Michigan US House race results: Haley Stevens, Lisa McClain cruise to victories

As the election vote tally stretched from Tuesday night into Wednesday morning, Democrats and Republicans traded expected victories in races for several Michigan congressional seats while they and their supporters waited for news in a handful of more competitive districts.

Michigan Democrats got their first congressional victory of the night first shortly before 9:30 p.m. Tuesday when the race in the newly drawn 11th District in Oakland County was called by the Associated Press for U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Birmingham.

• Find all 2022 Michigan election results here

Stevens had been widely expected to defeat Republican Mark Ambrose in the newly constituted and more Democratic-leaning district. By 1:30 a.m., with nearly 90% of the expected vote in, Stevens — who defeated U.S. Rep. Andy Levin, D-Bloomfield Township, in a hard-fought primary in August — led 61%-39%.

About 11:15 p.m., Republicans got their first win with the AP calling the race in the new Michigan 9th District for U.S. Rep. Lisa McClain, R-Bruce Township. With about 68% of the vote counted, she led lawyer Brian Jaye 65%-32%.

After calling McClain's race, the AP called a series of races, including:

• U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Ann Arbor, in the new 6th District, where she was beating Whittney Williams 63%-37% with 67% of the vote in.

• U.S. Rep. John Moolenaar, R-Midland, in the new 2nd District, where he was beating Jerry Hilliard 64%-34% with 83% of the vote in.

• U.S. Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Holland Township, in the new 4th District, where he was beating Joseph Alfonso 58%-39% with 79% of the vote in.

• U.S. Rep. Tim Walberg, R-Tipton, in the new 5th District, where he was beating Bart Goldberg 63%-34% with 76% of the vote in.

• U.S. Rep. Jack Bergman, R-Watersmeet, in the new 1st District, where he was beating Bob Lorinser 61%-36% with 76% of the vote in.

It was still too early, however, to say which party would ultimately come out on top in the balloting in the state's newly drawn 13 congressional districts.

It could be well into Wednesday morning before we know the outcome of the closest races, so come back to www.freep.com for updated information. But there are a few things we knew even before the election tally began win with virtual, if not absolute, certainty:

• Michigan's getting at least three new U.S. House members, with no incumbent nominated in the state's 3rd District in west Michigan, 10th District based in Macomb County and 13th District covering half of Detroit and parts of western Wayne County and Downriver.

• The state's also losing a seat in Congress, because of population growing faster in other parts of the country. Michigan's delegation is dropping from 14 seats now down to 13 at the beginning of the next Congress in January.

• At least four current Michigan members of Congress are out at the end of this term, with U.S. Reps. Brenda Lawrence, D-Southfield, and Fred Upton, R-St. Joseph, opting not to run. U.S. Rep. Peter Meijer, R-Grand Rapids Township, and Levin lost in their respective primaries in August.

• Detroit, with a larger percentage of Black citizens than any other big city in the nation, went into the election almost certain to lose Black representation in Congress for the first time since 1955. State Rep. Shri Thanedar, D-Detroit, who is an Indian immigrant, was expected to win the overwhelmingly Democratic-leaning 13th District seat and join U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Detroit, a Palestinian American, who was up for reelection in another predominantly Democratic district, as the city's two members of Congress. At about 1:15 a.m. Wednesday, AP called the race for Thanedar, who led Martell Bivings, 72%-23% with 37% of the votes counted and for Tlaib, who led Steven Elliott 70%-27% with 51% of the vote in.

At least five current Republican U.S. House members from Michigan — Bergman, Huizenga, Moolenaar, Walberg and McClain — were widely expected to win reelection, as were three Democratic incumbents, Stevens, Tlaib and Dingell.

In all cases, those presumptions — like that for Thanedar — were based on the makeup of the districts, as well as the members' name recognition in those areas.

Meanwhile, it was still too early to call the outcome in the state's four marquee U.S. House matchups that would determine whether Republicans or Democrats had the majority in the state delegation to Congress. Those contests were also being watched as part of a national battle for majority control of the U.S. House, with Republicans widely projected to take over in the next Congress.

Here's a quick look at those matchups and where they stand just after 1 a.m. Wednesday:

West Michigan: Gibbs vs. Scholten

In a year when Republicans were expected to do well in competitive seats nationally, this race offered a rare pickup opportunity for Democrats in this election. Gibbs worked for the Department of Housing and Urban Development under former President Donald Trump and, with his endorsement, eked out a primary win in August over the better-known Meijer, who had voted to impeach Trump for instigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.

Scholten, a Democratic lawyer who lost to Meijer in 2020, was considered to have a good shot at defeating Gibbs, given his lesser name recognition and a newly drawn district stretching from Grand Rapids to Muskegon that is marginally more Democratic leaning. In a year when Republicans were expected to do better, however, it remained a race to keep tabs on. With 62% of the vote tallied, Scholten led 53%-44%.

Mid-Michigan: Barrett vs. Slotkin

In what could turn out to be the most expensive U.S. House race in the country, U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Lansing, was campaigning for her third two-year term in the newly drawn 7th District against state Sen. Tom Barrett, a former Army helicopter pilot who made a name for himself championing conservative causes in the state Capitol. While the new district was considered marginally more Democratic-leaning than Slotkin's current district (which Trump won in 2020), in a Republican year, this race was considered a toss-up.

As such, it was possible there could be a lot of drama in how the balloting unfolds: Democrats are considered more likely than Republicans to vote early by absentee ballot — that could lead to circumstances around the country in races like these where Election Day voting, which is counted first, shows the GOP candidate ahead, only for that lead to disappear when absentee votes are tallied. Two years ago, Trump used that phenomenon to claim his loss to President Joe Biden was corrupt, even though those claims were baseless. With 79% of the vote in, Barrett maintained a slim 50%-48% lead.

The Crook of the Thumb: Junge vs. Kildee

U.S. Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Flint Township, hasn't had much trouble keeping his seat in Congress since taking over for his late uncle Dale in 2013. This year may be an exception. The newly drawn 8th Congressional District includes his home area around Flint, Bay City and Saginaw, but much of this old industrial territory has been trending somewhat more Republican in recent political cycles. The new district also adds Midland, which has traditionally been GOP-friendly.

Kildee was expected to hang on in a race against former Lansing TV anchor and Trump administration official Paul Junge, who lost a close race to Slotkin two years ago, especially given the late outside money that came in on Kildee's behalf. But if Kildee were shown to have troubles here, it could be an indication of Democratic vulnerability across the country. With just over half of the vote in, Kildee held a slim 49%-47% lead.

Metro Detroit: James vs. Marlinga

This newly drawn district based in southern Macomb County, with part of eastern Oakland County included, was left without an incumbent when both Stevens and Levin decided to run in the newly drawn (and more Democratic-leaning) 11th Congressional District on Oakland County. That left Republican businessman John James, who ran unsuccessful U.S. Senate campaigns in the last two election cycles, to take on Democratic former Judge Carl Marlinga.

Both are well-known and while James doesn't yet live in the district, he is a prodigious fundraiser running in an area that has been trending more Republican. In Marlinga, James faces someone who has been a face in Macomb County politics for decades, having been a longtime county prosecutor. James has been considered to have the edge and, if he wins, he could become metro Detroit's only Black member of Congress. But it could take time for this race to be called. With less than a third of the vote tallied, James led 53%-45%.

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

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan US House race results: Haley Stevens, Lisa McClain win