NYSE exec won’t run for Michigan’s GOP Senate nomination

John Tuttle, the vice chair of the New York Stock Exchange, will not enter the race for Michigan’s open Senate seat, a move that will make the GOP primary field a little less crowded.

Tuttle was among several candidates that Republican leaders worked to recruit earlier this year, along with former Rep. Mike Rogers. Rogers’ decision to enter the race left them with a surplus of possible contenders. Former Rep. Peter Meijer, businessperson Sandy Pensler and ex-Detroit Police Chief James Craig are also considering bids.

“I have decided not to run for Senate in 2024,” Tuttle said in a statement. “I remain deeply committed to supporting Michigan and our country's competitiveness, leadership, and freedom.”

National Republicans have been eager for a do over after a worse-than-expected Senate slate in 2022. In many cases, the National Republican Senatorial Committee hoped to create a glide path to help its chosen candidates get through — something they have been unable to do in a number of states.

Tuttle would have been able to line up millions for both a campaign and a super PAC with his deep list of business and finance contacts, and could have waged a strong primary campaign, according to a person familiar with his planning. He knows former Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R-Ga.) and her husband, Jeffrey Sprecher, who is CEO of the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange.

Though Tuttle is a Michigan native with deep roots in the state, he may also have faced carpetbagging attacks because he currently works on Wall Street.

“John is a great guy who has graciously offered to help out in our efforts to win Michigan and retake the Senate majority. John has a very bright future ahead of him,” NRSC Chair Steve Daines said in a statement.

The NRSC strongly praised Rogers’ decision to enter the race. Party strategists hope he will be able to unite moderate Republicans and independents with those who strongly support former President Donald Trump.

The GOP field was initially slow to develop in Michigan but now the party is facing the prospect of a bitter and prolonged primary battle. Meijer, who was one of 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump, could struggle to win over Trump loyalists. Craig has praised Trump.

Most Democrats united early around Rep. Elissa Slotkin though she will face a primary contest as well. Actor Hill Harper and Pamela Pugh, president of the Michigan State Board of Education, are also running.

The seat is open because Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) is retiring. Republicans haven’t won a Senate seat in Michigan since 1994 so history is against them. But the seat is not crucial to their path to retaking the majority.

The GOP needs just one or two seats, depending on which party wins the White House, and their top targets lie in West Virginia, Ohio and Montana. Trump won all three states twice. He won Michigan in 2016 but lost it in 2020.