Bloomberg gets key endorsement from Michigan congresswoman, who says he will be president
Todd SpanglerWASHINGTON — Former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg is pulling out all the stops to win Michigan's March 10 presidential primary and on Saturday picked up what could be a watershed endorsement from U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Rochester Hills.
"He knows how to get things done. He's done it in business; he's done it in government," Stevens told the Free Press. "I see him as a uniter. He's not a divider."
The congresswoman went on to say she not only has worked with Bloomberg in the past and trusts him but believes he is the Democrats' best chance to defeat President Donald Trump in November and take steps to invest in infrastructure, protect health care and react to the threat of climate change.
"I'm focused on what I think looks best for Michigan and what looks best for my district and who is poised to lead," Stevens said."I see it in Mike Bloomberg."
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Stevens becomes the third Democratic member of Michigan's congressional delegation to endorse one of that party's presidential candidates, with Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Detroit becoming a campaign trail surrogate for Bernie Sanders and Rep. Andy Levin of Bloomfield Township stumping for Elizabeth Warren. Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan has endorsed Joe Biden in the Democratic race.
Stevens' endorsement, however, comes after a disastrous Iowa Democratic primary this past week in which the party took days to try to sort out its votes, resulting in Sanders and former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg each claiming to have won. It also left the the race very much unsettled headed into New Hampshire's primary on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Bloomberg, a billionaire businessman, continues to invest heavily in a strategy of bypassing the early states to concentrate on several Super Tuesday states voting March 3 and in Michigan, which votes the following Tuesday, March 10.
On Tuesday, Bloomberg was in Detroit just hours before Trump gave his State of the Union speech in Washington. And this weekend, his campaign is opening four new offices — in Ann Arbor, Bloomfield Hills, Flint and Warren.
More:Mike Bloomberg plans Michigan visit on same day as Trump's State of the Union
What makes Stevens' endorsement potentially significant is that she represents a district covering southeastern Oakland and western Wayne counties that could be important in the 2020 general election campaign.
In 2016, Trump won the district by 4 percentage points over Hillary Clinton, but, in 2018, with former U.S. Rep. Dave Trott, R-Birmingham, declining to run for a third two-year term, the district — drawn to be a safe Republican district by the state Legislature in 2011 — was flipped by Stevens, who worked on President Barack Obama's auto task force.
It was one of two Republican-held districts in suburban Detroit flipped by Democrats.
In Michigan, Bloomberg — who was a Democrat before becoming a Republican to run as New York's mayor, then switched to become an independent before running this year as a Democrat — has been hiring several advisers well-known in political circles and spending heavily on TV ads.
There has been little recent polling among the Democrats for the nomination fight in Michigan but there have been indications the effort is helping Bloomberg: Last month, the Free Press reported on an EPIC-MRA poll that showed Bloomberg with a 7-point lead in a head-to-head matchup against Trump, larger than any other Democrat in the race.
To win, however, Bloomberg will need to overcome his long-shot strategy of bypassing the early states, though there have been some indications lately that it may be working. This week, Bloomberg also got an endorsement from another freshman member of Congress who flipped what had been a Republican district, U.S. Rep. Mikie Sherrill of New Jersey.
Stevens, who said she worked previously with Bloomberg on philanthropic efforts and to promote small business products in international markets and other programs, said she believes his efforts to organize in key states, including Michigan, California and elsewhere, will pay off.
"I believe he's going to be president of the United States," she said.
Contact Todd Spangler:tspangler@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter@tsspangler. Read more onMichigan politics and sign up for ourelections newsletter.