Former Rep. Mike Rogers (R) has put Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D) on defense, frequently bashing both her and the Biden administration on the issue and trying to tie Slotkin to an “EV mandate.”
Meanwhile, Slotkin has sought to toe a fine line — supporting investment in EVs while saying she does not support a mandate that everyone drive them.
The Michigan Senate race could help determine which party controls the upper chamber next year. Democrats currently hold an extremely slim majority and occupy a number of vulnerable seats. The Cook Political Report rates the Michigan race, in which Slotkin and Rogers are running to replace retiring Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow, as a “toss-up.”
The Biden administration has issued a regulation forcing automakers to make a greater share of their new cars electric or hybrid, but it does not fully ban new gas-powered cars.
Amid criticism from Rogers, Slotkin released an ad this month telling voters she does not support an EV mandate, but stressed that she wants such cars to be built in Michigan.
“No one should tell us what to buy, and no one is going to mandate anything,” she says in the ad. “But here’s the thing, if there’s going to be a new generation of vehicles, I want that new generation built right here in Michigan, not China.”
Read more at TheHill.com.