Three Michigan Congressional races have been added to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s (DCCC) “Red-to-Blue” program, a highly competitive program that targets races where the DCCC believes the Democratic candidate can oust the incumbent Republican. The DCCC describes the Red-to-Blue program as a program that “highlights top Democratic campaigns across the country, and offers them financial, communications, grassroots, and strategic support. The program will introduce Democratic supporters to new, competitive candidates in order to help expand the fundraising base for these campaigns.”
The three races named for the 2016 Red-to-Blue program are:
- MI-01 – Democrat Lon Johnson who seeks to replace Republican Dan Benishek who is not running for reelection.
- MI-07 – Democrat Gretchen Driskell who is trying to knock long-term incumbent, career politician, and obstructionist tea partier Tim Walberg out of his seat.
- MI-08 – Democrat Melissa Gilbert who is taking on billionaire Matty Moroun’s bought-and-paid-for lapdog Mike Bishop.
All three of these candidates have demonstrated that they have the ability to raise the money needed to make these races competitive. Driskell actually outraised Walberg by nearly $45,000 last quarter and Gilbert raised more non-PAC money that Bishop. Johnson, a veteran fundraiser, also has far more cash on hand than any of his competitors.
Stay tuned for what are certain to be three very competitive (and expensive) races in Michigan, all of which have the potential to help Democrats resume control of Congress.
