Businessman Sandy Pensler announces U.S. Senate run

Grosse Pointe businessman and Republican U.S. Senate candidate Sandy Pensler. Lauren Gibbons | lgibbon2@mlive.com

Grosse Pointe businessman Sandy Pensler is now the latest Republican to enter the U.S. Senate race after formally announcing his campaign Monday.

Pensler, an economist who founded Pensler Capital, has been considering a run since early September. In his announcement, Pensler said his background in business makes him a good choice for bringing jobs and economic growth to Michigan.

"I think I bring the kind of hands on, private business, real world experience that is desperately needed in the U.S. Senate," Pensler said in a statement. "We can implement policies at the federal level that will make Michigan first again in the statistics that matter - jobs, wages and entrepreneurship."

In an interview with MLive at the Mackinac Republican Leadership Conference in September, Pensler said he was "absolutely an outsider candidate" and that he had a unique edge in part because he's not operating under a specific political label.

"I don't come with a ideological framework that's set on everything," he said at the time. "I come with an emphasis on Michigan that the whole Congressional delegation has been lacking."

Other Republicans currently running for a chance to take on incumbent Democrat U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow in 2018 are Detroit businessman John James, former Supreme Court Justice Bob Young and Bob Carr, a historic preservationist.

U.S. Rep. Fred Upton, R-St. Joseph, had been looking at a run, but announced Friday he'd be seeking reelection to his Congressional seat in the 6th District instead.

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