Michigan Democratic voters were asked in a recent poll how they felt about the 2026 U.S. Senate primary election in the state.
A poll conducted by WDIV/Detroit News asked Democratic voters from across the state about their opinions on various topics in the 2026 primary election. A portion of these questions focused on the Democratic candidates running in the 2026 U.S. Senate primary election.
The Democratic candidates running for U.S. Senate in Michigan are Abdul El-Sayed and Haley Stevens.
Name recognition of candidates, favorability
Here’s the exact wording of the question that was asked over the phone: I am going to read you the names of some people. For each, please tell me if you have ever heard of them and if you have heard of them, please tell me if you have a favorable or unfavorable impression of that person.
Abdul El-Sayed
Name recognition: 88.5%
- Favorable -- 51.5%
- Unfavorable -- 15.4%
- No Opinion -- 21.6%
- Never heard of -- 10.9%
- Don’t Know/ Refused -- 0.6%
Haley Stevens
Name recognition 90.7%
- Favorable -- 49.5%
- Unfavorable -- 21.0%
- No Opinion -- 20.2%
- Never heard of -- 8.5%
- Don’t Know/ Refused -- 0.8%
Vote
Here’s the exact wording of the question that was asked over the phone: If the Democratic primary for US. Senate was held today, would you vote for Abdul El-Sayed or Haley Stevens to be the Democratic candidate for US Senate?
El-Sayed -- 41.4%
Stevens -- 48.2%
- Definitely Abdul El-Sayed: 33.7%
- Probably Abdul El-Sayed: 7.7%
- Definitely Haley Stevens: 34.1%
- Probably Haley Stevens: 14.1%
Choosing a Democratic nominee
Here’s the exact wording of the question that was asked over the phone: I am going to read you a list of four potential factors that a voter may consider in choosing the Democratic nominee for US Senate. Please tell me which ONE factor on the list is the most important to you in choosing the Democratic nominee.
- That the candidate will get results for Michigan in the US Senate -- 12.7%
- That the candidate will be a fighter that stands up to Donald Trump -- 38.2%
- That the candidate represents my values -- 19.0%
- That the candidate can win in November and beat Mike Rogers -- 25.1%
- Don’t Know/ Refused/ Other/ Multiple -- 5.0%
Poll methodology
WDIV and the Detroit News commissioned a survey of likely Democratic voters in the August 2026 primary election in Michigan. The poll was conducted by The Glengariff Group, Inc.
It was a 500-sample, live-operator telephone survey that was conducted on July 8 through July 11, 2026.
The margin of error is +/-4.4%, and there is a 95% level of confidence.
Of the respondents, 17.4% of respondents were called via landline telephone, and 82.6% were called on a cellphone.