Coalition seeks new way to hold debates in Michigan

A coalition in Michigan is seeking a new way to hold debates in Michigan starting with this fall's U.S. Senate race, an initiative it hopes to expand to combat a dearth of televised political forums for voters to learn about candidates.

The new Michigan Debate Task Force is urging U.S. Senate candidates to commit to participating in three debates ahead of the general election this fall, so voters may hear directly from candidates in an "unfiltered" format.

The task force is comprised of universities, Chambers of Commerce and the Urban Leagues of Detroit and west Michigan. The groups intend to organize and host the three debates around the state that would be broadcast by TV partners: One in southeast Michigan, one in the Grand Rapids area and another in the Traverse City area.

"Voters in Michigan deserve regular, high-quality, informative, civil and respectful discussions between those seeking to be our representatives. Therefore, we, and more importantly the voters, expect all candidates who qualify to participate," according to a letter that the task force sent to U.S. Senate candidates on Monday.

Part of the idea is to shift the control of debate rules, timing and formats away from political campaigns ― which tend to prefer more controlled environments and fewer debates ― to a neutral entity that will prioritize quality information being disseminated to the broader public, organizers said.

"Campaigns are always more interested in controlled environments: television ads, digital ads and their own events where it's a friendly audience. That doesn't necessarily lead to good information or helpful information," said Dave Dulio, the director of the Center for Civic Engagement at Oakland University, who is helping coordinate the task force.

"Our conclusion was that Michigan needs a neutral entity to bolster the information that voters get during the campaign, so that it's not just the controlled messages that candidates want to spread."

The task force also saw a prime opportunity in a tossup Senate race for an open statewide seat, where no incumbent could try to steer away from debating their opponents as happened in the 2022 races for secretary of state and attorney general, for example, Dulio said. A debate would both offer candidates a chance to boost their name identification and pitch voters on why they should be the next U.S. senator from Michigan, he added.

"The task force can help do that. It's a real benefit," Dulio said.

The race for Michigan's open Senate seat features two primary contests at the moment. U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin of Holly, the actor Hill Harper of Detroit and businessman Nasser Beydoun of Dearborn are competing for the Democratic nomination. The Republican contest includes former U.S. Reps. Mike Rogers of Brighton and Justin Amash of Cascade Township, as well as Grosse Pointe Park businessman Sandy Pensler and Sherry O'Donnell of Stevensville.

The initiative comes at a time when the frequency of Senate debates in competitive contests has declined nationally, as tracked by Brookings Institution research from October 2022. In some instances, the debates or forums that do take place are presented to a specialized audience or only get limited distribution.

No debate took place between Sen. Gary Peters, D-Bloomfield Township, and Republican nominee John James in 2020. Peters defeated James 49.9%-48.2%, a margin of 92,000 votes.

In 2018, Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Lansing, and James had a debate before 800 people hosted by the Detroit Economic Club that was broadcast, and another faceoff at Grand Valley State University that was televised. Stabenow won 52%-46% and is retiring at year's end, leaving her seat up for grabs.

There also was no Senate debate in 2014 between Peters and Republican Terri Lynn Land. Stabenow and Republican nominee Pete Hoekstra did not debate in the 2012 campaign.

Debates for other statewide races in recent election cycles have been spotty and uneven, often dictated by the broadcast television outlet that organized it in a studio setting devoid of voters or any audience.

Oftentimes, the roadblock to more debates is the campaigns can't agree on the number of debates, the dates, the times, moderators or rules. When those disputes can't be resolved by the hosting organization, the debate gets canceled.

"We’re taking that roadblock out by setting the dates and all those other details. It will be a highly structured package that will lay all of the terms of the debate out," said Steve Grigorian, president and CEO of the Detroit Economic Club, who is also helping coordinate the task force.

"Our leverage on this is the number of organizations statewide that are involved with this already. We’ve even had some folks not involved who have endorsed the idea as well publicly."

The members of the task force include Grigorian's club, as well as the Economic Club of Traverse City, the Grand Rapids Chamber, Oakland University, Grand Valley State University, Northwestern Michigan College, the Northern Michigan Chamber Alliance, the Hispanic Alliance, and the Urban League of Detroit and Southeast Michigan and the Urban League of West Michigan.

“Having engaged and informed citizens is vital to the success of our democracy,” Grand Valley State University President Philomena Mantella said in a statement. “The task force’s commitment to providing equal, non-partisan access to candidates will help voters as they make their choices.”

Other organizations have endorsed the task force and debate concept, including The Detroit News, Detroit Free Press, Gongwer News Service, the Michigan Black Business Alliance, the Small Business Association of Michigan and the Citizens Research Council of Michigan.

Detroit News Editor and Publisher Gary Miles said he's been an "early and consistent backer" of the task force's efforts.

"Public debates for the most significant political offices have become increasingly rare and available only to fragmented audiences in Michigan," Miles said.

"The commission presents a historic opportunity to get political rivals on the same page, and the same stage, for all the people of Michigan to hear their priorities for our state. Michigan voters deserve as much, and we're proud to support these efforts."

Debate qualifications would include those who get on the general election ballot and met minimal criteria such as polling at 5% or higher in two public and independent polls, filing all required campaign finance reports and having a campaign headquarters and website with policy proposals, according to the letter sent to candidates.

The Michigan Debate Task Force's format and management of sanctioned debates is modeled after the Commission of Presidential Debates, a nonprofit organization that has sponsored presidential debates since 1988.

"It has successfully been done in a handful of other states. This is a pilot for us, and, depending on how this goes, we might roll this out into future elections in the state of Michigan," Grigorian said. "We’re calling it a task force, but if it is successful we’ll turn it into a commission."

mburke@detroitnews.com