Jewish Democrats Win Primaries For Michigan Congressional Seats
Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
Elissa Slotkin and Andy Levin won primaries for Congressional seats in Michigan as Democrats gear up for a push to retake control of the House of Representatives in November.
Slotkin, a former CIA and Defense Department analyst who lives on a farm in the 8th District in southeast Michigan, handily won the Democratic primary and will face incumbent Rep. Mike Bishop, a Republican, in November. Slotkin, who is Jewish, last year told JTA she was running because of Bishop’s support of rollbacks of health care protections introduced under President Barack Obama.
She is among a number of women Democrats hope will galvanize opposition to Trump and help win back the U.S. House of Representatives in November.
A Michigan Jewish dynasty looks set to continue in the state’s 9th District, where Andy Levin appears to have won the Democratic primary for the seat to be vacated by his father, Sander Levin, who is now the dean of Jewish members of Congress. Levin’s uncle is Carl Levin, who retired in 2015 after 36 years representing Michigan in the U.S. Senate.
Andy Levin, 58, a former senior employment official in the state, is an environmental consultant.
Meanwhile, Rashida Tlaib, who is Palestinian American, defeated five opponents in the Democratic primary for the Detroit area 13th District. She is unopposed in November and will become the first Muslim of Arab descent to serve in Congress.
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