Michigan election results: Carl Marlinga wins race to take on Rep. John James
- Former judge Carl Marlinga wins Michigan's 10th Congressional District Democratic primary
- Marlinga will face incumbent U.S. Rep. John James, R-Shelby Township, who did not have a challenger Tuesday
- The district narrowly leans Republican, with James winning election against Marlinga in 2022 by half a percentage point
LANSING — Former Judge Carl Marlinga will again face Republican U.S. Rep. John James in November after winning the Democratic primary in Michigan’s 10th Congressional District.
The Associated Press called the race just after midnight for Marlinga, who had nearly doubled the vote total of his closest competitor, financial planner Diane Young. See the results here:
Marlinga was one of four Democrats competing in Tuesday’s primary race hoping to take on James — who has represented the district since 2023 — in the November general election.
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James, a first-term incumbent Republican, did not have a primary challenger in Tuesday’s election.
The 10th Congressional District comprises southern Macomb County and parts of Oakland County. Major cities include Warren, Mount Clemens, Sterling Heights, Shelby Township, Rochester and Rochester Hills.
Democrats hope they can flip the district and have identified it as one of 34 seats across the country they are most focused on this fall.
James beat Marlinga in 2022 by just 1,600 votes — less than one percentage point — making it the third closest congressional race in the country.
The district has also been highly competitive in recent presidential elections.
Former President Donald Trump beat Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton by just over five percentage points in 2016, but he beat President Joe Biden by just a single point in 2020.
According to the Cook Political Report, an independent and nonpartisan elections analysis agency, the 10th Congressional District is just one of eight nationwide in the lean Republican category.
But James will need solid turnout among GOP voters to ensure that happens. That could be decided at the top of the ticket, where Trump is running for president again and set to take on Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris.
James publicly lashed out against Trump in December of 2022, saying he was “not fit to lead” and “can’t be trusted” after Trump appeared to call for termination of the United States Constitution.
James, however, again endorsed Trump in July alongside the rest of Michigan’s Republican congressional delegation. In a statement at the time, the Shelby Township Republican said a second Trump term would “give hope to Americans who feel like their government is failing them.”
That sentiment of hope was echoed again Tuesday night in a victory statement from James, who said conservatives within his district were “energized to win this general election in November, help elect Republicans up and down the ballot, and continue delivering for Southeast Michigan.”
The rematch between James and Marlinga, a Macomb County political veteran, could again be one of the state’s most competitive races.
Before becoming a judge for Michigan's 16th Circuit Court, Marlinga served as the Macomb County Prosecutor for nearly four decades and as an Assistant U.S. Attorney. He left the bench to run for congress in 2022, when he secured the 10th District Democratic nomination, though lost in the general election.
Running again, Marlinga has listed creating jobs in advanced technologies, protecting the Great Lakes and bringing “the supply chain home from China and other communist regimes” as top priorities. He is endorsed by former Democratic Gov. Jim Blanchard, as well as several mayors and city council members within the district.
James, for his part, is backed by several groups including both the Michigan Chamber of Commerce and Detroit Regional Chamber, the Michigan Farm Bureau and the anti-abortion group Right to Life of Michigan.
Before his election to Congress in 2022, James served as president of a supply-chain management company and CEO of a logistics services company based in Detroit.
The Farmington Hills Republican also served in the U.S. military for eight years, leading two platoons in combat operations during Operation Iraqi Freedom. He unsuccessfully ran for the U.S. Senate in both 2018 and 2020.
Since taking office, James has sponsored bills amending the nation’s Social Security Act and on enhancing security assistance to allies tackling unrest in the Middle East and North Africa.
He is vice chair of the U.S. House’s Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment and chairs Congress’ Subcommittee on Africa.
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