Michigan Sen. Kristen McDonald Rivett on Wednesday became the fifth candidate to enter the race for a House seat that Democrats will have to defend without an incumbent due to Rep. Dan Kildee's retirement this year.
Defending the seat could be crucial in a year when Democrats need to win at least five seats to win a majority in the U.S. House of Representatives. The party also needs to defend a vulnerable mid-Michigan seat that became vacant after Rep. Elissa Slotkin chose to run for a vacant Senate seat this year.
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The state has been trending toward the Democratic Party in recent years, but the presidential and U.S. Senate races are expected to make Michigan one of the few battleground states in 2024. Michigan's Democratic Party is also divided over its response to the war in Gaza, with the state's large Arab-American population vowing not to support those who do not call for a ceasefire.
Kildee, 65, announced in November that he would not seek re-election to the 8th District seat after being diagnosed with and subsequently having curable cancer removed earlier this year. Kildee has been representing the Flint area since 2013, succeeding his uncle Dale Kildee, who served in Congress for 36 years.
Dan Kildee's retirement has prompted a number of congressmen to enter the race for the Michigan-based seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.
The recently redrawn district stretches north from the Detroit suburbs, covering areas such as Flint, Saginaw and Midland.
State Board of Education Chairwoman Pamela Pugh and Michigan Conservation District Association Executive Director Dan Moilanen announced they would seek the Democratic nomination within weeks of Kildee's retirement.
On the Republican front, former TV anchor Paul Junge is seeking to win the seat again after losing to Kildee by more than 10 points last year. Saginaw trauma surgeon Martin Blank is also seeking the Republican nomination.
MacDonald Rivett is running for office just one year into his first four-year term in the Michigan State Senate. Her victories in battleground districts including Midland, Saginaw and Bay City helped Democrats flip the state Senate last year and gain control of any level of government for the first time since 1984.
In an interview with The Associated Press on Tuesday, ahead of her campaign announcement, MacDonald-Rivet said Kildee called her and announced her decision to resign and encouraged her to run for her seat.
“With all the pragmatism and chaos reigning in Washington, we decided it was a good time to go to Congress and get some things done,” MacDonald-Rivet said. .
McDonald Rivett, former executive director of the Michigan Head Start Association, said he plans to introduce major legislation in the next legislative session aimed at making child care more accessible and affordable. Ta. She hopes to continue her work if she is elected to Congress.
“The work I have done throughout my career has truly been centered around Michigan families,” McDonald-Rivet said. “As a mother of six children, I can really empathize with what that means when you start thinking about how much child care costs.”
Mike Marinella, a spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Campaign, said in a statement Wednesday that MacDonald Rivett is a “career politician who has distanced himself from Michigan voters.”
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If successful, McDonald-Rivet's campaign could be bittersweet for the Michigan Democratic Party. His party controls the state Senate by just two seats, and if he steps down, it could lead to a tough race in one of the state's most competitive districts.
The party is also fighting to maintain control of the state Legislature, which is deadlocked 54-54 after two Democrats won mayoral races in each district in November. It became. Special seat elections will be held in April.
