Farmington Hills and Farmington voters are casting ballots Tuesday, Aug. 4, in a Democratic U.S. Senate primary that has drawn more than $60 million in outside spending and national attention as a test of the party's direction heading into November.

Polls are open until 8 p.m. across Farmington Hills' 23 precincts.

The headline race pits Rep. Haley Stevens, a four-term congresswoman who currently represents the Farmington area's 11th District, against Abdul El-Sayed, a progressive epidemiologist and former Wayne County health director. State Sen. Mallory McMorrow dropped out in early July but remains on the ballot.

Stevens has benefited from more than $60 million in outside spending from super PACs, including more than $30 million from groups affiliated with AIPAC, the pro-Israel lobbying organization, according to The Guardian. Her endorsers include Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and retiring Sen. Gary Peters. El-Sayed has been endorsed by Sen. Bernie Sanders, Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, according to CNBC.

A non-partisan Emerson poll taken the week of the primary found 54% of likely Democratic voters intended to vote for El-Sayed compared with 39% for Stevens. Voters under 50 broke for El-Sayed by 42 percentage points; voters over 60 preferred Stevens by a 14-point margin.

The Israel-Gaza war has emerged as a central fault line. Reuters/Ipsos polling found Israel's favorability among Democrats fell from 59% in 2018 to 22% in May 2026. During a July 27 debate at FOX 2 Studios in Southfield, El-Sayed accused pro-Israel groups of buying politicians and said voters should not be surprised when the U.S. fights wars in those groups' interest. Stevens countered that no one owns her vote or her policies and that donors support her because of her record fighting for Michigan.

The controversy touched Farmington directly in late July when a Farmington Public Schools board trustee made comments about El-Sayed at a campaign event that critics called insensitive to Arab and Muslim communities. The trustee later apologized on FOX 2, and both campaigns distanced themselves from the remarks.

What else is on the ballot

The Oakland Schools ISD Regional Enhancement Millage would levy 1.5 mills ($1.50 per $1,000 of taxable value) for six years, raising an estimated $125.8 million in its first year. The money would be distributed on an equal per-pupil basis to Farmington Public Schools and 28 other Oakland County districts, providing roughly $781 per student annually.

Oakland County voter Jennifer Sawmiller told FOX 2 on Aug. 3: "Oakland County is behind the other counties or neighboring counties in terms of the money that is coming in with millages, and it's hard for Oakland County to keep up with what we can provide for our kids."

In the 11th Congressional District Democratic primary, four candidates are competing to replace Stevens: Aisha Farooqi, Jeremy Moss, John Paul Torres and Don Ufford. The winner faces Republican Ethan Baker and Green Party candidate Ryan Teasdale in November.

What's next

The winner of the Senate primary will face Republican Mike Rogers, a former congressman who ran unopposed Tuesday. Rogers narrowly lost to Sen. Elissa Slotkin in 2024 by fewer than 20,000 votes. The seat is open because Democratic Sen. Gary Peters is retiring.

SMART buses are offering free rides to all Oakland County polling places Tuesday, including SMART Flex on-demand service in the Farmington/Farmington Hills area. Results are expected after 8 p.m., and the general election is Nov. 3.