Michigan primary results: Junge, McDonald Rivet win in 8th Congressional District

• Paul Junge wins the Republican primary, while state Sen. Kristen McDonald Rivet wins Democratic primary in Michigan's 8th Congressional District
• The general election will determine who succeeds replace outgoing U.S. Rep. Dan Kildee
• The district is expected to be one of the country’s most competitive general election races

Republican Paul Junge and Democrat Kristen McDonald Rivet won their respective primaries on Tuesday and will compete to replace U.S. Rep. Dan Kildee in Michigan’s 8th Congressional District.

The Associated Press called both races after midnight, with Junge defeating fellow Republicans Mary Draves and Anthony Hudson, and McDonald Rivet topping Democrats Pamela Pugh and Matt Collier.See the results here: 

The 8th Congressional District is expected to be one of the country’s most competitive general election races. Along with another open seat in Michigan’s 7th Congressional District, it’s been rated by the Cook Political Report as a toss-up heading into November.

The Kildee family has represented Flint in Congress since 1977, a legacy extended after Dan Kildee succeeded his long-serving uncle Dale Kildee in 2013. 

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But the district has grown more conservative since new district lines took effect in 2022, and it will be a tougher lift for Democrats without the benefit of incumbency, political observers told Bridge.

A decline in Flint’s population has shifted the district’s center of gravity to the north and the tri-cities area comprising Midland, Bay City, Saginaw and the rural stretches of land in between.

Democrats hold a slim 7-6 majority in Michigan’s U.S. House delegation. With Republicans holding an eight-seat advantage, Michigan Democrats will need to hold on to each seat to bring their party closer to retaking the chamber. 

Meet the candidates

McDonald Rivet, a state Senator from Bay City, was endorsed by key Democrats in the run-up to the primary, including Kildee, who backed her in early July and called her “the best candidate to represent mid-Michigan” given her “pragmatic leadership and bipartisan approach.” 

She also received endorsements from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Reps. Haley Stevens, D-Birmingham, and Debbie Dingell, D-Ann Arbor. 

McDonald Rivet comes from a background in the nonprofit sector, working for associations promoting economic development and early childhood education. She currently represents the tri-cities in the Michigan Senate and noted in a previous interview with Bridge she had raised six kids in her district. 

In a late-night victory speech to supporters, McDonald Rivet said she was "honored" by their "trust and excitement" in the Democratic primary. 

Heading toward November, the "choice is clear," she said, promising to "grow this coalition" and "deliver meaningful results for working families" in Congress.

Junge will be the Republican nominee in the 8th Congressional District nomination for the second straight cycle. It’s his third run for congress overall. 

Junge lost to Kildee by 10 percentage points in the 2022 general election after losing to Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Holly, by less than four points in 2020. 

This time around, he faced a spirited challenge from Draves, a former Dow Chemical Company executive and a lifelong Midland resident.

In a victory statement, Junge said he was "grateful" that voters supported his "commitment to secure the border, rebuild our economy, and take on the many failures in Washington DC." He vowed to crack down in illegal immigration, increase American energy production, demand fair trade and "reduce high taxes and crushing regulations that are hurting Michigan's economy."

Junge has worked as a prosecutor, congressional staffer, news anchor and as an external affairs officer with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

He has largely self-funded his last two congressional campaigns and is doing so again: He’s loaned his campaign $2 million while raising just $115,000.  

Junge faced attacks from Republican rivals as a “perennial carpetbagger” despite insistence he’s lived in the district for years. Draves’ campaign claimed he has used a trust fund to fuel his campaigns.