMorrow faded.
"I may be suspending this campaign, but I am not leaving the fight," McMorrow said in a video posted to X.
She asked her supporters to elect Democrats up and down the ticket in November without specifying a direction for her own coalition.
Her name will remain on the ballot because absentee ballots have already been printed and distributed.
The seat is being vacated by Senator Gary Peters and is one the Democrats must hold if they hope to reclaim the Senate majority in the fall.
The Republican nominee is expected to be former Representative Mike Rogers, who narrowly lost the state's other Senate seat in 2024.
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, a McMorrow ally, endorsed Stevens within hours of the announcement.