Summary

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About

Overview

The 7th district is based around the Lansing–East Lansing metropolitan area, but also includes Livingston County and a small part of Oakland County. The incumbent is Democrat Elissa Slotkin, who was re-elected with 51.7% of the vote in 2022.  She is not seeking re-election, instead choosing to run for U.S. Senate to succeed Debbie Stabenow.

Michigan’s 7th congressional district

Web Links

• Curtis Hertel Jr. Campaign Site
• Curtis Hertel Jr. onAir Post
• Tom Barrett Campaign Site
• Tom Barrett onAir Post

Curtis Hertel Jr

Tom Barrett

Issues

Curtis Hertel Jr

Source: Campaign Site

Jobs & The Economy

Curtis is leading the fight to bring next generation auto plants to Michigan, not China. He negotiated with GM to bring electric-vehicle and advanced battery manufacturing to the Lansing and Detroit regions. And he worked with both Democrats and Republicans to pass the law to get it done. In Congress, he will work to bring supply chains home, keep manufacturing moving, and create good-paying jobs in Mid-Michigan for everyone, not just those with a college degree.

“The Michigan we grew up in led the world in auto manufacturing, but politicians sold us out and let our jobs get outsourced, and Michigan suffered. We are turning that around and bringing the factories and the jobs that are the future of auto production here – battery plants and next-gen cars.  We pulled Democrats and Republicans together to get that done, and it is a generational win for Mid-Michigan”

“It’s hard to believe that some legislators were arguing against the GM deal that is bringing a critical auto supply chain to mid-Michigan. To me, it was a no-brainer, which is why we worked so hard to get it done.”
Curtis has worked with both parties to help working families keep more of their hard-earned money. Governor Whitmer tapped him to work with Democrats and Republicans in the legislature to pass tax cuts, including ending the retirement tax. He also led the successful legislative fights to expand workers’ rights to bargain for better pay, and to cut the cost of prescription drugs.

Prior to his work in the legislature, Curtis also served on the Ingham County Commission and as Ingham County’s Register of Deeds, where he helped to uncover one of the largest cases of foreclosure fraud in Michigan history. Curtis and his team took some of the biggest banks in the country to court to preserve the homes of people who had been cheated.

“I was disgusted when I saw big banks kicking families out of their homes during the foreclosure crisis – even using forged documents to pad their own profits, so I sued them. It was time someone held big banks accountable to protect Michiganders.”

Voting Rights & Protecting Democracy

Curtis knows that our democracy is in grave danger, and is running for office to protect it from those threatening it. Politicians who try to overturn election results they disagree with have no place in our government. Curtis supports passing the John Lewis Voting Rights Act and taking action at the national level to defend voting rights across the country.

Reproductive Rights

Curtis will protect a woman’s right to abortion, and stand up to anyone who tries to limit the health care women can access. He stood up against Republicans in Lansing trying to ban abortion and led the fight to repeal Michigan’s 1931 abortion ban. In Congress, he will always stand on the side of women and protecting abortion rights.

Gun Safety

Curtis’s son is a student at MSU and was on campus the night of the unthinkable mass shooting that killed three students, injured five more, and terrified all Michiganders.  In the wake of that tragedy, Curtis led the team that passed bi-partisan common sense gun safety legislation, including red flag and safe storage laws and extreme risk protection orders.

“My heart sank when my son called me the night of the shooting, asking me what to barricade the door with.  Like any parent, my immediate concern was my family, but in the days and weeks after that horrible night we all knew that we had to act.  A national problem became a personal tragedy. I’m a proud Spartan myself, and I’m proud of how we came together to finally pass meaningful laws to help protect Michigan kids.”

Climate Change & The Environment

Curtis understands that climate change is already having a significant impact on the lives and livelihoods of Michiganders. Taking action now means both addressing the immediate needs of communities affected by climate change and working towards a more sustainable future built with good-paying, union jobs.

With rising temperatures and stronger, more unpredictable weather events the new norm, we need to be supporting Michigan’s agricultural industry and working to support families affected by storm damage and rising insurance costs.

Like all Michiganders, Curtis knows that our lakes and waterways are special, and must be protected. He will build on efforts to remove and prevent PFAS from our waters.

Health Care

Over the course of his career, Curtis has led the fight to lower the cost of prescription drugs for Michigan families and seniors and expand access to affordable health care. He also fought to allow Michiganders to hold pharmaceutical companies accountable when they put their own profits over people’s lives.

Curtis will fight to protect the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and Medicaid from Republicans who continue to try to take away care for seniors and people with pre-existing conditions, and make it more difficult for families to afford quality health care.

Tom Barrett

Source: Campaign Site