LANSING (AP) — Michigan Sen. Gary Peters, who led the Democrats’ Senate campaign efforts the past two election cycles, has announced he will not seek a third term in 2026, creating a highly contested battleground seat expected to be highly coveted by both parties.
The 66-year-old’s unexpected decision Tuesday to step aside after just two terms comes as a surprise and poses a challenge for Democrats in Michigan during a turbulent period, likely dividing their strong bench between the gubernatorial and Senate race in 2026.
Having lost Michigan in the presidential race, Peters’ decision forces Democrats to defend a critical Senate seat in Michigan without the advantage of an incumbent, complicating their efforts to regain control of the chamber in 2026, where Republicans currently hold a slim majority.
In addition to Peters' Senate seat, Michigan will also elect a new governor, secretary of state and attorney general, along with the entire state House and Senate.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said Tuesday that she won’t seek Peters' seat, and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson announced her gubernatorial campaign last week.
Remaining Democrats include Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist, Attorney General Dana Nessel, state Sen. Mallory McMorrow and a handful of U.S. and state representatives.
“What the Democrats are now going to have to try to do is separate out all those good candidates and see if they can get them to avoid challenging each other in a primary,” said John Sellek of Harbor Strategic.
Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who lives in Traverse City, is also said to be considering a campaign for Senate or governor.
“Certainly looking for a new role and some other place to keep his name around and to maybe potentially build on for a future run for the white House,” said Scott LaDeur, a political science professor at North Central Michigan College. “He makes a lot of sense.”
The Republican bench has fewer recognizable names, but Peters' announcement has opened a new path for potential candidates.
“The GOP nomination for Senate was kind of like a backwater,” Sellek said. “People weren’t talking about it a lot. Nobody of any serious stature was excited to take on Gary Peters.
John James, a current U.S. Representative who ran for Senate in 2018 and 2020, has yet to rule out another campaign.
Other former candidates could emerge, including 2022 gubernatorial candidate Tudor Dixon, and former congressman Mike Rogers, who lost his 2024 Senate race by less than 20,000 votes.
“Peters is clearly reading the political tea leaves, as it’s become more difficult to win statewide as a Democrat and maybe just deciding that another term wasn’t really in him, and it was time to get out,” LaDeur said.
This is the second consecutive cycle in which Democrats must navigate the challenge of defending an open Senate seat in Michigan, a state won by Donald Trump in 2024.
Longtime Sen. Debbie Stabenow shocked many by announcing she would not seek a fifth term in 2024. Democratic Sen. Elissa Slotkin managed to hold that seat for the party by a narrow margin of fewer than 20,000 votes.
First elected to the Senate in 2014 after serving three terms in the U.S. House, Peters has earned a reputation as a mild-mannered and moderate politician. In addition to leading the Senate Democrats’ campaign efforts from 2021 until earlier this year, he also chaired the Senate Homeland Security Committee from 2021 to 2025 and is currently the ranking member on the committee.
Peters earned praise from many Democrats for aiding the party’s strong performance in the 2022 midterms by winning a number of hotly contested races to hold control of the Senate. But two years later, Republicans flipped several highly competitive seats, costing Democrats their majority in the upper chamber.
The Detroit News first reported Peters’ decision.