McDonald Rivet runs to replace Kildee in Congress

State Sen. Kristen McDonald Rivet, D-Bay City, who has held positions in state and local government and with nonprofit organizations, announced Wednesday she will run to replace outgoing U.S. Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Flint Township.

Kildee, who has represented the area around Flint, Saginaw and Bay City since 2015, announced in November he would not run for another term next year after a health scare. The district, Michigan's 8th, has been trending more Republican in recent years and is widely considered a toss-up without Kildee in the race.

McDonald Rivet's campaign, in announcing her run, noted the competitive makeup of the district but also said she begins the race "with significant organizing and name ID" advantages, given that her current state senatorial district — which she won for the first time two years ago — makes up about a third of the congressional district.

"I grew up in a working-class household with a dad that showered at the end of the workday, not the beginning. ... Because he worked hard, we had a good life. That’s why I have spent my life fighting to uplift kids and working families like mine by making child care more affordable, improving education and delivering meaningful tax relief to working parents," said McDonald Rivet. "Now, I am eager to continue the mission by picking up on Representative Kildee’s legacy in Congress."

She joins a Democratic field in the district that includes state Board of Education President Pamela Pugh, of Saginaw, and Dan Moilanen, of Flint, who serves as executive director of the Michigan Association of Conservation Districts. Republicans in the race include Paul Junge, who lost to Kildee in 2022, and Saginaw police officer Martin Blank.

Junge sent out a statement Wednesday calling McDonald Rivet "a partisan, big spending, big taxing ally" of congressional Democrats. Mike Marinella, spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee, called her "nothing more than a career politician who is out-of-touch with the voters of Michigan.“

McDonald Rivet grew up in Portland, northwest of Lansing, where her father worked in construction. After receiving degrees from Michigan State University and the University of Michigan-Flint, McDonald Rivet later worked as the executive director of Michigan Head Start, as chief of staff for the state Department of Education and as vice president of the Skillman Foundation.

She also served as president of Greater Midland Inc., a nonprofit providing family services, and as a Bay City commissioner before winning her state Senate seat in 2022. Upon doing so, she became the first Democrat in more than a decade and the first woman ever to represent the Bay Region in the state Senate.

Her campaign said in the Senate, she has worked on child care issues, secured $165 million for her district in terms of infrastructure, education and workforce development funding and fought to protect abortion rights. It also said she helped pass legislation requiring firearms be safely stored around children.

Contact Todd Spangler: tspangler@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @tsspangler

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: McDonald Rivet runs to replace Kildee in Congress