Democrat Bob Alexander will go head-to-head with U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers on issues such as the Iraq War, health care and jobs when the two compete in November for Michigan's 8th Congressional District.
To win the right to take on Rogers, R-Brighton, Alexander beat Democrat Matt Ferguson in Tuesday's primary. Alexander received about 59 percent of the Democratic vote, defeating Ferguson, who collected about 41 percent.
"Now we need to keep working on the issues of maintaining high-paying and good-paying jobs, expanding health care and supporting our schools," Alexander said.
Alexander received 13,121 votes while 8,994 voted for Ferguson. Rogers received 50,779 votes among Republican voters.
At 10 p.m. on the night of the primary, Alexander paid a visit to his opponent Ferguson, congratulating him on his campaign before the two discussed the race and the issues.
"I think he made a genuinely good effort, especially for a first-time candidate," Alexander said.
Alexander added he and Ferguson are "very similar on the issues" and in terms of expanding the Democratic base in Michigan, he believes their challenge against Rogers was "an exquisite success."
Ferguson agreed he and Alexander broke some ground against Rogers.
"We had one of the most civil and decent campaigns I've ever seen," Ferguson said.
Both candidates also agreed political experience made the difference to voters.
East Lansing resident Alexander, a 59-year-old former teacher, also was a policy analyst for the state and a legislative aide for the Michigan Senate. In running against Ferguson, a 27-year-old former radio journalist whose experience in politics consisted of volunteering in campaigns, Alexander said he had an edge.
After the votes have been tallied, both candidates say they are looking to the future.
Ferguson, who quit his job to campaign, said he's working on finding a new one, but also wants to stay engaged in the political world.
"Who is our next president will make a huge impact on what kind of country we're going to have. Any possibility of joining (Sen. John) Kerry or Democratic effort, I would be interested in," Ferguson said.
As for Alexander, he said he is ready to do battle against Rogers in the political ring.
"I want to expose the Democrats' positive, constructive values and beliefs," he said.
Rogers spokeswoman Sylvia Warner said the congressman paid little attention to the race.
"He has a number of major pieces of legislation that he is working on now and Congress will be in session most of September, so he is preparing for that," Warner said. "As for a campaign, we'll have to see what time brings."
