Dem Senate candidate Elissa Slotkin's 'small consulting business' may have never been active

A Democrat representative who is now running for Senate in battleground state Michigan is facing scrutiny over a Limited Liability Company she started in 2017 just weeks prior to announcing her congressional bid.

Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., established the LLC, called Pinpoint Consulting, weeks before announcing in 2017 that she was running for Congress to unseat an incumbent Republican. According to the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, the business is "Not in Good Standing," as of 2020. 

The last annual report for the business was filed in 2019. 

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"I’m a third-generation Michigander and spent my early life on a farm in Holly, Michigan where I currently live and run a small consulting business," Slotkin's campaign website, ElissaForCongress.com, stated in October 2017, according to an internet archive snapshot. 

In an ad launched by End Citizens United advocating for Slotkin in May 2018, the organization claimed, "she is a small business owner in Holly." 

In a financial disclosure report filed with the House clerk in August 2023, Slotkin is still listed as the founder and CEO of Pinpoint Consulting. However, a comment on the document states, "Business has been inactive since 2017 and generates no income/revenue."

Slotkin's campaign did not say whether she ever had any clients, revenue, or employees. The congresswoman's various disclosures don't reveal any income coming from her firm at any time. 

In a statement to Fox News Digital, a spokesperson for her said, "Rep. Slotkin set up a consulting firm after leaving the Department of Defense, when she was considering a number of different job opportunities. She ultimately decided to run for Congress."

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Slotkin served as an acting assistant secretary of defense until January 2017, per her official biography. The LLC was established with the state of Michigan on June 21, 2017. By July 10, she had announced her campaign for Congress to unseat then-Republican Rep. Mike Bishop. 

Her campaign further pointed to comments made in May 2018 to local outlet Lansing City Pulse. "I was looking for my next step after being in government for 14 years, and I was asked to do some work on an Iraq-related matter," Slotkin said of her departure from the DOD at the time. "Every time I’ve had a sort of life change, I’ve come back to Michigan to reset, to find out what’s going on. That’s always the place I come back to figure out what my next steps [are]."

But some critics don't think the company's establishment and apparent inactivity are that simply explained.

"She was running against a sitting member of Congress in a Republican-leaning district and … everybody was wrapping their arms around small businesses" at the time, said Jason Cabel Roe, who led the Congressional Leadership Fund's effort to support Bishop in the 2018 race.  

"What she tried to do in 2018 was make herself look like a moderate Republican to Republican voters that did not like Donald Trump," he said. 

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Roe explained the business "was a talking point that she relied on in 2018. But once she got elected, I bet she never talked about it again after 2019."

Slotkin's business is not mentioned in her Senate campaign. It's also not featured in her official biography. "I mean, it doesn't stand up to scrutiny," Roe said. 

"Elissa Slotkin created a consulting business on paper, so she could call herself a small business owner when she ran for Congress," National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) spokesperson Maggie Abboud told Fox News Digital in a statement.

"However, it does not appear that she ever actually had any clients. Slotkin’s misrepresentation of her experience in business could be a major issue for her campaign," she added. 

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The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee did not provide comment to Fox News Digital in time for publication.

Slotkin is considered the front-runner for the Democratic Senate nomination in Michigan to replace outgoing Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow. Actor Hill Harper is also running for the nomination but is far behind the congresswoman in polls of the primary race and with endorsements. Additionally, a Lebanese-born businessman from Dearborn is also running. Nasser Beydoun, an advocate for Gaza civilians amid the war between Israel and Hamas, was recently the chairman of the Arab American Civil Rights League in Michigan, which is home to one of the largest Arab populations in any state. 

The Senate primary in Michigan takes place on Aug. 6. The general election race is considered competitive by non-partisan political handicapper The Cook Political Report, which rated it "Lean Democratic." 

On the Republican side, the likely nominee is less clear. However, former Rep. Mike Rogers boasts the endorsement of former President Trump, giving him an edge. Former Reps. Peter Meijer and Justin Amash are also running, as well as businessman Sandy Pensler, who was previously endorsed by former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy.