After Bakersfield and Allentown, Seed the Vote is heading to Michigan.
We’re deploying to MI-13 to support Donovan McKinney for Congress and Abdul El-Sayed for U.S. Senate, with our partners Michigan United Action and Detroit Action on the ground. Primary day is August 4.
Here’s why:
MI-13 is a proud working-class district. Its current representative is a Democrat — but one who, by his own record, has more in common with Trump and Elon Musk than with the working-class Detroiters he’s supposed to represent.
Donovan McKinney is challenging Congressman Shri Thanedar from the left. He’s a lifelong Detroiter, a product of Detroit Public Schools, a first-generation college graduate who has spent his career fighting for his community. As a state legislator, he secured $600 million in federal funds to replace lead pipes in Detroit and the surrounding suburbs. He’s endorsed by Bernie Sanders, Rashida Tlaib, and the Working Families Party.
On the Senate side, Abdul El-Sayed is one of the most compelling candidates in the country right now. A physician, Rhodes Scholar, and former Detroit Health Department director, he’s running on Medicare for All, getting corporate money out of politics, and taking the fight directly to Trump and the billionaire class. Michigan’s Senate seat is one of the most consequential races in the country. Democrats need to net four seats to flip the chamber, and Abdul has surged to the front of a competitive three-way primary, powered by younger voters who are done waiting for incrementalism.
In 2024, Seed the Vote deployed 213 volunteer across Michigan to knock 81,337 doors for Sen. Elissa Slotkin. Slotkin won her race by roughly 18,700 votes out of more than 5.5 million votes cast. Thanks in part to the Seed the Vote field team, she became one of only two Democrats to win a Senate seat in a state that also backed Trump that cycle. We’re thrilled to be back in Michigan partnering with them again for Abdul El-Sayed.
This is exactly the kind of work Seed the Vote was founded for: to fight for true working-class candidates in the primaries where real grassroots organizing can move the outcome, alongside trusted local partners who know the terrain and need reinforcements.
This won’t be our only summer deployment. We’re actively planning additional field work through August and into the fall – check back soon! If you’ve been looking for your next reason to get on a plane, this is it.
Join our next info session to learn more and get your questions answered.
