Michigan State Senator Mallory McMorrow Announces Campaign
Mallory McMorrow, Michigan State Senate Majority Whip and alumna of Notre Dame, has formally launched her 2026 campaign for the United States Senate. McMorrow spoke to the Rover in September of 2024, shortly after her appearance at the 2024 Democratic National Convention.
Originally from White House Station, New Jersey, McMorrow graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 2008 with a degree in Industrial Design. She currently resides in Royal Oak, Michigan, just outside of Detroit. She entered Michigan politics as a Democrat after finding herself “fed up after the 2016 election,” and she is currently serving her second term in the Michigan State Senate, now representing the 8th district.
McMorrow claims to be “an ardent supporter of policies protecting reproductive rights, empowering local communities, and making Michigan a business- and family-friendly state.” One of her most pertinent legislative measures includes co-sponsoring Senate Bill 2, which repealed a law that criminalized abortion in Michigan. Her June 28, 2024 newsletter reads, “Michigan Senate Democrats remain dedicated to continuing our efforts to protect basic human rights and eliminate barriers to essential reproductive health care here in Michigan.”
Despite identifying as Catholic, McMorrow has been a prominent voice pushing for expanded abortion access throughout the state. In an interview discussing her faith and the political issues she advocates for, she said that “religious freedom in this country means you are free to practice your own religion, not [that] you are free to inflict it on other people if they don’t agree.”
In her interview with the Rover, McMorrow said regarding abortion, “Something like 70 percent of Catholics believe abortion should be legal in most if not all cases. … Abortion has been really demonized when it is a medical procedure that may be necessary throughout a pregnancy.”
The current incumbent for the Michigan Senate seat is Democratic Senator Gary Peters, last elected in 2020. In January 2025, Peters announced that he would not seek reelection in 2026. McMorrow is the first to announce a campaign to take over his seat. Currently, Republicans hold a 53-seat majority in the U.S. Senate.
The 2020 Michigan Senate election proved to be a tight race. The incumbent Peters defeated Republican challenger John James by a mere 1.7 percent. The 2024 Senate elections showed even narrower margins. Democrat incumbent Elissa Slotkin defeated Republican challenger Mike Rogers by just 0.3 percent. However, Michigan voted red for Donald Trump over Kamala Harris in the presidential election by a margin of 1.4 percent.
Michigan’s swing to Trump after voting for Biden in 2020 was highlighted by the fact that 59 percent of Muslim votes in Dearborn, Michigan went to Green Party candidate Jill Stein, who has vocally supported Palestine. According to some analysts, Muslim voters, who have historically aligned with the Democratic party, shifted their vote due to the handling of the Israel-Hamas war.
Keough Hall freshman Quinn Reilly was critical of McMorrow’s stark policy differences with the Catholic Church, telling the Rover, “[McMorrow] didn’t represent Notre Dame’s Catholic values in the Michigan Senate, which makes me think she won’t in the U.S. Senate either.”
A sophomore from Grand Rapids, Michigan expressed a similar sentiment, saying, “McMorrow embarrassed Michigan at the DNC and I certainly won’t be voting for her in 2026.”
Ella Yates is a sophomore studying philosophy, political science, and theology from Western Springs, Illinois. She is currently in the process of building her classical literature collection. Anyone with recommendations should email her at eyates4@nd.edu.
Photo Credit: McMorrow for Michigan
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