Michigan Democratic Senator Gary Peters' retirement announcement on Tuesday generated speculation about which Democrats could run to replace him in next year's Senate race.

Democratic Michigan Senator Gary Peters has announced he will not seek a third term in 2026, giving Republicans a top target in a state likely to become a major midterm battleground. Peters, who won reelection in 2020 by a narrow margin of less than 2 points, surprised many with his decision.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said she will not run for the open U.S. Senate that will be vacated by retiring Sen. Gary Peters.

They will need to defend an open seat in a battleground state that President Trump carried in 2024. And Gov. Gretchen Whitmer ruled out a run.

Democratic Sen. Gary Peters of Michigan announced Tuesday that he will not seek reelection in 2026, leaving Congress at the end of his second term and opening up a highly competitive battleground Senate seat.

Democrat Gary Peters' announcement means Michigan will have an open U.S. Senate seat for the second time in two years.

The surprise decision Tuesday again complicates for Democrats in Michigan, who will be forced to defend an open seat in the battleground state for the second straight election cycle. Peters led the Democrats’ Senate campaign efforts from 2021 to 2025 and helped the party hold control of the chamber in 2022 before Republicans flipped it last year.

Al Weaver of The Hill reported that a GOP source claims the former Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Indianapolis Colts head coach Tony Dungy is being considered as a potential candidate for a Michigan’s Senate seat.

Former Secretary of Transportation and 2020 Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg is not ruling out a possible Senate run in Michigan in 2026, following Sen. Gary Peters' decision not to seek re-election.

It's no secret that change is sweeping through Michigan’s political landscape in a way that stirs conversation at every gathering. Second-term U.S. Sen. Gary Peters announced Tuesday that he will not run for reelection in the 2026 midterm election.

Peters, elected in 2014, will not seek reelection and will leave Congress after his term in the Senate expires in January 2027.