Michigan Democratic Senator Gary Peters Won't Run for Re-Election in 2026
Peters becomes the first Senate retirement of the 2026 cycle.
In somewhat surprising news, U.S. Senator Gary Peters of Michigan, a Democrat, announced he would not run for re-election in 2026. Peters explained his decision in an interview with The Detroit News, which can be read in full here.
Peters, 66, becomes the first Senator to announce their retirement for the 2026 cycle. 35 seats will be contested next year - 33 regular elections and 2 special elections. Republicans currently hold 22 of these seats while Democrats represent the remaining 13.
Peters has served in the U.S. Senate representing Michigan since January 2015. He became the state’s Senior Senator earlier this month when fellow Democrat Elissa Slotkin was sworn in after winning the election to succeed retiring Senator Debbie Stabenow.
In 1993, Peters joined the U.S. Navy Reserve. He served for over ten years in units at Selfridge Air National Guard Base. He notably spent time in the Persian Gulf supporting Operation Southern Watch. He attained the rank of lieutenant commander by the time he left the Reserve in 2008.
Peters also worked for 22 years as a financial advisor. That began as an Assistant Vice President at Merrill Lynch and a Vice President at Paine Webber. He also spent time as a senior policy and financial analyst for the Michigan Department of Treasury and was on arbitration panels for the New York Stock Exchange and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority.
Peters’ political career started on the Rochester Hills City Council from 1991 to 1993. He was then elected to District 14 of the Michigan State Senate - serving from January 1995 to December 2002. In 2002, he was the Democratic nominee for Michigan Attorney General. He ultimately lost that race 48.86-48.69 to Republican Mike Cox - a margin of just 5,200 votes out of over 3 million cast.
In 2008, Peters was the Democratic nominee for Michigan’s 9th Congressional District. He flipped the district by defeating 8-term Republican incumbent Joe Knollenberg 52.1-42.6. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives from January 2009 to January 2015. In 2014, Peters ran unopposed for the Democratic nomination to succeed retiring Senator Carl Levin. He prevailed statewide 54.6-41.3 against Republican Terri Lynn Land. His 2020 re-election campaign was much closer but Peters still won 49.9-48.2 against Republican John James.
For the 119th Congress, Peters serves on the Senate Committees on Appropriations, Armed Services, Commerce, and Homeland Security. Moreover, he has been the top Democrat on the Homeland Security panel since January 2019 - which included chairing the committee from February 2021 to January 2025. He was also chosen as Chair of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) for the 2022 and 2024 election cycles.
Peters’ early retirement announcement gives ample time for competitive primaries to form for Democrats and Republicans. Speculation has already been rampant about who may pursue the office next year. It creates another opportunity for ambitious Michigan politicians to pursue - alongside the open contests for Governor, Secretary of State and Attorney General.
Michigan has been one of the most competitive states in presidential politics during the Donald Trump era. In 2016, Trump carried the state 47.5-47.3 against Hillary Clinton. In 2020, Joe Biden flipped the state 50.6-47.8 against Trump. In 2024, Trump was victorious once more 49.7-48.3 against Kamala Harris.