Source: Politics<\/p>\n
MACKINAC ISLAND, Michigan \u2014 Republican Rep. Bill Huizenga has been preparing a run for Michigan\u2019s open Senate seat and plans to make a final decision this summer.<\/p>\n
If he does enter the primary, he would defy national Republicans, who have been aiming to clear the field for former Rep. Mike Rogers\u2019 second attempt at the office.<\/p>\n
\u201cI want to make sure we win. I want to make sure we\u2019ve got the right candidate to do that,\u201d Huizenga said Thursday. \u201cI personally think it should have been won last election. It didn\u2019t. And the question is: Are we going to run the same play and expect a different result?\u201d<\/p>\n
Huizenga has been assembling a team, including fundraisers, for a potential bid. He recently traveled to West Point to discuss his candidacy with Donald Trump during the president\u2019s visit last weekend. Trump endorsed Rogers, a former critic, in last year\u2019s crowded Senate primary; he has not endorsed in this race.<\/p>\n
Republicans\u2019 Senate campaign arm has been pressuring Huizenga to stay out of the contest, aiming to avert a potentially messy primary as they try to flip retiring Democratic Sen. Gary Peters\u2019 seat.<\/p>\n
National Republican Senatorial Committee political director Brendan Jaspers on Wednesday reposted a poll on X<\/a> showing Rogers outperforming Huizenga against potential Democratic rivals with the message, \u201cIf Republicans want to flip Michigan\u2019s Senate seat red in 2026, the numbers point to one candidate\u201d \u2014 Rogers.<\/p>\n Democrat Elissa Slotkin defeated Rogers in Michigan\u2019s open Senate race last year even as Trump won the state.<\/p>\n