Slotkin wins House race to keep Michigan seat

Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) is projected to defeat Republican challenger Paul Junge to win a second term representing Michigan’s 8th Congressional District in the House.

The Associated Press called the race for Slotkin at 1:52 p.m. EST. Slotkin won over 51 percent of the vote with 100 percent of precincts reporting.  

Slotkin’s victory over Junge, a former prosecutor and television anchor who also briefly worked for the Trump administration’s U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services, keeps the seat in Democratic hands after she flipped it two years ago by upsetting a Republican incumbent.

Slotkin won in 2018 by almost 4 points, largely on her strength in a Democratic-leaning county. President Trump won the district by 7 points in 2016.

This election, political analysts gave Slotkin the edge, with Cook Political Report rating the race for the southern Michigan district as “lean Democrat.” Slotkin also headed into Tuesday’s election with millions more in her campaign account than Junge.

In her first term, Slotkin has worked to foster a centrist image. During the campaign she touted her work in the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus and its proposal for a compromise coronavirus relief bill. She also held up her work to address groundwater contamination in Michigan from cancer-linked chemicals known as PFAS.

Slotkin, a former CIA analyst, has also brandished her national security credentials, recently using her post on the House Armed Services Committee to push Pentagon leaders on whether they will involve the military in any disputes over the results of the presidential election.