The 2016 United States House of Representatives elections in Michigan were held on November 8, 2016, to elect the 14

U.S. representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

from the

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

, one from each of the state's 14

congressional districts Congressional districts, also known as electoral districts and legislative districts, electorates, or wards in other nations, are divisions of a larger administrative region that represent the population of a region in the larger congressional bod ...

. The elections coincided with the 2016 U.S. presidential election, as well as other elections to the House of Representatives,

elections An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operate ...

to the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

in 33 other states and various

and

local elections In many parts of the world, local elections take place to select office-holders in local government, such as mayors and councillors. Elections to positions within a city or town are often known as "municipal elections". Their form and conduct vary ...

. The deadline for candidates to file for the August 2 primary election was April 19.

Results summary

Results of the 2016 House of Representatives elections in Michigan by district:

District 1

When Republican

Dan Benishek Daniel Joseph Benishek (April 20, 1952 – October 15, 2021) was an American physician and politician who served as the U.S. representative for from 2011 to 2017. He was a member of the Republican Party. Early life and education Benishek was b ...

first ran to represent Michigan's 1st congressional district in the 2010 elections, he pledged to serve no more than three terms. In March 2015, he decided to run for a fourth term as the district's representative. But he changed his mind in September and decided not to seek re-election. On June 24,

Michigan Democratic Party The Michigan Democratic Party is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the state of Michigan. It is based in Lansing. Lavora Barnes is the party's current chair. She was previously the party's Chief Operating Officer. The party currently con ...

chairman

Lon Johnson Lonnie Barton Johnson is an American politician. He is the former chairperson of the Michigan Democratic Party, having served in that position from 2013 through 2015. He was an unsuccessful candidate in the 2012 election for the 103rd district i ...

declared his run for the seat. Former Democratic nominee

Jerry Cannon Nelson "Jerry" Cannon is a retired military general and the former sheriff of Kalkaska County, Michigan. In 2014, Cannon ran for Congress in Michigan's 1st congressional district, losing to Dan Benishek. Cannon is a member of the Democratic Party. ...

also announced his candidacy. Republican state senator

Tom Casperson Tom Casperson (July 20, 1959 – November 29, 2020) was an American businessman and politician from the State of Michigan. He formerly served as a Republican member of the Michigan State Senate, representing the 38th district, which includes muc ...

announced his run in November 2015. Casperson was challenged in the Republican primary by former state legislator Jason Allen who announced he was running in January 2016 and retired U.S. Marine

Jack Bergman John Warren "Jack" Bergman (born February 2, 1947) is a retired United States Marine Corps lieutenant general and politician serving as the U.S. representative from Michigan's 1st congressional district since 2017. He is a member of the Republi ...

who declared in March. In January 2016, Benishek endorsed Casperson's candidacy. In the August 2 primary, Jack Bergman won the GOP nomination and Lon Johnson won the Democratic nomination.

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, retired

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

=Eliminated in primary

= * Jason Allen, former state senator *

, state senator

=Declined

= * Dan Benishek, incumbent U.S. Representative

Results

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, former Michigan Democratic Party chairman

=Eliminated in primary

= *

, retired

Michigan Army National Guard The Michigan Army National Guard is the Army component of the Michigan National Guard and a reserve component of the United States Army. During the Cold War only the 156th Signal Battalion was federalized on 1 October 1962 at its home stations in ...

Major General, former

Kalkaska County Kalkaska County ( ) is located in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 17,939. The county seat is Kalkaska. Kalkaska County is included in the Traverse City Micropolitan Statistical Area. Although it is locat ...

Sheriff and nominee for this seat in

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

=Declined

= *

Scott Dianda Scott Dianda (born April 11, 1971) was a member of the Michigan House of Representatives, first elected in 2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa ...

state representative A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United Sta ...

Results

Libertarian convention

Nominated

* Diane Bostow, Gwinn resident

General election

Endorsements

Predictions

Results

District 2

Republican Incumbent Rep.

Bill Huizenga William Patrick Huizenga ( ; born January 31, 1969) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for , serving in Congress since 2011. The district, numbered as the 2nd district from 2011 to 2023, covers much of Lake Michigan's eas ...

is running for re-election. His Democratic opponent is Dennis Murphy, and his Libertarian opponent is Kentwood City Commissioner Erwin Haas.

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, incumbent U.S. Representative

Results

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Dennis Murphy, engineer

Results

General election

Endorsements

Results

District 3

Republican Incumbent Rep.

Justin Amash Justin Amash ( ; born April 18, 1980) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the U.S. representative for from 2011 to 2021. Originally a Republican, Amash joined the Libertarian Party in April 2020, becoming the party's first (and, ...

is running for re-election and his Democratic opponent is Douglas Smith.

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, incumbent U.S. Representative

Results

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Douglas Smith

Results

General election

Results

District 4

Republican Incumbent Rep.

John Moolenaar John Robert Moolenaar ( ; born May 8, 1961) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for Michigan's 4th congressional district since 2015. A member of the Republican Party, he served in the Michigan House of Representatives ...

is running for re-election and his Libertarian opponent is Leonard Schwartz. Keith Butkovich is the candidate for the Natural Law Party, George Zimmer for the U.S. Taxpayers Party and George Salvi for the Green Party. There was no Democratic opponent on the August primary ballot, but Debra Wirth launched a successful write-in campaign to be the Democratic nominee for the November election.

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, incumbent U.S. Representative

Results

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Debra Friedell Wirth, attorney and nominee for this seat in

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

(Write-in)

Results

General election

Results

District 5

Democratic incumbent Rep.

Dan Kildee Daniel Timothy Kildee (; born August 11, 1958) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for Michigan's 5th congressional district since 2013. He is a member of the Democratic Party. From 1977 to 2009, Kildee was a municipal e ...

is running for re-election and his Republican opponent is Al Hardwick.

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, incumbent U.S. Representative

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Allen Hardwick, computer repairman and nominee for this seat in

Results

Libertarian convention

Nominated

*Steve Sluka

General election

Endorsements

Results

District 6

Incumbent

Fred Upton Frederick Stephen Upton (born April 23, 1953) is an American politician serving as a U.S. representative from Michigan since 1987, representing the state's 6th congressional district since 1993. He is a member of the Republican Party. His dist ...

is seeking re-election to his House seat. His Democratic challenger in 2014, Paul Clements, is running again.

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, incumbent U.S. Representative

Results

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Paul Clements, political science professor and nominee for this seat in

Results

Libertarian convention

Nominated

Lorence Wenke Lorence R. Wenke (born October 9, 1945) is an American politician from the state of Michigan. He is a former member of the Michigan House of Representatives. Career Wenke served in the Michigan House of Representatives. In 2004, Wenke was one of ...

, former state representative

General election

Endorsements

Predictions

Results

District 7

The 7th district is located in

Southern Michigan Southern Michigan is a loosely defined geographic area of the U.S. state of Michigan. Southern Michigan may be referred to as a sub-region or component area to other regions of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan. It is an area of rolling farmland, in ...

. The incumbent is Republican

Tim Walberg Timothy Lee Walberg (born April 12, 1951) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative from since 2023. A member of the Republican Party, he previously represented the from 2007 to 2009 and from 2011 to 2023. Early life, educa ...

, who has represented the district since 2011 and previously represented the district from 2007 to 2009. He was re-elected with 53% of the vote in 2014 and the district has a PVI of R+3. Walberg is being challenged by Doug North. Democratic state representative

Gretchen Driskell Gretchen Demarest Driskell (born October 1, 1958) is an American politician, accountant, and real estate agent from the state of Michigan. A member of the Democratic Party, she served in the Michigan House of Representatives, representing the 52 ...

, the former mayor of Saline, has announced that she will run against Walberg in 2016, As will Libertarian Ken Proctor. Walberg won the Republican nomination.

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, incumbent U.S. Representative

=Eliminated in primary

= * Doug North

Results

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, state representative

=Declined

= *

Pam Byrnes Pam Byrnes (born June 25, 1947) is a former Democratic Party (United States), Democratic State Representative in the Michigan State House of Representatives, representing the Michigan's 52nd House of Representatives district, 52nd District, whic ...

, former state representative and nominee for this seat in

Results

Libertarian convention

Nominated

* Ken Proctor

General election

Endorsements

Polling

Predictions

Results

District 8

Freshman Republican incumbent Mike Bishop ran for re-election. He ran unopposed in the Republican primary.

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Mike Bishop, incumbent U.S. Representative

Results

Democratic primary

Two candidates were originally slated to face each other in the Democratic primary. They were former actress

Melissa Gilbert Melissa Ellen Gilbert (born May 8, 1963) is an American actress, television director, producer, politician, and former president of the Screen Actors Guild. Gilbert began her career as a child actress in the late 1960s, appearing in numerous co ...

(''

Little House on the Prairie The ''Little House on the Prairie'' books is a series of American children's novels written by Laura Ingalls Wilder (b. Laura Elizabeth Ingalls). The stories are based on her childhood and adolescence in the Midwestern United States, American M ...

'') and a former president of the

Screen Actors Guild The Screen Actors Guild (SAG) was an American labor union which represented over 100,000 film and television principal and background performers worldwide. On March 30, 2012, the union leadership announced that the SAG membership voted to m ...

, and Linda Keefe. Gilbert withdrew from the race in May 2016 due to health issues, and at that time Keefe did not appear to have collected enough valid petition signatures to be placed on the ballot. On July 6, 2016, Democrats introduced 29-year-old Suzanna Shkreli, an Assistant Macomb County Prosecutor to be the party's nominee. At the time of Shkreli's announcement, it was still unclear if

Michigan Secretary of State The Michigan Department of State is administered by the Secretary of State, who is elected on a partisan ballot for a term of four years in gubernatorial elections. The Secretary of State is the third-highest official in the State of Michigan. A ...

Ruth Johnson Ruth Johnson (born January 8, 1955) is an American politician who served as the Secretary of State of Michigan and is a current member of the Michigan Senate for State Senate District 14. She is a former member of the Michigan House of Represe ...

would allow Gilbert to be removed from the ballot. Johnson said that the Office of the Secretary of State would not make a ruling until after the state's August 2 primary. Gilbert's name remained on the ballot. On August 2, Gilbert received the most votes in the Democratic primary, receiving 28,810 votes, despite previously announcing her withdrawal from the race. Michigan Democratic Party Chairman

Brandon Dillon Brandon Dillon (born April 27, 1972) is an American politician. He is the former Chair of the Michigan Democratic Party. Early life and education Dillon is a graduate of Catholic Central High School (1990), Grand Rapids Community College (1993) ...

said the day after that the party would begin the process to remove Gilbert from the November ballot and replace her with Shkreli within 48 hours. Bishop's campaign described Gilbert's attempt to be removed from the ballot as unprecedented. A Democratic campaign spokesman said they had retained legal counsel for the process. The Michigan state elections director said that Gilbert's name could be removed from the ballot in the general election. On August 22, 2016, the state board of canvassers allowed Gilbert's name to be replaced on the November ballot with that of Shkreli.

Nominee

* Suzanna Shkreli, Assistant Macomb County Prosecutor

Failed to qualify

* Linda Keefe, former Windsor Township Clerk (Disqualified from primary ballot for lack of signatures)

=Withdrawn

= *

, actress and former president of the

Results

Libertarian convention

Nominated

* Jeff Wood

General election

Endorsements

Predictions

Polling

Results

District 9

Democratic Incumbent Rep.

Sander Levin Sander Martin Levin (born September 6, 1931) is an American politician who served in the United States House of Representatives from 1983 to 2019, representing (numbered as the from 1983 to 1993 and as the from 1993 to 2013). Levin, a member o ...

is running for re-election. His Republican challenger is Christopher Morse, and his Libertarian opponent is Matt Orlando.

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, incumbent U.S. Representative

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Christopher Morse

Results

Libertarian convention

Nominated

* Matthew Orlando

General election

Endorsements

Results

District 10

Republican incumbent

Candice Miller Candice Sue Miller (née McDonald; born May 7, 1954) is an American politician serving as the Public Works Commissioner of Macomb County, Michigan since 2017. A member of the Republican Party, Miller previously served as the U.S. representative ...

, who has represented the 10th district since 2003, was not running for reelection. State representative Tony Forlini,

State Senator A state senator is a member of a state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. Description A state senator is a member of an upper house in the bicameral legislatures of 49 U ...

Phil Pavlov Phil Pavlov (born May 26, 1963) is a former Republican member of the Michigan Senate, representing the 25th district (Huron, Sanilac, and St. Clair counties and the northeast corner of Macomb County) from 2011 until 2018. He previously served ...

, businessman Paul Mitchell, former state senator

Alan Sanborn Alan Bruce Sanborn (born July 21, 1957) is a retired politician from the U.S. state of Michigan, serving parts of three terms in both the Michigan House of Representatives and Michigan Senate. Biography Sanborn is the son of Lois and Kenneth ...

, and retired military veteran David VanAssche are seeking the Republican nomination to succeed Miller. State Senator

Jack Brandenburg Jack Brandenburg (born October 22, 1951) is a retired Republican Michigan state senator. He was elected to office in 2010. Previously he had served for six years as a member of the Michigan House of Representatives and a member of that body's ap ...

considered entering into the race, but declared in January 2016 that he would not run. Paul Mitchell won the Republican nomination.

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Paul Mitchell, businessman

=Eliminated in primary

= * Tony Forlini, state representative *

, state senator *

, former state senator * David VanAssche

=Withdrew

= * Michael Flynn, Shelby Township Treasurer

Results

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Frank Acavitti, Jr.

Results

Libertarian convention

Nominated

* Lisa Gioia

General election

Endorsements

Results

District 11

The 11th district is located northwest of

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

. The incumbent is Republican Dave Trott, who has represented the district since 2015. He was elected in 2014, winning the general election with 55.9% of the vote. He is running for re-election. Anil Kumar is his Democratic opponent, and Jonathan Osment is his Libertarian opponent.

Kerry Bentivolio Kerry Bentivolio (born October 6, 1951) is an American politician and educator who is the former United States Representative for , in office from 2013 to 2015. Bentivolio, a Republican, defeated Democratic nominee Syed Taj, a physician, in th ...

, who represented the 11th District from 2013 to 2015 and lost to Trott in the 2014 Republican primary, announced on July 21, 2016, that he planned to seek the seat as an independent after losing to Osment in the Libertarian convention.

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Dave Trott, incumbent U.S. Representative

Results

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Anil Kumar, physician

Results

Libertarian convention

Nominated

* Jonathan Osment

Independent

, former U.S. Representative

General election

Endorsements

Results

District 12

Democratic first term congresswoman

Debbie Dingell Deborah Ann Dingell (; ; November 23, 1953) is an American politician and member of the Democratic Party who has been the U.S. representative for Michigan's 12th congressional district since 2015. She is the widow of John Dingell, her predecess ...

ran for re-election and is unopposed in the primary. Jeff Jones was the Republican challenger, a Taylor resident, a former independent

candidate in 2014. Also running was Tom Bagwell of Wyandotte, libertarian activist and former Ypsilanti Township Park Commissioner won the Libertarian Party nomination for District 12 on May 14, 2016, in Lansing, Michigan.

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, incumbent U.S. Representative

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Jeff Jones

Results

Libertarian convention

Nominated

*Tom Bagwell

General election

Endorsements

Results

District 13

John Conyers John James Conyers Jr. (May 16, 1929October 27, 2019) was an American politician of the Democratic Party who served as a U.S. representative from Michigan from 1965 to 2017. The districts he represented always included part of western Detroit. ...

, a Democrat, the incumbent representative in the 13th district, has served 26 terms in Congress and is the

Dean of the United States House of Representatives The dean of the United States House of Representatives is the longest continuously serving member of the House. The current dean is Hal Rogers, a Republican Party U.S. Representative from Kentucky, who has served in the House since 1981. The d ...

and City Clerk Janice Winfrey will run against Conyers in the Democratic Party primary election. Jeff Gorman is running on the Republican side, and Tiffany Hayden is running on the Libertarian side. Conyers won the nomination.

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, incumbent U.S. Representative

=Defeated in primary

= * Janice Winfrey, Detroit city clerk

=Failed to qualify

= * Kenneth Garner

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Jeff Gorman

Results

Libertarian convention

Nominated

* Tiffany Hayden

General election

Endorsements

Results

District 14

Democratic Incumbent Rep.

Brenda Lawrence Brenda Lulenar Lawrence (born October 18, 1954) is an American politician who served as the U.S. representative from Michigan's 14th congressional district from 2015 to 2023. A member of the Democratic Party, Lawrence served as mayor of Southfield ...

is seeking re-election and had two Democratic challengers, Terrance Morrison and Vanessa Moss. Lawrence won the Democratic nomination. The Republican candidate is Howard Klausner and the Libertarian candidate is Gregory Creswell.

Democratic primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= *

, incumbent U.S. Representative

=Defeated in primary

= * Terrance Morrison * Vanessa Moss

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

=Nominee

= * Howard Klausner

Results

Libertarian convention

Nominated

Gregory Creswell The Libertarian Party of Michigan is a Michigan state political party advocating a libertarian ideology and the state affiliate of the Libertarian Party of the United States. The party gained primary ballot access status in 2016 because of the vo ...

General election

Endorsements

Results

References

External links

U.S. House elections in Michigan, 2016
at

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House A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...