Whitmer endorses Stevens in U.S. Senate race

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has endorsed U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens in the primary race for Michigan Senate.

Stevens is facing Abdul El-Sayed in the Democratic primary and the winner will face presumptive Republican nominee Mike Rogers for the seat being vacated by Sen. Gary Peters, a Democrat.

It is one of the most closely-watched races in the country.

El-Sayed, a public health official, ran for governor against Whitmer in 2018 and came in second.

Stevens has been endorsed by Peters and many other Democratic establishment figures, including former Gov. Jennifer Granholm and former U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, current Attorney General Dana Nessel and others.

El-Sayed has been endorsed by many more progressive figures including U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, an Independent from Vermont, and U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a New York Democrat. Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez visited Lansing last week for a rally to boost El-Sayed.