Sen. Gary Peters and challenger John James
Sen. Gary Peters, who was first elected to the Senate in 2014, is expected to face a stiff re-election bid. Repubicans hope to flip the seat, Politico reports.
Peters will square off in 2020 against Republican John James, who lost to incumbent Sen. Debbie Stabenow by about seven percentage points in 2018. James did better than most expected, particularly considering it was his first run for political ffice. But some suggest Stabenow didn't campaign as hard as she should have because she assumed she'd easily win.
The race is expected to be a referendum on Trump, who is backing James. During the 2018 campaign, James called the Democratic party "Godless."
Politico recently wrote:
The knock on Peters from Republicans is that he is “dull, unknown and without a signature accomplishment. But Steven Law, who runs a GOP super-PAC aiming to take out Peters and coined the ‘cold oatmeal’ barb, also said the 60-year-old Peters won't be a pushover.” Peters plans to rebut that with a long list of accomplishments, including backing the auto industry, protecting the Great Lakes and his work on defense issues.
Republicans view John James as a rock star candidate, but looming over the entire race will be the presidential battle. “Republicans recruited James for his existing profile and fundraising prowess — and they are also banking on the premise that he can attract voters beyond Trump’s base, particularly in Detroit and the surrounding counties. But Democrats point out James lost those areas in his 7-point defeat to [Sen. Debbie Stabenow] — including Macomb County, the critical swing suburb Trump carried two years earlier.”
