Tlaib, Jones Continue Battle for Michigan’s 13th Congressional District
Rashida Tlaib beat Brenda Jones in the August Democratic primary by roughly 900 votes.
With just a few days left before the general election, candidates around Michigan are working to get out the vote. Detroit Democrat Rashida Tlaib has been working to do just that. She’s running in Michigan’s 13th Congressional District. But in the past few days, she’s received a new challenge.
Detroit City Council President Brenda Jones has announced a write-in bid for the same seat.
Tlaib says she’s focused on getting voters out in the days before the election.
She says, since her primary victory, she’s focused more on issues of equity in education.
“You can give students the same pair of shoes, but if the shoe doesn’t fit, that’s not true equity”, says Tlaib. “That’s not going to help that child.”
Brenda Jones surprised Metro Detroiters in late October when she filed the paperwork to mount a write-in campaign to become the representative for Michigan’s 13th Congressional District.
She lost the August Democratic primary to Rashida Tlaib by roughly 900 votes.
Jones did win a separate Democratic primary race to become the party’s nominee to fill out the remainder of John Conyers current term. He resigned late last year.
Jones says the 13th District needs someone who can resolve the challenges caused by the region’s poverty.
“The biggest challenge for the district,” says Jones, “is parity.”
“Inkster – they’re paying a tax, they’re paying a millage – and no public schools in Inkster. I think about Highland Park with no public high school.”
Jones says the region is not receiving its fair share of resources, adding that she would fight for those resources, if she’s elected.
There are two other candidates running for Congress in the 13th District. D. Etta Wilcoxon is the Green Party candidate for the seat. Sam Wilson represents the Working Class Party in the race.
Election Day is November 6th.
