The progressive group Justice Democrats is backing a primary challenge to Democratic Rep. Shri Thanedar — its first effort to take out a sitting lawmaker in the 2026 cycle.
Justice Democrats announced Monday that it’s endorsing Michigan state Rep. Donavan McKinney in the primary against Thanedar, who holds one of Detroit’s congressional seats. Thanedar, who entered Congress in 2023, has faced opposition from the Michigan Democratic establishment and prominent Black lawmakers, who allege he is out of touch and that Detroit, a majority Black city, should be represented by a Black politician.
“There’s a reason this is our first primary of the cycle. It embodies the fight that we’re trying to wage within the Democratic Party, which is: taking on a literal multimillionaire who has spent over $17 million of his money to buy a seat in Congress at the expense of the people he represents,” Usamah Andrabi, a spokesperson for Justice Democrats, told NOTUS, pointing to Thanedar’s history of pumping millions of his personal funds into his political campaigns.
Justice Democrats plan to cast Thanedar as an out-of-touch millionaire — Andrabi compared Thanedar to Elon Musk and President Donald Trump — and as a Democrat not fighting fiercely enough to oppose Trump’s agenda.
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McKinney said in a statement that he will fight back against Trump and Musk.
“Our families are struggling to make ends meet while literal millionaires buy our elections and then ignore our calls when we need their help,” he said in the statement. “Our campaign seeks to deliver a vision for this community bold enough to match the scales of the crises we are facing with real tangible results for people on the ground and courageous enough to fight back against the Trump-Musk administration with the urgency of someone who has lived our realities.”
Justice Democrats plans on supporting McKinney’s campaign to the fullest extent, Andrabi said. As he put it, the group has been behind McKinney “since day zero” and will help with fundraising and staffing.
Although Thanedar has been elected to his seat twice consecutively, he is disliked by many Democrats in his state and already has two prominent primary challengers this cycle: McKinney and former Michigan state Sen. Adam Hollier.
Thanedar’s win in 2022 marked the first time in nearly 70 years that Detroit did not have a Black representative in Congress. This was a point of contention among Black Democrats from the city who have been vocal about Detroit’s need for Black representation.
Thanedar has also faced accusations of running a toxic work environment, not doing enough for his constituents back in Detroit, and, most recently, spending taxpayer funds on self-promotional TV ads and billboards. On Capitol Hill, his Michigan colleague Rep. Rashida Tlaib once accused him of spending too much time “posting memes” on his social media account instead of attending to his constituents’ needs.
Thanedar has denied all accusations. On Monday, he pushed back against criticism that he’s an out-of-touch millionaire.
“Voters know my background,” he said in a statement. “I grew up in abject poverty and with a good education, hard work, and some luck, was able to get my education, start a small business and lift my family out of poverty. I know firsthand what it’s like to struggle and make ends meet.”
Thanedar said his office has “solved 3,000 constituent cases, recovered $3 million for constituents, gotten 30 projects worth $30 million approved for the district, and sponsored and co-sponsored over 800 bills.”
Thanedar’s unpopularity has earned him a repeat primary challenge from Hollier, whom Congressional Black Caucus leadership endorsed during the 2024 cycle. Hollier told NOTUS that he’s had “positive” conversations with CBC members regarding his third run.
“Everybody knows that Shri Thanedar is sitting in his seat because he has spent an egregious amount of his personal fortune,” Hollier told NOTUS.
However, some Black Democrats in Michigan are concerned that next year’s primaries could be a repeat of the past. Thanedar, who has stronger financial muscle, is yet again slated to go up against several Black Democrats who could split the vote.
In addition to McKinney and Hollier, former Michigan state House Speaker Joe Tate has been mulling a congressional run, according to a source familiar with Detroit politics who requested anonymity so they could be candid about private conversations.
The way to defeat Thanedar, the source said, is “having one consensus candidate. That’s it.”
Thanedar currently has over $6 million cash on hand, according to campaign finance records. But Justice Democrats’ spokesperson said the group is confident that Thanedar’s money won’t save him this time.
“We’re always going up against a Goliath when it comes to money,” Andrabi said. “What we have seen over the last few cycles is that Shri is weak. He’s had primary challenges that have been extremely competitive without even the strongest candidates in the mix.”
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Tinashe Chingarande is a NOTUS reporter and an Allbritton Journalism Institute fellow.
This story has been updated with a comment from Thanedar.
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