Michigan Senate hopeful touts endorsement that didn't exist: 'Came out of left field'

In an embarrassing moment for her Senate campaign, Rep. Haley Stevens (D-MI) briefly touted the endorsement of a county official who says the endorsement never happened.

According to The Detroit News, Stevens, who is seeking the Senate seat being vacated by Democrat Gary Peters, "incorrectly claimed in a social media post Monday that she had won the endorsement of Berrien County Commissioner Chokwe Pitchford. The post was later deleted from online by the campaign. But Pitchford said he felt the need to publicly disassociate himself from Stevens' campaign, posting a message on the website X to clarify that he'd never communicated with Stevens' team about even the possibility of an endorsement."

"I've never insinuated I would endorse her. I didn't give them a headshot, a quote, nothing," said Pitchford, further telling The Detroit News that "I take my endorsements very seriously ... this just came out of left field completely," and he wouldn't have granted his endorsement to Stevens anyway because her contributions from corporate donors are a "non-starter."

Pitchford added that he is considering an endorsement for one of Stevens' two Democratic rivals, state Sen. Mallory McMorrow and former public health official Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, but was "torn" between them.

Stevens' campaign spokeswoman Reeve Oyster did not clarify what happened, other than to say, "There was a miscommunication."

Michigan's open Senate seat will be closely watched next year as Democrats try to claw back a Senate majority after a series of bruising losses in 2024. At a bare minimum, they will need to hold every Senate seat they currently have to even hold a shot at the majority, as the contests are overall tilted toward Republicans due to the number of red-leaning seats Democrats have to target.

Stevens has emerged as the favored pick of Democratic Senate leaders. Recent primary polling conducted by Republican strategists shows Stevens just barely leading El-Sayed, with McMorrow trailing in third and a large number of voters undecided.