Michigan — 11th District

In Michigan’s 11th Congressional District, Democrats will head to the polls on Aug. 4, to choose a likely successor for Rep. Haley Stevens, who is running for U.S. Senate.

Troy Mayor Ethan Baker is unopposed for the Republican nomination for the U.S. House seat, but the nonpartisan Cook Political Report rates the Oakland County district, which includes Auburn Hills, Birmingham, Troy, Pontiac, Farmington, Ferndale, Hazel Park, Madison Heights, Royal Oak and other municipalities, as solidly Democratic.

The Democrats vying to take on Baker and succeed Stevens are:

State Sen. Jeremy Moss, D-Bloomfield Township, who has served 12 years in the Michigan Legislature.

Don Ufford, a retired Ford engineer and former head of global engineering for the automaker who went to work in the Biden administration on the CHIPS Act.

John Paul Torres, a trustee for the Waterford School District who’s had a long career as a court administrator with a focus on juvenile justice issues.

Aisha Farooqi, a lawyer and filmmaker who has served on the Zoning Board of Appeals for the City of Sterling Heights.

The candidates differ little on key issues such as health insurance – all favor a public option and working toward universal coverage; affordability – all support unions and efforts to control health care, child care and housing costs; immigration – all support abolishing ICE and creating a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants.

But only Moss, who notes that he already represents half of the congressional district in the state Senate, has a track record of actually doing the messy work of legislating on these issues, and standing up for Michiganders' rights.

JEREMY MOSS wins our endorsement because of his track record in the Michigan Legislature, and his clarity on issues based on that record.

The lost art of politics

As the U.S. Supreme Court took another step this year in its gutting of the landmark Voting Rights Act, Moss was among sponsors of a state law passed by the Senate this month intended to strengthen protections against voting discrimination and ensure fair access to the polls. (The package of four bills remains before the GOP-led Michigan House.) Moss also was a leader in passing state voter protections after false Republican conspiracy theories in 2020 roiled Michigan’s vote counting and certification.

Moss has been the House's chief supporter of requiring the governor and Legislature to comply with the state's Freedom of Information Act. Michigan is one of only two states where the state's top offices aren't subject to open records disclosure laws. Moss has introduced legislation to expand FOIA, but GOP House leadership hasn't moved the bills. Moss says a referendum may be required.

When conservative state Rep. Josh Schriver, R-Oxford, held a press conference to introduce a state resolution urging the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn the 2015 decision that legalized same-sex marriage, Moss, who is Michigan's first openly gay state senator, took a seat in the front row. As Schriver finished his prepared statement and hastily departed, Moss took the podium to answer reporters' questions.

An example of Moss' legislative work that opened him to criticism illustrates the fading art of political compromise. In 2025, capping a torturous legislative saga, he was a key backer of rolling back a court-ordered boost to the minimum wage for tipped workers that faced significant Democratic opposition and passed only because of Republican support. The compromise increased the tipped minimum wage from 38% to 50% of the regular minimum wage by 2031, while the court's order would have increased the tipped minimum wage more quickly, eliminating it altogether in 2030. The restaurant industry, still wounded by COVID-19, argued that it couldn’t handle the faster increase. Moss argued that the deal saved service industry jobs.

Being an active lawmaker, as opposed to a first-time candidate or back-bencher, is sure to draw criticism. The fact is that our sclerotic Congress must find some areas of compromise to move the nation ahead, and Moss is the only Democrat in this race who can claim such legislative experience or success.

The tenor of this race

One other nettlesome issue hangs over the race. In a Facebook post, Ufford dubbed Moss, a gay, liberal Democrat, a pro-MAGA candidate. Ufford and some grassroots Democrats further claim that Moss, who is Jewish ‒ Temple Israel, the site of an antisemitic attack earlier this year, is in the 11th district ‒ is getting back-door money from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. Many Democrats across the country are swearing off of AIPAC money because of the Israeli military’s brutal conduct in Gaza, and the group has become a flashpoint in this year's midterms. At times, anti-AIPAC rhetoric ‒ aimed at some candidates whether they've taken money from the group or not ‒ has seemed to cross a line, implying that there is something sinister about simply being Jewish.

Ufford last month posted on X, “The cat’s out of the bag: @JeremyAllenMoss is the AIPAC candidate in MI-11,” linking to an article by The Lever, a website founded by a former Bernie Sanders speechwriter. The article claims that Moss is getting money via the Better Blue Fund, criticized as a vehicle for AIPAC-aligned supporters to funnel money to pro-Israeli candidates. Farooqi has posted similar sentiments.

Donations from neither AIPAC nor the Better Blue Fund shows up in Moss’ Federal Election Commission disclosures. A published analysis found that AIPAC hasn't given Moss money, "though about 12% of his unique donors (70 of 604) have also given money to the pro-Israel group since the start of 2025."

Regarding Israel, Moss told the Free Press Editorial Board that Israel is an American ally: “One does not have to support our president and his foreign policy vision, or the Netanyahu governing coalition and all of their military decisions, to also understand that this relationship has to endure, that this has to be strong, maybe not even because of Benjamin Netanyahu and Donald Trump, but even despite Benjamin Netanyahu and Donald Trump, and all of the challenges that they pose to the U.S.-Israel relationship.”

He added: “I think it is the role of the United States now to figure out how to chart the path for two peace-seeking states to agree on the borders and live side by side together. And that will guide my decision making as a member of Congress to ensure the United States can lead in this space, to make sure that there is a peace-seeking Palestinian state and government that can coexist in the same region as a peace-seeking Israel state.”

One last word

When we asked Moss how he'd describe himself as a lawmaker ‒ centrist, progressive, idealist, institutionalist ‒ he responded with one word: "Effective."

That's what Michiganders need in the U.S. Congress.

About our endorsements

The Detroit Free Press Editorial Board is endorsing candidates in competitive races on the Aug. 4 primary in Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties, choosing the best-qualified candidate on each party's ballot. Because of the large number of candidates, we invited only viable candidates in competitive races to interview for our endorsement. We may make further endorsements this fall in races with competitive general elections.

How to vote

Local clerks mailed absentee ballots to Michigan voters June 25. Registered voters may cast ballots early, in person, in some Michigan communities starting July 6, and statewide from July 25 to Aug. 2 — check with your local clerk for your city's early voting start date, location of early voting sites and absentee ballot dropboxes for absentee. And, of course, you can vote — and register to vote — in person on Aug. 4, Election Day.

Not sure what U.S. House District you're in? Look it up here.