Alfonso officially kicks off congressional campaign

HOLLAND — Joseph Alfonso officially kicked off his campaign for Michigan's 4th District congressional seat last week.

More: Joseph Alfonso announces second bid for Michigan's 4th congressional seat

Alfonso, a Democrat, will face Republican incumbent Bill Huizenga. He addressed about 25 supporters at The Curragh Irish Pub in Holland on Thursday, June 30.

It will be the Marine Corps veteran's second run for the district, which was created in 2022 after the Michigan redistricting process wrapped up. The district now includes southern Ottawa County, Allegan County, Van Buren County, parts of Berrien County, and the cities of Kalamazoo and Battle Creek.

Alfonso, who was disqualified from the official primary ballot last year over insufficient valid signatures, launched a write-in campaign. He successfully captured the Democratic nomination and went on to face Bill Huizenga, of Zeeland, who currently is serving a seventh term in Congress. Alfonso lost by about 40,000 votes.

He said he's not deterred by the defeat.

"We can, in fact, bridge the gap and reach people where they are," he told his supporters Thursday.

"A lot of people get discouraged when they don't win," Alfonso told The Sentinel in April. "I was pretty motivated from what we saw last year. We did extraordinarily well considering all the circumstances working against us. People appreciated the fact that I went to meet them where they were."

Since filing in April to run again, Alfonso said, he's reached out to communities in the district that have seen historically low voter turnout over the past several elections cycle, including Benton Harbor. More than 20 environmental groups and community leaders filed an emergency petition with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in 2021, seeking federal intervention with the city's lead-in-water crisis, which they saw as languishing under state control.

That community saw a voter turnout of about 6 percent.

Almost all Benton Harbor residents' lead water lines have now been replaced, a major milestone in the effort to stem the community's chronic problems — however, Alfonso said, that accounted for only the pipes at the street, not pipes to individual residences and businesses.

Advocating for creative change — such as an epoxy that coats the inside of the pipes to avoid the massive cost of pipe replacement — are the things he seeks to champion.

"We need to talk about issues that are important to everybody, not just a particular party or cause," he said Thursday.

He also spoke about Ottawa Impact, the far-right fundamentalist group that's taken a majority control of the Ottawa County Board of Commissioners.

"We cannot be afraid. We've seen what happens when we sit back and that's how we get this far-right extremist group in Ottawa County. We have to push back," he said.

"A lot of these voters thought with Ottawa Impact that they would be heard. And now, they just turned around and these people are doing whatever they want. This literally was a power grab," he told The Sentinel in April.

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He said he's not intimidated by Huizenga's fundraising capabilities — he's supported by wealthy Holland donors such as Elsa Prince and her daughter, former U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos.

"It can take a lot of money to tell a boring story," Alfonso told The Sentinel. "I'm not afraid to tell a billionaire no."

Alfonso said he supports Medicare for all, stricter gun control laws, improved water quality, better services for veterans and the immigration system, and shoring up Social Security.

"Joseph shines bright. He has the potential to bring true change," said David Anderson, of Kalamazoo, who introduced Alfonso on Thursday.

Huizenga was first elected in 2011 to the U.S. House representing Michigan's 2nd Congressional District, which has now been redrawn to be the 4th District. He's expected to seek re-election next year. If he wins, it would be his eighth term in the chamber.

— Sarah Leach is executive editor of The Holland Sentinel. Contact her at sarah.leach@hollandsentinel.com. Follow her on Twitter@SentinelLeach.

This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Alfonso officially kicks off congressional campaign