Slotkin kicks off Senate campaign in Old Town

LANSING − Lansing Congresswoman Elissa Slotkin kicked off her U.S. Senate campaign Monday night to a packed crowd at an Old Town bar.

Supporters of Lansing Democrat gathered at UrbanBeat to cheer on the three-term representative who is seeking higher office in the 2024 election.

During the event, Slotkin emphasized what will likely become defining issues for her campaign, including economic support for families, maintaining democracy and civil rights protections and reducing gun violence and opioid abuse.

“Really simple things about the United States of America have become really hard,” she said. “It should be really simple – that you have a job with dignity and benefits where you can afford your life. You can do well and your kids are going to do better.”

Slotkin, whose district includes Michigan State University’s main campus, said that the school’s recent mass shooting shows that the country needs to do better protecting children from the things that are “truly threatening them.”

“When I say protect our kids from things that are truly threatening them – like the leading cause of death for children under 21 which is gun violence in our country, but also opioids, the mental health crisis. It does not mean banning books in their library,” she said to applause from the crowd.

“The truth is right now, we can't take our rights and our democracy for granted,” Slotkin said. “We must defend them actively. And we need people who will stand up and fight and do that.

“There is nothing more American than protecting our rights and our freedoms. It is our birthright and we will demand it and secure it.”

Slotkin also reassured voters that she’ll be able to perform the duties of her Congressional position while running her campaign and assuring her current 7th District seat remains in Democratic hands.

“We have a great crop of folks who are looking at the seat,” she said. “The minute you sleep on this district, it will go back to being Republican. We're not going to let that happen.”

Slotkin is running to replace retiring Democratic Senator Debbie Stabenow, who has represented Michigan since 2001.

Slotkin is leaving a seat that is seen as one of the most competitive of the 2024 cycle. She held off former Republican State Sen. Tom Barrett in the 2022 election with a five-point victory in what became one of the most expensive races in the country. Now, Barrett has expressed his interest to run for the seat again.

“I smiled when I saw that,” Slotkin said referring to Barrett’s revived campaign. “His voting record doesn't change. His approach to the job doesn't change. His view on women's issues doesn't change. So, he's beatable. We just need someone who will do the work.”

Jason Roe, Barrett's campaign strategist, confirmed late last month that Barrett is planning on running again for the 7th District seat.

"Sen. Barrett has received a lot of encouragement from around the state to seek the congressional seat in 2024 and plans to do so," Roe told the State Journal at the time. An official announcement will be made in the coming weeks, he said.

Lansing Mayor Andy Schor has formed an committee to explore a run in the district, while Ingham County Clerk and Democrat Barb Byrum, State Sen. Sarah Anthony, D-Lansing and State Rep. Julie Brixie, D-Meridian Township have publicly said they are considering running.

Slotkin encouraged prospective candidates to make sure they address voters from all over the 7th District, which includes Ingham, Eaton, Clinton, Shiawassee and and Livingston counties and portions of Oakland and Genesee counties. She also said that she wasn’t sure if she would endorse a candidate in the possibly busy primary race.

“It's not typically what I've done in the past on these kinds of things, but if there's a real difference between candidates then I'd be willing to consider it,” she said.

Contact Sheldon Krause at skrause@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @sheldonjkrause.

This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Congresswoman Elissa Slotkin kicks off US Senate campaign in Old Town