WASHINGTON — A group of Democratic lawmakers, led by Michigan U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin, sent a letter Monday to incoming Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum urging her to take action against Chinese auto companies expanding into the country's market.

"For decades, our countries have worked together on issues affecting both our peoples," the Holly lawmaker and others wrote. "We have much work to do on issues such as international migration, the flow of narcotics and weapons across our shared border, economic and environmental policies and much more."

"And now it includes a shared approach to Chinese vehicles and control of data collected therein," the letter added.

The call for cooperation comes amid growing concerns over the national and economic security threats the Chinese auto industry poses to the United States. Officials in the Biden administration and automakers alike have vigorously tried to address what many have called an "existential" moment for U.S. autos as China has rapidly become the world leader in electric vehicle production, positioning itself to dominate the global future of the industry.

The move also comes amid a heated, expensive U.S. Senate race between Slotkin and Republican former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, which has featured the two candidates eagerly seeking to prove their tough-on-China mettle.

Both candidates have significant national security credentials. Slotkin is a former top Pentagon official and CIA analyst. Rogers, of White Lake Township, is a former FBI special agent and former chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.

"For more than a century, cars have gotten Americans to work, school and play — and in the caseof our state, they have gotten Michiganians onto auto factory floors and into the middle class," Slotkin wrote in a recent op-ed published by The Detroit News. "(I)t's clear that national security officials and industry leaders understand that this threat is real."

Rogers' campaign has tried to paint Slotkin in a different light.

"Slotkin had the chance to stand up for Michigan’s auto industry but chose to once again side with Communist China," Rogers spokesperson Chris Gustafson said in a statement following the passage of a U.S. House bill that would adjust a key tax credit for EVs. "Stopping American tax credits from enriching China should have been a no-brainer but Slotkin continued to show allegiance to the CCP and not Michigan."

The Monday letter to Mexico's Sheinbaum, led on the U.S. Senate side by Democratic Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio, follows a proposed U.S. ban on vehicles and in-vehicle technology from China with the ability to capture sensitive data and send it back to the Chinese Community Party.

Six other Democratic members of Michigan's congressional delegation signed the letter. U.S. Sens. Debbie Stabenow of Lansing and Gary Peters of Bloomfield joined the effort, as did U.S. Reps. Debbie Dingell of Ann Arbor; Dan Kildee of Flint Township; Haley Stevens of Birmingham; and Hillary Scholten of Grand Rapids.

"Chinese automakers have made significant inroads in the Mexican market, more than tripling their share of Mexico’s market since the start of this decade – with the data from that fleet of vehicles accessible to the Chinese Communist Party," the lawmakers warned.

They continued: "This growth has rightly raised significant concerns with us in Congress, and we believe that these Chinese companies, which receive huge state subsidies, are now seeking to use Mexico as a base to enter the U.S. market."

The letter urged a few courses of action for the new president, like refusing to grant federal economic development incentives to Chinese companies and urging Mexican states — perhaps concerned less with international affairs and more with boosting their local economies — to follow suit.

It also suggested the incoming Mexican leader send a delegation to Washington, D.C., to meet with key U.S. policymakers and "establish a national security review process to address risks posed by the manufacture or sale of vehicles built by Chinese firms to Mexico’s people, your national security, and the regional security of North American and Organization of American States nations."

Sheinbaum's presidential inauguration was set to take place Tuesday in Mexico City.

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