Hill Harper’s fans might see him on C-SPAN rather than broadcast TV. The actor, currently starring in ABC’s “The Good Doctor,” announced on Monday that he’s running for U.S. Senate in Michigan.
He’ll run as a Democrat and face off against U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D–Lansing) to fill a seat vacated by the retirement of U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D–Mich.), according to the Detroit Free Press.
Harper, 57, announced his candidacy with a campaign video in which he reads a letter to his son, Pierce.
“Dear Pierce, I’m recording this video for you because I’m about to make a big announcement, and it’s going to be tough for us,” he says in the video. “You know, I’m not going to be able to tuck you in every night or do our nighttime prayers together, but these are sacrifices so many hard-working families have to make every single day.”
Harper, whose screen credits also include the TV series “CSI: NY” and the 1998 film “He Got Game” — lays out some of his accomplishments in the video. He earned degrees from Brown and Harvard Law, for example. He founded the empowerment nonprofit Manifest Your Destiny. He bought Detroit’s Roasting Plant Coffee business. He has written best-selling books. He also served on former President Obama’s cancer panel after surviving a cancer battle himself.
“But for me, adopting you is the greatest thing I’ve done in my life,” he said. “You see, the world you’re growing up in doesn’t feel like it’s getting any better. It’s more divisive and more dangerous. And you told me that you were afraid to go to school because of shootings. It’s not freedom. Our economy works for the richest, while the most vulnerable have to work even harder than ever to keep up. That’s not freedom.”
Harper says that Michigan is “a community where people are kind, work hard, and believe the future is worth fighting for” — but he wants to see different people in public office to make the government “work for the people.”
“That’s why I’m running for the United States Senate to represent Michigan,” he concludes. “I love you, son, and I hope to make you proud.”
