The 8th congressional district includes East Lansing and MSU.

“I’m humbly honored and privileged to be able to do this,” Enderle said.

Officials chose Enderle, who is working toward a graduate degree in special education at MSU, because of the efforts he took to launch an aggressive write-in campaign during the summer, said Livingston County Democratic chair Judy Daubenmier.

“He had been working very hard to get the nomination and he was ready to hit the ground running,” Daubenmier said. “He’s going to be running a grassroots campaign, not hiding in Washington.”

Enderle said his goal is to meet as many voters as possible before Nov. 2 through door-to-door campaigning, social media and public and community events.

“We’re going to bring it right to the people and the communities,” Enderle said. “Friday nights are going to be high school football nights. On Saturdays, every community has something going on we can be a part of. And Monday through Friday, we’re going to be knocking on doors.”

Three main issues Enderle will focus on throughout his campaign are improving the economy, education and the environment — topics he said are all intertwined. He said he plans to work to bring environmentally-friendly, industrious jobs to the state.

“There’s no reason Michigan can’t be leading the way in green jobs, the same way we led in the auto industry,” he said.

If Enderle wins the election, the first issue he plans to tackle is repealing the North American Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA. He also wants to address the lack of funding for public and higher education, something he understands firsthand from teaching.

“I’ve gone to college, I’ve got two kids in college and I’m a master’s student myself,” Enderle said. “We need to do more to make college tuition more affordable.”
John Tramontana, a spokesman for the Michigan Democratic Party, said he is confident that Enderle will be able to attract voters in November.

“We’re very excited to have Lance on board,” Tramontana said.

“Mike Rogers has a terrible record representing the 8th district, as far as representing working people.”

Jennifer Hoff, spokeswoman for the Michigan Republican Party, said Rogers will win his re-election, regardless of the Democratic candidate.

“He’s always been there talking to the district, and he will continue to do that and to fight against the liberal policies of Nancy Pelosi,” Hoff said.