Tim Walberg faces Libbi Urban in Michigan’s 5th Congressional District election

• Republican U.S. Rep. Tim Walberg faces a challenge from Democrat Libbi Urban in Michigan’s 5th Congressional District primary
• The conservative district stretches across Michigan’s southern border and north to Jackson
• Donald Trump carried the district in both 2016 and 2020

Republican U.S. Rep. Tim Walberg faces Democratic challenger Libbi Urban as he seeks re-election in Michigan.

The Tipton Republican represents the 5th Congressional District, which stretches along the entirety of Michigan’s southern border. It includes all of Jackson County and also covers portions of Calhoun and Kalamazoo counties. 

First elected to Congress in 2006, Walberg lost a re-election bid to Democrat Mark Schauer in 2008 but won back the seat two years later and has been in office since. He handily won re-election in 2022, defeating Democratic challenger Bart Goldberg with 62.42% of the vote. 

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Voters in the 5th District lean reliably conservative. In 2016 and 2020, former President Donald Trump won the region with 60.1% and 62.6% of the vote, respectively.

Walberg and Urban both ran unopposed in the Aug. 6 primary and advanced Nov. 5 general election. 

Here is a closer look at each of the candidates:

Democrat - Libbi Urban: Urban, of Buchanan, is a retired steelworker and former union leader who is seeking public office for the first time. Originally from Indiana, Urban has lived in southwestern Michigan for 28 years and on her website said she was inspired to “step up and look out for working people” because she knows the challenges they face. Urban’s priorities include defending reproductive rights, protecting Social Security and Medicare benefits, supporting farmland preservation programs and investing in public education. 

Republican - Tim Walberg: Walberg is currently serving his eighth term in the U.S. House and is the dean of Michigan’s House delegation. Before starting his congressional career, Walberg was a member of the Michigan House of Representatives and a pastor. He serves on the House Energy and Commerce Committee and the House Education and the Workforce Committee. While in office, Walberg has supported gun rights, religious freedom and other conservative causes. He has backed efforts to lower prescription drug costs, update U.S. trade agreements, lower taxes and cut federal spending. Walberg was one of four Michigan congressional Republicans who in December 2020 signed onto an amicus brief in support of a lawsuit contesting the results of the 2020 presidential election. In March, Walberg was widely criticized for town hall remarks suggesting that the Israel-Hamas war “should be like Nagasaki and Hiroshima,” though he later argued those comments were taken out of context. 

Green - James Bronke: Bronke, of Cassopolis, is a retired electronics and systems engineer who was nominated at convention by the Green Party of Michigan. His "biggest concern" is climate change, and among other things, he wants to tap into magma chambers beneath Yellowstone as a potential clean energy source, according to his campaign website.