Five candidates are running to represent Michigan’s 8th District in the United States Congress. The district includes all of Ingham and Livingston counties and northern Oakland County. MSU and Oakland University are both part of the district. the candidates come from the Republican, Democratic, Natural Law, Green and Libertarian parties.
Mike Bishop, Republican, Incumbent
Bishop wants to reduce federal control over educational programs, according to his Congressional website.
Bishop also hopes to decrease loan default rates to support college and university students.
He plans to work to strengthen border control and has expressed concerns about the vetting process to allow Syrian refugees to enter the United States.
He was endorsed by the Police Officers Association of Michigan in May, and received an A/A+ rating from the National Rifle Association, or NRA, according to his campaign website.
Bishop did not respond to requests for comment.
Suzanna Shkreli, Democrat
Shkreli currently works as a prosecutor.
“I spend my days in the courtroom protecting women and children,” she said.
Shkreli plans to continue this work by voting to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act and the Equal Pay for Equal Work Act, and to support pro-choice legislation, according to her website.
Shkreli wants to support students by stopping tuition costs from rising and making it possible to refinance student loans.
“If you’re able to refinance your mortgage, you should be able to refinance student loan debt,” she said.
Shkreli hopes to ban gifts from lobbyists and to require members of Congress to disclose any meetings with lobbyists, according to her website.
Being a prosecutor made Shkreli a fighter, she said, and prepared her to take action in Congress.
“I get more done in court in one day than Congress does all session,” she said.
Shkreli was endorsed by President Barack Obama at the end of October.
Jeremy Burgess, Natural Law Party
Support student media! Please consider donating to The State News and help fund the future of journalism.
Running as a member of the Natural Law Party allows him to remain independent from partisan politics, Burgess said.
“The party only still exists in Michigan and there isn’t a platform I need to follow,” Burgess said on his campaign’s Facebook page. “I try to tailor my political views to what is best to the people of the 8th District in Michigan and I don’t have to worry about party leaders telling me what I need to believe. I’m big on having the ability to vote for what is in the best interests of the people.”
Burgess said he is also running as a third party candidate because a two-party system is inefficient.
“They’re more concerned with arguing with each other than representing the people,” he said.
Burgess wants to work to control government spending and improve the education system by teaching life skills in the classroom.
In addition, making higher education more affordable by lowering interest rates on student loans is another plan of his, he said.
“I don’t believe in free education,” he said. “It has to be paid for somewhere.”
Maria Green, Green Party
Green supports cannabis legislation, drug policy reform and Child Protective Services reform, according to her website. She also supports a national $15 an hour minimum wage and reparations for descendants of slaves.
Green did not respond to requests for comment.
Jeff Wood, Libertarian Party
Wood is running as a Libertarian, though he identifies as an anarchist, according to his website.
The position for which he is running should not exist, he said, and he is running primarily to spread his message, not to be elected.
“Running for office is one of the few outlets we are still allowed to use for venting our frustration with our government,” he said in a blog post on his website.
Wood did not respond to requests for comment.
