State Rep. Joe Tate, D-Detroit, has entered the crowded race for Michigan’s open U.S. Senate seat in 2026.

The former House speaker announced his candidacy Sunday in an interview with the Associated Press .

“I’m running for the U.S. Senate because I want to continue to keep that promise that my grandparents came up to Michigan for,” Tate told the Associated Press .

Tate’s grandparents came to Detroit from Alabama as part of the Great Migration, when Black Americans moved from the South for better economic opportunities and to escape racist laws and violence.

Tate joins three other Democrats who have already declared a run for the seat. The seat is currently held by Democratic U.S. Sen. Gary Peters, D-Bloomfield Township, who is declining to seek reelection in 2026.

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