Mallory McMorrow

Michigan State Senate

In January 2020, McMorrow, lobbyist Melissa Osborn and Michigan Advance reporter Allison Donahue accused Republican state Senator Peter Lucido of sexual harassment.^[11] McMorrow stated that Lucido touched her lower back and upper buttocks in November 2018, shortly after she was elected to the state senate, and made comments during a training session that suggested she won her election because of her appearance.^[11]

In June 2021, McMorrow co-sponsored the reintroduction of Senate Resolution 60, introduced by Senator Jeremy Moss, which proposed declaring June as Pride Month in Michigan. The resolution was adopted.^[12]

In April 2022, Republican State Senator Lana Theis claimed in a campaign fundraising email that McMorrow wanted to "groom and sexualize kindergartners" and teach that "8-year-olds are responsible for slavery".^[13][14] McMorrow defended herself on April 19, 2022 on the senate floor.^[13]

"I am a straight, white, Christian, married, suburban mom who knows that the very notion that learning about slavery or redlining or systemic racism somehow means that children are being taught to feel bad or hate themselves because they are white is absolute nonsense."

Neither Theis nor the Michigan Republican Party apologized for their accusations, and Theis did not respond to McMorrow's speech on the senate floor.^[13] McMorrow's speech went viral and received over one million views in the first few hours after it was posted.^[13]

During redistricting following the 2020 United States census, prior to the 2022 elections, Michigan's independent redistricting commission merged McMorrow's district with the district represented by fellow Democrat Marshall Bullock.^[15] In the primary election held August 2, 2022, McMorrow defeated Bullock for the Democratic Party's nomination for the 8th District.^[16] McMorrow defeated Republican Brandon Ronald Simpson in the November general election.^[17] Since 2023, McMorrow has been the State Senate's Democratic caucus whip.^[18]

National politics

McMorrow endorsed Elizabeth Warren for President in 2019 and volunteered for Warren's 2020 presidential campaign in Michigan.^[19][20]

On August 19, 2024, McMorrow delivered a speech at the Democratic National Convention and brought out a giant copy of the roughly 900-page Project 2025. It became one of the Democratic Party's most consistent tools against the campaign of Donald Trump and she said, "They went ahead and wrote down all the extreme things that Trump wants to do in the next four years". She gave her support to Kamala Harris for president.^[21] McMorrow's debut book, Hate Won't Win: Find Your Power and Leave This Place Better Than We Found It, was published by Hachette Book Group on March 25, 2025.^[22][23]

While expressing respect for Democratic Party leaders, McMorrow privately wrote to Joe Biden in July 2024 urging him to step down from the ticket and expressed the need for new leadership in the party in March 2025.^[24]

2026 U.S. Senate campaign

In April 2025, McMorrow announced that she would run in the Democratic primary to replace United States Senator Gary Peters, who had announced he would not stand for re-election in 2026.^[25] McMorrow has been advised by the Democratic operative Lis Smith since 2022.^{[26][27][28][29]}

During her campaign, McMorrow had been endorsed by U.S. senators Peter Welch, Martin Heinrich, Chris Murphy, and Warren. She suspended her campaign on July 5, 2026.^[30] McMorrow did not endorse Abdul El-Sayed or Haley Stevens but said the Democratic nominee "will have my full support" in the general election.^[31]

Abortion

In July 2022, a month after the U.S. Supreme Court voted to overturn Roe v. Wade, McMorrow spoke about an emergency dilation and curettage (D&C) she had in January to remove a malfunctioning IUD . She expressed concern for restrictions of access to D&C and other abortion procedures in the wake of the Roe v. Wade decision, as without it she could have had permanent damage to her reproductive system, become unable to get pregnant again, or got an infection that could have resulted in her death.^[34]

Data centers

In 2024, McMorrow voted as a State Senator to exempt data center equipment from sales and use taxes to incentivize their growth in Michigan. In 2026, she supported the growth of data centers while also advocating that data centers should pay a fair share of taxes.^[35]

Economic policy

As chairwoman of the Senate Economic and Community Development Committee, McMorrow pushed for more community investments in regional transit and childcare to supplement the state's reliance on providing incentives for big companies for economic development.^[32]

Health care

McMorrow favors a public option that would allow individuals to buy into Medicare or other government health insurance.^[32] McMorrow has expressed support for hybrid public options, such as the Colorado Option.^[36]

Israeli–Palestinian conflict

McMorrow visited Israel in 2023.^[37] In April 2025, McMorrow reached out to pro-Israel Democratic groups to emphasize her support for Israel during her candidacy for the 2026 United States Senate election in Michigan and condemned the alleged harassment and antisemitism of pro-Palestinian protests at the University of Michigan directed towards its regents.^[38] According to Jewish Insider, by April 2025, McMorrow had returned foreign policy papers to at least one pro-Israel Democratic group, emphasizing her commitment to Israel's security.^[39]

Washington Examiner reported McMorrow said that she has a respectful relationship with AIPAC, reporting her husband, who is Jewish, interned for AIPAC.^[40] McMorrow has asked AIPAC to not intervene in the 2026 U.S. Senate Democratic primary in Michigan on behalf of their preferred candidate Haley Stevens and has said that she has been in contact with AIPAC and other pro-Israel groups. She said the groups have been "receptive" to her positions on Israel, adding that "they understand the shifting dynamics not only in Michigan but around the country and the world, people are very attuned to the deep influence PACs have that outweighs the influence of people and voters."^[41] In September 2025, Drop Site News reported on a pro-Israel donor call, in which a supporter of McMorrow said she had privately produced an "outstanding" AIPAC position paper.^[42][43] McMorrow has denied directly seeking support or endorsement from AIPAC.^[44] She was endorsed by a center-left lobbying group J Street in March 2026.^[43]

When initially asked about the role of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict in the Senate election, she responded "two things can be true simultaneously... that Hamas started a violent war, and that war needs to end." McMorrow expressed support for a two-state solution, for the return of hostages, and for providing humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza, saying that peace has been a hallmark of Democratic policy for decades.^[45]

McMorrow's positions on weapons and support to Israel have adjusted over the course of her Senate campaign and as humanitarian conditions have rapidly deteriorated for Palestinians.^[46][47] In April 2025, she declined to say whether she would vote for further security aid for Israel without conditions, wanting to see the legislation first.^[48] In July 2025, McMorrow said the U.S. must stop providing Benjamin Netanyahu offensive weapons as leverage until the resumption of humanitarian aid, demanded Hamas release all of the hostages and disarm, and said the parties must negotiate a permanent ceasefire that they adhere to.^[49][50] McMorrow maintained support of sending defensive arms to Israel, including funding for the Iron Dome to protect Israeli civilians, conditioning further sale of offensive arms as leverage for resuming humanitarian aid, describing hearing at campaign events "people not wanting their tax dollars to create a humanitarian crisis" and characterizing Israel's actions as being the fault of Netanyahu's policies.^[50]

Asked in October 2025 whether Israel's actions in Gaza legally met the definition of a genocide, McMorrow responded affirmatively, with her campaign citing a September 2025 United Nations Commission of Inquiry report as the convincing factor.^[44] McMorrow has since distanced herself from the response, criticizing the question as a political purity test and standing by the United States being Israel's ally.^[51][43]

Outreach to voters

In 2025, McMorrow proposed a voter outreach strategy of "being unafraid of going everywhere and meeting people where they are", citing unwillingness to engage with figures such as Joe Rogan resulting in a perception that Democrats are "elitist" and "academic".^[24] In a March 2026 interview, however, McMorrow criticized Abdul El-Sayed, her opponent in the 2026 Senate Democratic primary, for campaigning with influencer Hasan Piker, accusing Piker of antisemitism and misogyny.^[52]

Political funding

In a 2017 interview with Bustle, McMorrow said of accepting corporate political action committee (PAC) money, "We'll never even win elections to get more seats at the table if we don't take advantage of every opportunity out there. Right now, money wins elections."^[53][43] In a since-deleted 2017 tweet, she said, "If we on the left continue to tear down candidates for taking money to win, we'll continue to lose."^[54]

McMorrow has rejected corporate PAC money for her 2026 Senate campaign.^[54] She said, "I've learned through my time in the legislature that, you can't talk out of both sides of your mouth, that people won't trust you. And also, not only can we fund campaigns without corporate PAC dollars, but frankly, we need to."^[55][43] As super PACs entered the race for all candidates, a similar nonprofit group, Yes MI Action Committee, committed $4.9 million in spending in support of McMorrow's campaign, planning a total of $7 million in spending from its unidentified donors.^[56]

Technology

McMorrow supports policies that make platforms hosting chatbots legally liable for promoting material promoting content relating to suicide, eating disorders, and substance abuse. She has also advocated for a nationwide ban of cellphone use in classrooms, and expanding the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act to cover all individuals under the age of 17.^[57]