 |
This article may need to be updated. Please update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information, and remove this template when finished. Please see the talk page for more information. |
The 2008 congressional elections in Michigan was held on November 4, 2008 to determine who would represent the state of Michigan in the United States House of Representatives. Michigan has fifteen seats in the House, apportioned according to the 2000 United States Census. Representatives are elected for two-year terms; those elected will serve in the 111th Congress from January 4, 2009 until January 3, 2011. The election coincided with the 2008 U.S. presidential election.
The Primary election was held February 12, 2008.
The 7th and 9th district seats were considered to be competitive. Both seats were occupied by Republicans[1] who lost to Democratic opponents.
The makeup of the Michigan congressional delegation in 2008 consisted of nine Republicans and six Democrats. As a result of the general election, the delegation in 2009 consists of eight Democrats and seven Republicans. The two Democratic Party gains came from the aforementioned 7th and 9th districts.
Contents |
Match-up summary
| District | Incumbent | 2008 Result | Democratic | Republican | Libertarian | Other Party |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bart Stupak | Re-elected | Bart Stupak | Tom Casperson | Daniel Grow | Joshua Warren Jean Treacy |
| 2 | Pete Hoekstra | Re-elected | Fred Johnson | Pete Hoekstra | Dan Johnson | Ronald Graeser |
| 3 | Vern Ehlers | Re-elected | Henry Sanchez | Vern Ehlers | Erwin Haas | |
| 4 | David Lee Camp | Re-elected | Andrew Concannon | David Lee Camp | Allitta Hren | John Emerick |
| 5 | Dale Kildee | Re-elected | Dale Kildee | Matt Sawicki | Leonard Schwartz | Ken Mathenia |
| 6 | Fred Upton | Re-elected | Don Cooney | Fred Upton | Greg Merle | Edward Pinkney |
| 7 | Tim Walberg | Defeated by Mark Schauer | Mark Schauer | Tim Walberg | Ken Proctor | Sharon Reiner |
| 8 | Mike Rogers | Re-elected | Robert D. Alexander | Mike Rogers | Will Tyler White | Aaron Stuttman George Zimmer |
| 9 | Joe Knollenberg | Defeated by Gary Peters | Gary Peters | Joe Knollenberg | Adam Goodman | Douglas Campbell Jack Kevorkian |
| 10 | Candice Miller | Re-elected | Robert Denison | Candice Miller | Neil Kiernan Stephenson | Candace Caveny |
| 11 | Thad McCotter | Re-elected | Joseph Larkin | Thad McCotter | John Tatar | Erik Shelley |
| 12 | Sander M. Levin | Re-elected | Sander M. Levin | Bert Copple | John Vico | Lester Townsend |
| 13 | Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick | Re-elected | Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick | Edward Gubics | Gregory Creswell | George Cosetti |
| 14 | John Conyers | Re-elected | John Conyers | Rick Secula | Clyde Shabazz | |
| 15 | John Dingell | Re-elected | John Dingell | Jack Lynch | Gregory Scott Stempfle | James Wagner |
District 1
Winner: Stupak [2]
Popular incumbent Bart Stupak was unopposed in the Democratic primary. Conservative state Representative Tom Casperson, from Escanaba, won the Republican nomination over Linda Goldthorpe and Don Hooper.[3] Both of these candidates will be running against Libertarian Daniel Grow, U.S. Taxpayers Party candidate Joshua Warren and Socialist Jean Treacy.[4] The 1st District is generally socially conservative and strongly pro-union. It covers the entire Upper Peninsula and the northeast part of the Lower Peninsula. CQ Politics rating: Safe Democrat.
District 2
Winner: Hoekstra [5]
Pete Hoekstra, a Conservative incumbent and ranking Republican on the House Intelligence Committee, will be challenged by Democrat Fred Johnson, [6], Libertarian Dan Johnson (campaign website) and U.S. Taxpayer Party candidate Ronald Graeser. The district is centered around Michigan's West Shoreline and includes the cities of Muskegon and Holland. CQ Politics rating: Safe Republican.
District 3
Winner: Ehlers [7]
Incumbent Vern Ehlers is seeking re-election. The district trends Republican and is centered around Grand Rapids. Ehlers will be challenged by Democrat Henry Sanchez and Libertarian Erwin Haas. CQ Politics rating: Safe Republican.
District 4
Winner: Camp [8]
Republican David Lee Camp won re-election in 2006 against candidate Mike Huckleberry. Camp will by challenged by Democrat Andrew Concannon[9], Libertarian Allitta Hren, and U.S. Taxpayer Party candidate John Emerick. This large district stretches from Owosso in the east central part of the state to Traverse City to the extreme northwest part of the Lower Peninsula. CQ Politics rating: Safe Republican.
District 5
Winner: Kildee [10]
Democrat Dale Kildee ran for re-election in 2008. The Flint area congressman has served for over 30 years. His district (covering Flint, Saginaw, Bay City and part of the western part of The Thumb) is strongly Democratic. Petitions were circulated for Democratic state senator John Gleason to challenge Kildee, but Gleason decided not to run.[11] Kildee is challenged on by Republican candidate by Matt Sawicki of Bay City, Libertarian candidate Leonard Schwartz and Green Party candidate Ken Mathenia of Grand Blanc.[12] CQ Politics rating: Safe Democrat.
District 6
Winner: Upton [13]
Republican Fred Upton had three opponents, Democrat Don Cooney, Green Edward Pinkney and Libertarian Greg Merle. This district covers the southwest corner of lower Michigan. CQ Politics rating: Safe Republican.
District 7
Winner: Schauer [14]
This district covers the middle southern part of lower Michigan. Republican incumbent Tim Walberg faced State Senate Minority Leader and Democratic nominee Mark Schauer, Libertarian Ken Proctor, and independent Sharon Reiner. CQ Politics forecast the race as 'No Clear Favorite'.
Walberg was elected in 2006 with a surprisingly thin 49.93% of the vote against underfunded Democratic opponent Sharon Reiner who received 45.98% of the vote. This made Walberg a top target for defeat by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. Schauer defeated Reiner in the August 5 party primary,[15] but Reiner announced in September that she was entering the general election as an independent write-in candidate.[16]
- Race ranking and details from CQ Politics
- Campaign contributions from OpenSecrets.org
- Walberg (R-i) vs Schauer (D) collected poll results from Pollster.com
District 8
Winner: Rogers [17]
Incumbent Republican Mike Rogers was re-elected in 2006 with 55.3% of the vote compared to 42.9% for his Democratic opponent. East Lansing Democratic activist Bob Alexander (who lost in 2004 to Rogers) announced that he is running again.[18]. Aaron Stuttman is running for the Green Party [19], Will Tyler White for the Libertarian Party.[20] and George Zimmer for the U.S. Taxpayer Party.[21] This district stretches from the western Detroit suburbs to the Lansing area. CQ Politics rating: Safe Republican.
District 9
Winner: Peters [22]
This district covers parts of Oakland County. Republican incumbent Joe Knollenberg was challenged by former Michigan Lottery commissioner and military veteran, Democratic nominee Gary Peters. Libertarian Adam Goodman, Green Party Douglas Campbell and Independent Dr. Jack Kevorkian were also running. CQ Politics forecasted the race as 'No Clear Favorite'.
Knollenberg was targeted by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee after his surprisingly narrow margin of victory in the 2006 election, receiving 51.5% of the vote compared with 46.2% for his Democratic opponent.
District 10
Winner: Miller [23]
Popular moderate Republican Candice Miller was challenged by Democratic nominee Robert Denison, Libertarian side by Neil Kiernan Stephenson and Green Candace Caveny. This district stretches from the northeast Detroit suburbs up to most of The Thumb. CQ Politics rating: Safe Republican.
District 11
Winner: McCotter [24]
Incumbent Republican Thad McCotter was challenged by Democrat Joseph Larkin who defeated Edward Kriewall in the August 5 party primary.[25] Also running were Libertarian John Tatar and Green Erik Shelley. This district covers part of Detroit's western suburbs. CQ Politics rating: Lean Republican.
District 12
Winner: Levin [26]
Popular Democrat Sander M. Levin was challenged on the Republican side by Bert Copple, on the Libertarian side by John Vico and the U.S. Taxpayers side by Lester Townsend. This district covers part of Detroit's northern suburbs. CQ Politics rating: Safe Democrat.
District 13
Winner: Kilpatrick [27]
Incumbent Democrat Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick narrowly survived the August 5 party primary. She faced complications due to the legal troubles facing her son Detroit mayor Kwame Kilpatrick.[28][29] Cheeks Kilpatrick won with 39.1% of the vote over former state representative Mary Waters with 36% of the vote and state senator Martha Scott with 24.9% of the vote.[30] A televised debate between the three candidates developed into a shouting match.[31] Cheeks Kilpatrick now faces Republican candidate Edward Gubics, Libertarian candidate Greg Creswell and Green Party candidate George Cosetti in the general election.[32] This district covers the east side of Detroit and its eastern and Downriver suburbs. CQ Politics rating: Safe Democrat.
District 14
Winner: Conyers [33]
Powerful incumbent Democrat John Conyers, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, had one Democratic opponent, Detroit pastor Rev. Horace Sheffield,[34] but Sheffield's campaign was short lived[35] because he withdrew his name and announced his support to Conyers.[36] Because no Republican has filed, Conyers was expected to be re-elected although Libertarian Rick Secula and Green Party Clyde Shabazz also ran. This district covers the west side of Detroit and some inner western and downriver suburbs. CQ Politics rating: Safe Democrat.
District 15
Winner: Dingell [37]
Democrat John Dingell is the dean of the House and chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. He was challenged by Republican Jack Lynch, Libertarian Gregory Scott Stempfle and U.S. Taxpayers Party candidate James Wagner. This district covers the extreme southeast part of lower Michigan. CQ Politics rating: Safe Democrat.
References
- ^ CQ Politics | Primaries Set in Michigan, Dems Hope for Takeovers
- ^ [[1]]
- ^ Michigan - chicagotribune.com
- ^ Jean Treacy for Congress (1st District - Michigan) - Home
- ^ [[2]]
- ^ 2008 Official Michigan Primary Candidate Listing
- ^ [[3]]
- ^ [[4]]
- ^ http://www.argus-press.com/articles/2008/03/23/news/news5.txt
- ^ [[5]]
- ^ Sen. John Gleason bows out; Congressman Dale Kildee so far unchallenged - The Flint Journal Online News - Michigan Newspaper - MLive.com
- ^ http://www.mlive.com/flintjournal/index.ssf/2008/10/three_green_party_member_ken_m.html
- ^ [[6]]
- ^ [[7]]
- ^ Schauer advances to general election Battle Creek Enquirer, August 6, 2008
- ^ Renier re-enters race for Mich. seat in U.S. House, Associated Press LSJ.com, September 17, 2008, accessed September 18, 2008
- ^ [[8]]
- ^ http://www.dailypressandargus.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080314/NEWS01/803140314
- ^ MIGREENS.ORG - Candidates2007
- ^ candidates
- ^ http://ustaxpayerspartyofmichigan.com/toppage4.htm
- ^ [[9]]
- ^ [[10]]
- ^ [[11]]
- ^ Topic Galleries - chicagotribune.com
- ^ [[12]]
- ^ [[13]]
- ^ Mayor's scandal looms over mom's congressional re-election campaign | Freep.com | Detroit Free Press
- ^ Cheeks Kilpatrick in a fight for survival in Democratic primary | Freep.com | Detroit Free Press
- ^ Cheeks Kilpatrick triumphs over Waters in close primary race | Freep.com | Detroit Free Press
- ^ Little decorum during congressional debate | Freep.com | Detroit Free Press
- ^ Cheeks Kilpatrick's slim win pokes holes in armor | Freep.com | Detroit Free Press
- ^ [[14]]
- ^ http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080514/NEWS06/805140433/1008
- ^ http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080515/NEWS01/805150447/1008/NEWS06
- ^ http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080517/NEWS06/805170361/1008
- ^ [[15]]
External links
- Elections in Michigan from the Michigan Secretary of State
- U.S. Congress candidates for Michigan at Project Vote Smart
- Michigan U.S. House Races from 2008 Race Tracker
- Campaign contributions for Michigan congressional races from OpenSecrets.org
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
