Michigan's 2024 Senate Race: Elissa Slotkin vs. Mike Rogers
We endorse Elissa Slotkin for Michigan’s next Senator. Her record demonstrates to us that she is a pro-refugee partner that we can work with to advance pro-refugee policies and priorities in the years ahead. We recommend all voters in Michigan who care about protecting refugees vote for Elissa Slotkin.
Elissa Slotkin: A Pro-Refugee Partner We Can Work With
Elissa Slotkin was elected to the U.S. House in 2018 to represent Michigan’s 7th district. Previously she had worked for the CIA as an analyst. As a representative Slotkin has been a proactive supporter of pro-refugee legislation. In 2021, Slotkin co-sponsored the Afghan Adjustment Act which would establish a clear and streamlined path for displaced Afghans to apply for permanent status in the U.S. and expand pathways to protection for Afghans who remain left behind and at risk. She also led on the Support Our Afghan Partners Act, designed to improve and increase the ongoing evacuation of at-risk Afghans. Voice for Refuge ranked her a Supporter of Relocation & Resettlement of Afghans in our scorecards of the 117th Congress. In 2023, Slotkin joined a dear colleague letter supporting robust funding for resettlement and authorizing new visa slots for Special Immigrant Visas. That same year she also co-sponsored the American Dream and Promise Act to allow a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers and TPS recipients. And in 2024 she reintroduced the Short-Term Detention Standards Act, a bipartisan measure to ensure that immigrants being detained at the southern border have access to basic necessities.
Slotkin’s opponent is former Congressional Representative, Mike Rogers. Mike Rogers previously represented Michigan’s 8th Congressional District from 2001 to 2015. He has also worked in law enforcement and cybersecurity. In his campaign, Rogers has been repeating lies that “foreigners” and “people that don’t speak english” increase crime rates, despite research proving this is false. When serving as a Representative, Rogers was an original co-sponsor of the Free Syria Act of 2013, which called on the President to increase its humanitarian support and expedited resettlement for those affected by the conflict in Syria. He also supported an amendment to limit support for asylees within the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2014. Given his mixed record and current campaign rhetoric, we do not expect Mike Rogers to be a partner for refugee protection and advancement in the Senate.
Record on: | Elissa Slotkin | Mike Rogers |
Refugee Resettlement | Pro-Refugee Partner Sponsor of Support Our Afghan Partners Act. Joined Dear Colleague letters in FY 2024 supporting robust funding for protection and resettlement as well as authorizing new visa slots for Special Immigrant Visas. | Pro-Refugee Partner Rogers was an original co-sponsor of the Free Syria Act of 2013, which called on the President to increase its humanitarian support and expedited resettlement for those affected by the conflict in Syria |
Asylum and family reunification | Pro-Refugee Partner Led on the Short Term Detention Standards Act, which aims to ensure more humane treatment of migrants in custody at the U.S. border. | Unreliable on refugee protections Co-sponsored an amendment to limit support for asylees and Dreamers within the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2014. |
Temporary Protective Status (TPS) and Dreamers | Pro-Refugee Partner Cosponsored the Dream and Promise Act, which would ensure a path to citizenship for Dreamers and TPS holders. | Unreliable on refugee protections Co-sponsored an amendment to limit support for asylees and Dreamers within the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2014. |
Afghan response and resettlement | Pro-Refugee Partner Cosponsored the Afghan Adjustment Act, which would establish a clear and streamlined path for displaced Afghans to apply for permanent status in the U.S. and expand pathways to protection for Afghans who remain left behind and at risk. | N/A Mike Rogers was not in elected office during this time. |
Speaking about refugees, immigrants, and asylees in the US | Ambivalent towards refugees Recognizes the complexity of people’s experiences of coming to the US. | Anti-Refugee Extremist Repeats lies that immigrants and “people that don’t speak English” increase crime. |
Result: | Pro-Refugee Partner we can work with | Unreliable on refugee protections |
Sources:
- slotkin.house.gov/media/press-releases/slotkins-bipartisan-bill-would-ensure-fair-treatment-migrants
- www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-bill/16/cosponsors
- www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/8685/cosponsors
- slotkin.house.gov/issues/immigration
- www.newsweek.com/michigan-senate-race-key-issues-1949415
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gsUK-nlCcmg&t=30s
- https://eu.detroitnews.com/story/news/politics/2024/09/15/immigration-illegal-border-crossings-policy-us-senate-michigan-elissa-slotkin-mike-rogers/
- gandernewsroom.com/2024/02/26/audio-mike-rogers-goes-full-blown-white-nationalist-on-conservative-radio-show/
- listennotes.com/podcasts/the-steve-gruber/mike-rogers-border-crisis/
- www.congress.gov/bill/113th-congress/house-bill/1327
- www.congress.gov/bill/113th-congress/house-bill/2217
Unless stated below: this is an independent expenditure prepared and paid for by Voice for Refuge Action Fund, P.O. Box 1933, 28606 Phillips Street, Elkhart, IN 46515, Erol Kekic, Executive Director, and no candidate authorized this ad – it is not coordinated with, authorized by, or approved by any candidate or candidate’s committee, nor is any candidate responsible for it.
