‘Undecided’ leads in Michigan Republican Senate race

LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) — More than half of Republican primary voters say they still don’t know who they will vote for to represent their party in the race for Michigan’s open U.S. Senate seat.

That’s according to a new poll by Emerson College and The Hill. The company that owns The Hill also owns WLNS-TV.

After 24 years in the upper house of Congress, Senator Debbie Stabenow has announced her plans to retire when her term is up, leaving the seat open in a battleground state.

When asked who they would support, 545 likely Republican primary votes responded like this:

• Undecided – 54%

• Mike Rogers – 32%

• Justin Amash – 8%

• Sandy Pensler – 3%

• Sherry O’Donnell – 2%

Former Congressman Mike Rogers, who has more support than any other candidate, also has the support of former president Donald Trump.

Perhaps because of that endorsement, Rogers is also the most well-known of the group, although 30% of those surveyed did not know who he was.

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Justin Amash, who is also a former member of Congress, is in second place. Businessman Sandy Pensler is in third, and physician Sherry O’Donnell is in fourth.

Almost half of those polled (48%) do not know who Amash is. He once quit the Republican Party and ran for president as a Libertarian in 2020.

Almost 6 in 10 (59%) aren’t familiar with Pensler, and almost 7 in 10 (69%) have never heard of O’Donnell.

In August, voters will choose which Republican candidate will run in the November general election.

The winner will square off against one of several potential Democratic contenders, including Representative Elissa Slotkin, actor and activist Hill Harper, and businessman Nasser Beydoun.

As of March 31st, Slotkin had raised $16 million for the race. Pensler had raised just over $3 million, and Rogers just under $3 million. Harper had collected $2 million. The other candidates were all below $1 million.

The open Senate race could help determine who controls the upper body of Congress for the next two years. Democrats currently maintain a slight 51-49 edge – which means Republicans only need to pick up a seat or two (depending on the outcome of the presidential race) to flip the chamber.

A March poll showed Slotkin leading four potential Republican candidates. A poll earlier this week showed her with a slight lead over Rogers, with a large number of undecided voters.

The poll, conducted on April 30th and May 1st, has a margin of error of +/-4.1%.

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