Also: Democrat's Big Surprise Win In Iowa Special Election Yesterday
Gary Peters hasn’t been a terrible senator… kind of run of the mill. In terms of his lifetime voting record, there are only 30 current senators who are better than he is. This cycle, though, he’s been a bit of a nightmare, down at the bottom of the pile with John Fetterman (PA), Elissa Slotkin (MI), Jeanne Shaheen (NH), Maggie Hassan (NH), Mark Warner (VA), Mark Kelly (AZ) and Ruben Gallego (AZ)— basically the members who feel they are indispensable and must vote with the Republicans in order to win reelection in tough states. His 2025 vote score is 35.71, much closer to Susan Collins’ 23.08 than to the dozen 100 scores of people like Bernie, Elizabeth Warren, Tina Smith, Chris Hollen, Jeff Merkley, Chris Murphy… even Chuck Schumer. Yesterday, Melissa Burke broken the news that Peters had unexpectedly decided to retire when his term ends next year. First see if you can get through this music video Peters released yesterday
Burke scored an exclusive interview and she reported that Peters (age 66, first elected to the Senate ten years ago) wants to spend more time with his family and “pass the reins for the next generation. I also never saw service in Congress as something you do your whole life. And that goes back to 2008 when I first won that House seat. I thought it would be for a matter of a few terms that I would serve, and then I would go back to private life.”
Peters’ announcement shocked many in Washington political circles Tuesday, with his decision likely to ignite an intense scramble on both sides of the aisle for his seat in battleground Michigan, which voted for Republican President Donald Trump last year by about 80,000 votes, or 1.4 percentage points.
At 66, Peters is relatively young for a U.S. senator, but after 10 years in the Senate and six in the House, he has decided to pass the torch to a younger generation. Peters also just completed two election cycles chairing the Senate Democrats' campaign arm while at the same time chairing the Senate Homeland Security panel.
He has other things he wants to do, like finding “endless, winding roads” for his Harley Davidson, he said. It’s a decision he’s been mulling for several months.
“I think this is pretty normal for everybody to say, I've done a job, and I'm proud of the job I did, but there are other things I want to do in my life. There are other ways that I can give back to the community,” Peters said.
…Peters' decision to not seek reelection in 2026 follows last year’s blockbuster battle for the seat of Sen. Debbie Stabenow, a Lansing Democrat who retired earlier this month after 24 years in the Senate.
Democrat Elissa Slotkin, a former congresswoman from Holly, succeeded Stabenow this month after defeating Republican former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers of White Lake Township in November with the narrowest margin of victory among Democratic Senate candidates nationally, about 19,000 votes.
Republicans immediately signaled they intend to target Peters' seat, with National Republican Senatorial Committee Chair Tim Scott of South Carolina saying that Peters' move shows he is "reading the room."
"After spending years ignoring illegal immigration and destroying his state’s auto industry, Michigan is better off without him," Scott said. "We’re committed to giving them a fighter that will stand with President Trump to restore the economic prosperity and security of our country.”
Peters’ departure would deliver another blow to Michigan’s clout in Washington. He’s the delegation’s most senior Democrat and has secured seats on some of the Senate’s most influential committees, including Appropriations, Armed Services and the powerful Senate Commerce, Science & Transportation Committee that’s important to Michigan’s auto industry.
“I'm confident the seat will stay Democratic, and I'm gonna do everything I can to make sure that that is indeed the case,” said Peters, who just completed two consecutive election cycles as chairman of the Senate Democrats’ campaign arm.
“We've got a lot of young, dynamic folks who can run for this office, who have distinguished themselves, so I suspect there'll be a number of folks who will be interested. I’ll encourage them to run. But I know that there's no shortage of talent.”
Kyle Kondik at the University of Virginia Center for Politics said he likely would have rated Peters' seat a "leans" Democrat if the senator were running for a third term, but his decision to retire makes the race more of a tossup.
It also puts Michigan Democrats in a position in 2026 of defending four statewide offices― the governorship, secretary of state, attorney general and now an open U.S. Senate seat, Kondik noted. However, Republicans haven't won a U.S. Senate seat in Michigan since 1994.
Term-limited Gov. Gretchen Whitmer says she isn’t running… but we’ll see if she changes her mind now that the seat is open. Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson has already announced for the gubernatorial race but she could switch races now, although there’s no apparent reason why she would. Likely to jump in are lightweight right-of-center congresswoman Haley Stevens, who has already said she’s “actively considering” running— DC-talk for “I’m talking to big contributors”— and Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist. And then there’s Mayo Pete, who recently changed his address from one in Indiana to one in Michigan (so he could seek statewide office), his husband’s home state. He says he’s “taking a serious look” at the race, although it had been presumed he would run for governor. Hans Nichols reported that “Buttigieg would bring his national fundraising network to what is expected to be one of the most expensive Senate races in the country.” One thing is certain... as bad as the Democratic nominee will be, the Republicans will puke up someone even worse. Maybe Mike Rogers or John James.
ADDENDUM: Yesterday Iowa Special Election— Democratic Win
Yesterday there was a special election to fill eastern Iowa’s state Senate district 35, which opened up when Republican Senator Chris Cournoyer became Lt Gov in December. Democrat Mike Zimmer beat Republican Katie Whittington 4,812 (51.7%) to 4,473 (48.1%). It’s considered a swing district but Trump won it by 21 points in November and did so by winning all three counties:
Clinton Co.- Trump 58.5%
Jackson Co.- Trump 65.5%
Scott Co.- Trump 51.0%
This time it was Zimmer who won all 3 counties. Good news for team blue; it looks like the MAGAts only come out to vote when Trump himself is on the ballot.
"More Senators Should Impose Term Limits On Themselves" Seniority is valuable. If you're working for the public good, having experience dealing with the opposition and knowing how lobbyist spin you, and a dozen other things that help you see the truth in the haze of special interests, is good for the country. If you're not actively trying to make things better for the American People, it would be better if you didn't serve a single term. Being in office a long time isn't the problem. It's how you perform. And while we're at it. "stepping aside for the next generation" is kinda lame. Mentor the next generation, and help them win when you step down.
I wouldn’t take Peter’s reason for retiring at face value.