GRAND RAPIDS, MI (WKZO AM/FM) – The field continues to grow with those attempting to replace retiring Senator Debbie Stabenow.
Former West Michigan Congressman Peter Meijer Monday morning made the official announcement that his is running for one of Michigan’s two the United States Senate seats.
“My wife and I prayed hard about this race and how we can best serve our state and our nation,” Mr. Meijer said. “We considered every aspect of the campaign, and are confident we have the best chance of taking back this seat for the Republicans and fighting hard for a conservative future.”
Prior to Meijer’s announcement six Democrats and six Republicans filed paperwork to run for the seat. The following profiles are provided by the Bridge Michigan website.
Democrats
Nasser Beydoun: The Dearborn businessman is a restaurant owner and former chair of the American Arab Chamber of Congress. Beydoun describes himself as a political moderate and civil rights advocate. He is the son of a Lebanese immigrant who found his footing in Michigan as a UAW member, according to Beydoun’s campaign.
Zack Burns: An attorney from Ann Arbor, Burns entered the race in April with a promise to focus on affordable housing, health care, education and training. He holds degrees from the University of Oxford and The University of California, Irvine, according to his campaign.
Hill Harper: An actor known for his roles on “The Good Doctor” and “CSI: NY,” Harper is also an attorney, single father, author and coffee shop owner. The son of two doctors, Harper was born in Iowa and moved to Detroit in 2016. He is a graduate of Harvard University. A cancer survivor, Harper in 2012 was appointed to a cancer panel by then-President Barack Obama.
Leslie Love: A former state lawmaker from Detroit, Love served in the Michigan House from 2015 to 2020, where she helped end so-called “driver responsibility fees” that critics had called a double penalty. After Love was forced from the Legislature by term limits, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in 2021 appointed her to the Natural Resources Commission in 2021, making her the first African American woman to serve on the panel.
Pamela Pugh: A former chief public health officer for Saginaw, Pugh currently serves as president of the Michigan State Board of Education after winning re-election in 2022. With degrees from the University of Michigan and Florida A&M, Pugh describes herself as a scientist, community leader and education advocate.
Elissa Slotkin: The sitting U.S. Representative for Michigan’s 7th District, Slotkin has served in Congress since 2019 and currently lives in Lansing. She previously worked as a Department of Defense official and analyst for the Central Intelligence Agency. Born in New York but raised in Oakland County, Slotkin has degrees from Cornell and Columbia universities.
Republicans
Michael Hoover: A businessman who previously worked at Dow Chemical, Hoover lives in Laingsburg in Shiawassee County and is a first-time candidate for political office. His focus is on strong families, fiscal responsibility, educational freedom, middle-class prosperity and government accountability, according to his campaign.
Sherry O’Donnell: A physician, pastor and author from Stevensville, in Berrien County, O’Donnell champions “medical freedom” and opposes a “government takeover of healthcare,” among other things, according to her website. She has never held elected office but ran for Congress last year, losing to incumbent U.S. Rep. Tim Walberg in a 5th District GOP primary.
Mike Rogers: The Livingston County Republican represented Michigan’s 8th Congressional District in the U.S. House through 2014. In announcing his campaign, Rogers said he thought he had “put politics behind me” but was inspired to run for U.S. Senate because “something is broken.” He recently moved back to Michigan from Florida, is a former FBI special agent and chaired the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.
Nikki Snyder: A registered nurse from Dexter, Snyder has served on the Michigan State Board of Education since 2016, when she was the second-highest vote getter in the general election. Snyder describes herself as a “freedom-loving patriot” and wants a Parent’s Bill of Rights to ensure they have a strong role in their children’s education.
Alexandria Taylor: A former Democrat from Romulus, Taylor is an attorney who last year worked on a failed Republican lawsuit that sought to invalidate all mail-in ballots from Detroit. She holds degrees from Michigan State, Eastern Michigan and Detroit Mercy universities, according to her campaign, which says she is focused on “family, faith and freedom.”
J.D. Wilson: A political newcomer, Wilson is a businessman from the Houghton Lake area in Roscommon County who describes himself as a “constitutional conservative.” On his campaign website, Wilson says that in the U.S. Senate he would work to cut taxes, put the federal government on “a diet” and fight inflation, which he calls a “war on middle class families.”
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