Former US Rep. Justin Amash officially enters US Senate race in Michigan — as a Republican

Justin Amash, a former congressman from west Michigan, announced Thursday he would officially make a late entry into the race for the state's open U.S. Senate seat. And despite having identified at times as an independent and Libertarian, Amash said on social media he would be vying for the Republican nomination.

Amash, 43, teased a potential run in January, forming an exploratory committee to weigh a run this fall. On X, formerly called Twitter, Amash said he would officially enter the race and seek to win the Republican nomination in Michigan's August primary election.

"We live in the greatest country on earth, but the ideals that have made it great are increasingly taken for granted. People often feel helpless and hopeless, unheard and ignored by Washington, and trapped between opposing forces who reject America’s principles or don’t understand them," Amash said in a lengthy post.

Michigan this fall has an open U.S. Senate seat up for grabs, after U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Lansing, announced in early 2023 she wouldn't seek another term. Stabenow was first elected in 2000, having defeated the last Republican to represent Michigan in the Senate, Spencer Abraham.

Since Stabenow announced she'd retire, candidates from both parties have tossed their hats in the ring. Like Amash, two other former congressmen, Mike Rogers and Peter Meijer, are seeking the Republican nomination. Businessman Sandy Pensler is also among the Republican hopefuls.

On the Democratic side, U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Lansing, is considered the frontrunner for the party's nomination but faces challenges from actor Hill Harper and others.

It is relatively late in the game to enter the race — candidates have to submit at least 15,000 valid signatures by April 23 to qualify for the August primary ballot, according to the Michigan Secretary of State's Office. For comparison, Rogers entered the race in September, and Meijer did in November.

And beyond the potential time crunch to gather valid signatures, Amash also faces questions about running in the Republican primary. He made headlines in 2019 when he announced he'd leave the Republican Party, saying the country was engaged in a "partisan death spiral," and didn't seek reelection to his Grand Rapids-area congressional seat the following year.

Amash has been a vocal critic of former President Donald Trump, who appears likely to be the Republican presidential nominee once again this fall. Amash bucked the trend among most congressional conservatives when he voted to impeach former President Donald Trump in 2019, over allegations Trump abused his office by asking the Ukrainian government to investigate a political rival, now-President Joe Biden.

Amash was applauded by many in his district for bucking partisan trends to call for Trump's impeachment but also faced scrutiny from some on the right for criticizing Trump. Before he left the party, the House Freedom Caucus, of which Amash was a founding member, voted in May 2019 to condemn Amash over his Trump stance, Politico reported at the time.

In his announcement, Amash indicated he wasn't going to change his approach, saying, "What we need is not a rubber stamp for either party, but an independent-minded senator prepared to challenge anyone and everyone on the people’s behalf."

Amash, of Cascade Township, served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2011 to 2021, representing the former 3rd Congressional District. He was first elected as part of the "Tea Party" movement, when a group of conservative candidates picked up a series of seats in Congress running campaigns focused heavily on fiscal conservatism.

Contact Arpan Lobo: alobo@freepress.com. Follow him on X (Twitter) @arpanlobo.

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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Justin Amash to run for Michigan's open US Senate seat as Republican