Elissa Slotkin and Mike Rogers’ Feisty Michigan Debate: Five Key Takeaways

Democratic Michigan Rep. Elissa Slotkin and former Republican Rep. Mike Rogers have clashed on key issues including abortion, foreign policy, and immigration during their first debate in the race for the crucial Senate seat of Michigan.
The race could play a decisive role in determining control of the upper chamber next year. Republicans only need to gain two seats in November to overturn the Democrats’ slim Senate majority, and they are widely expected to secure one in West Virginia, making the outcome in states like Michigan crucial to their chances.
Polls show Slotkin leading the contest, which follows the retirement of longtime Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow. A survey conducted between October 5 and 7 by Research Co. shows the Michigan Rep. 5 points ahead, on 52 percent to Rogers’ 47 percent. Another recent poll conducted by Redfield and Wilton Strategies between September 27 and October 2 put Slotkin 6 points ahead of her opponent.
But a survey conducted by the Republican-leaning Trafalgar Group between September 28 and 30, showed the race tied, while an Atlas Intel poll from September put Rogers 6 points ahead.
The slim margins for both candidates demonstrate that the race is anybody’s to win, and the nonpartisan Cook Political Report has rated the contest a toss-up.
“This race is going to go down to the wire,” former Michigan Republican Representative Fred Upton told the Associated Press (AP) in August. “This is going to be two heavyweights, in a positive way. They really know the issues and will go toe to toe on them.” Republicans have not won a Senate race in Michigan since 1994.
As the race tightens, here are the key takeaways from the debate Tuesday night in Grand Rapids.
Abortion puts candidates on defensive
Slotkin criticized Rogers for his position on abortion, highlighting his numerous votes in support of legislation that aimed to ban or limit access to the procedure.
While Rogers acknowledged that Michiganders “voted overwhelmingly to make abortion legal and a part of the state constitution of Michigan” and vowed he would “do nothing when I go back to Washington, D.C. … that would change” that, Slotkin urged voters “do not trust him.”
“He voted for every single ban, every restriction, every bill that came across his desk to make it harder for a woman,” Slotkin said, labeling Rogers as “unilaterally pro-life” and cautioning voters against believing his pledge not to threaten Michigan’s constitutionally protected right to abortion.
“He’s put his finger in the wind and he’s said now I can’t win if I don’t look good on this issue. So he’s changed 30 years of being unilaterally pro-life, of never breaking once with his party on this issue. It is not a talking point to women. It’s our lives. It’s whether we bleed to death in a parking lot,” Slotkin added.
“He does not trust you to make your won decisions about your own family planning. If he does not trust us to protect our own rights, do not trust him.”
Rogers told The Dispatch in April that although he was a “pro-life legislator,” he supports the rights of states to control their own fate on the contentious issue. During his time in the House, Rogers voted in favor of a 20-week abortion ban.
Clash over Middle East Policy
The ongoing conflict between Israel and its Middle Eastern neighbors quickly became a central issue during the debate, as rising violence in the region is likely to have a significant impact in a state that hosts the largest Arab American population in the country.
Both Rogers and Slotkin supported Israel’s right to defend themselves and insisted a ceasefire deal would require Hamas to release any hostages. But each avoided a question about whether they see a “red line” Israel cannot cross.
Slotkin added that she’s hoping to avoid U.S. involvement in “a big land war in the Middle East,” while Rogers said the current situation in the Middle East was brought on by “bad decision (after) bad decision” in the region and has led to adversaries using proxies to attack U.S. allies.
China emerges as lightning rod
One of the tensest moments in the debate came during a discussion over their respective records on China.
Rogers repeatedly tried to link Slotkin to Chinese investments in Michigan, particularly a planned battery parts manufacturing plant allegedly linked to the Chinese Communist Party.
Rogers accused Slotkin of signing a nondisclosure agreement to assist the company in its plans. Slotkin dismissed the accusations, calling them “offensive” and firmly denied ever signing such an agreement. While The Detroit News reported last year that one of Slotkin’s aides had signed the agreement to access project details, a Fox News report claimed Slotkin had also signed it.
“It’s a lie,” Slotkin stated during Tuesday’s debate, countering that it was Rogers who had ties to China due to his work as a consultant for AT&T after leaving Congress. AT&T has been scrutinized for connections to Huawei, a Chinese technology company with ties to the Chinese government.
Border dispute
During the debate, Slotkin repeated her claim that the immigration system is “broken.”
“No one is proud of what’s going on at the border,” she said.
Pressed by the moderator about the 10 million reported immigrants who have crossed the border since 2021, Slotkin emphasized that the government needs to do more. She previously said Democrats and Republicans need to compromise with each other to solve the border crisis.
Throughout the race, Republicans have hammered Slotkin on immigration—attempting to tie her to the Biden administration’s border policies.
Rogers used Tuesday night’s debate as another opportunity to criticize the Biden administration’s track record on immigration, claiming that the federal government used FEMA funds on migrants living in the country illegally, meaning the Biden administration now has less money to spend on disaster relief for the pending hurricane.
Trump has made similar assertions, but according to a recent NBC News fact check, both Republican candidates seem to be confusing two distinct funds. FEMA has a dedicated disaster relief budget that cannot be diverted for other uses. In 2022, the agency was also assigned the responsibility of distributing funds from U.S. Customs and Border Protection to help communities manage the surge of migrants.
Candidates trade personal attacks
Both candidates used personal attacks against each other during Tuesday night’s debate
Throughout the election, both Slotkin and Rogers have aimed to portray each other as carpetbaggers disconnected from Michigan values. Democrats emphasize that Rogers moved to Cape Coral, Florida, after leaving Congress a decade ago and lived in a home valued at nearly $1.7 million until he relocated to Michigan to launch his Senate campaign. Recently, local media has reported that Rogers isn’t residing at the address where he’s registered to vote, which his campaign attributes to delays in connecting his newly built home to the township’s sewer system.
On the other hand, Republicans point out that Slotkin only returned to Michigan seven years ago, after working in the George W. Bush and Barack Obama administrations, to run for office.
During the debate, Slotkin made several Florida-related jabs toward Rogers.
“I was here in Michigan, and I voted ‘yes’ on Proposition 3,” Slotkin said during a discussion about abortion rights, referring to a 2022 citizen-initiated proposed constitutional amendment in the state of Michigan which backed overruling a 1931 law that outlawed abortion without exception for rape or incest. “You were in Florida. You voted in Florida. You weren’t here.”
Separately, Slotkin used Rogers’ links to Florida to attack his voting record on House budgets.
“He voted to raise the retirement age,” Slotkin said, referring to Rogers’ votes on conservative House budgets. “That’s in his record. It’s public. I’m not sure he remembers. He’s been down in Florida for a few years, but your record when you vote in Congress is public.”
Rogers responded with a shot at Slotkin’s “very wealthy family.”
“We came from a middle-class family here in Michigan,” he said. “We counted on Social Security. We count on Medicare. My father had cancer. I had cancer when I was 19. These issues are big and they’re personal, and I will do everything to protect Medicare and Social Security.”
Newsweek has contacted Slotkin and Rogers’ campaigns for comment.