At this point in the campaign last year when Senator Debbie Stabenow took on Mr. James, she had a comfortable lead.

But he closed the gap on her and now she is saying, “this is a make or break race and we’re at a critical moment.”

She notes Mr. James raised more money than Mr. Peters in the third quarter but Peters continues to have more money in his coffers than the challenger.

The Democrats are banging the drum to link Mr. James to the problems President Trump has.