McMorrow releases first TV ad for Michigan Senate bid

Melissa Nann Burke, The Detroit News on Jun 23, 2026

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

DETROIT — With six weeks to go until the August primary, Democratic Senate candidate Mallory McMorrow released her first TV ad of the cycle Tuesday, promising to "stand up to Trump," to big tech and "make this country work for the rest of us."

"They said, 'You can't flip this district, you can't take back the Senate, you can't beat the extremists,' " McMorrow says in the ad's voiceover. "When they said we couldn't, we did and together we will."

McMorrow released the 30-second spot Tuesday, the same week that absentee ballots are set to be mailed to voters. Her campaign said it's airing the ad in the Detroit market with an initial buy of $400,000, though it's unclear how long it will be running.

McMorrow, a state senator from Royal Oak, said she wanted to remind voters of "the good work that we've gotten done together when we organize, we fight, we take on tough races and win them."

McMorrow is seeking the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate and is locked in a contentious primary fight against U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens of Birmingham and podcaster and former public health official Abdul El-Sayed of Ann Arbor. The winner of the Aug. 4 contest is expected to take on Republican Mike Rogers in November to determine who fills the seat of retiring Sen. Gary Peters, D-Bloomfield Township.

McMorrow described Stevens as the "status quo" candidate who hasn't gone up on the air yet, while El-Sayed is promising a lot but hasn't ever won an election.

"It feels like people are really just starting to tune into this race," McMorrow said.

"Once we're able to have the conversation to say, exactly the point, that there are no shortcuts ― I know how to fight, I know how to win, I know how to build coalitions and actually get things done, and that is somebody we need not only to send to the U.S. Senate but to beat Mike Rogers to get there," she said.

El-Sayed last week became the first Michigan Senate candidate to go on the air with a TV ad, touting his Michigan roots, biography and endorsements by the United Auto Workers union and progressive icon Bernie Sanders.

The Michigan contest is expected to be among the most expensive and closely watched races of the midterm elections this year.

---------