Democratic nominee
Abdul El-Sayed
Physician · Former Wayne County health director
Proposes extensive federal AI rules, democratic control of advanced systems, and protections for workers and communities affected by automation and infrastructure.
At a glanceSome convergence.
Some convergence.
Different end states.
Both candidates now support a Michigan construction pause and protections against higher household power bills. El-Sayed proposes national guardrails and public control of major AI systems. Rogers favors a state-level pause while continuing to frame AI investment and job creation as strategic priorities.
Compare by issueIdentical rows make disagreement, convergence, and missing evidence visible.
Republican nominee
Mike Rogers
Former U.S. representative · Former House Intelligence chair
Supports a temporary Michigan pause and ratepayer protections while emphasizing AI-related investment, competitiveness, jobs, safety, and data privacy.
01
Data centers
Construction, permitting, local control, and pauses.
Pause until rules existHigh confidence
Supports state and local moratoriums until federal guardrails, community oversight, labor guarantees, and environmental conditions are established.
View 2 evidence records
“At this point, no more data centers.”Open campaign source ↗
Terms of Engagement condition construction on local jobs, utility-rate protections, and environmental safeguards.
Open campaign source ↗One-year state pauseHigh confidence
Supports a one-year Michigan moratorium while opposing a federal ban. Calls for a transparent approval process and local community control.
Updated position · Rogers previously supported faster permitting and local decisions without a statewide pause.
View 2 evidence records
“I think we need to take a pause.”Open reporting ↗
The campaign confirmed support for a one-year statewide moratorium and said Michigan needs stronger guardrails.
Open reporting ↗02
AI governance
Testing, release conditions, liability, and oversight.
Binding federal rulesHigh confidence
Proposes independent safety testing, mandatory interpretability and red-teaming, incident reporting, compute controls, and prohibited uses.
View evidence
The 22-part platform sets detailed governance requirements for advanced AI systems.
Open campaign source ↗Targeted safeguardsMedium confidence
Calls for a responsible framework covering safety and data privacy, but the campaign has not published comparable detail on testing, liability, or release requirements.
View evidence
Rogers paired support for AI jobs and investment with a responsible safety and privacy framework.
Open reporting ↗03
Energy and grid
Utility costs, power demand, water, and pollution.
Developer paysHigh confidence
Would condition development on preventing utility-rate increases and meeting stringent energy and environmental requirements.
View evidence
The campaign calls for energy rules that prevent utilities from shifting costs to Michigan residents.
Open campaign source ↗Developer paysHigh confidence
Says data centers should cover their full power usage so residential customers do not face higher rates, with added water protections.
View evidence
“Data centers pay for all their own power usage.”Open reporting ↗
04
Workers and jobs
Automation, displacement, training, and job creation.
Protect displaced workersHigh confidence
Proposes an automation levy, wage insurance, expanded unemployment benefits, education investment, and an annual AI dividend.
View evidence
Worker-transition measures are explicit components of AI Under Democracy.
Open campaign source ↗Prioritize AI jobsMedium confidence
Emphasizes making Michigan competitive for AI-supported jobs and investment. No detailed worker-displacement program was located in reviewed campaign material.
View evidence
The campaign presents AI infrastructure as a source of state investment and employment.
Open reporting ↗05
Market power
Ownership, competition, and public control.
Democratic public controlHigh confidence
Supports public ownership and elected oversight of major AI systems, divestiture from legacy technology firms, and a sovereign wealth fund.
View evidence
“That power can’t sit solely within the control of a few billionaires.”Open campaign source ↗
Not enough evidenceUnscored
The reviewed campaign record does not establish a specific position on AI concentration, antitrust intervention, or public ownership.