Former East Grand Rapids City Commissioner Abbie Groff-Blaszak secured the Democratic nomination to Michigan’s 29th Senate District in Tuesday’s primary elections, marking a major upset over Rep. Phil Skaggs.
Michigan’s 29th Senate District encompasses portions of Grand Rapids, East Grand Rapids, and Wyoming. Groff-Blaszak secured 47% of those voters, compared to Skaggs’s 32%, according to unofficial Kent County vote counts. Former Kent County Commissioner Ivan Diaz received 19%.
Groff-Blaszak is now slated to face Republican nominee Brady Middleton in the November general election for the seat.
Skaggs, who currently serves in Michigan’s 80th House District, had received endorsements from a slew of major political names for the seat, including Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson. Several local officials also backed his campaign, including Grand Rapids Mayor David LaGrand and Third Ward Commissioner Marshall Kilgore.
Skaggs’s 80th House District seat will go to either Democratic nominee Lily Cheng-Schulting or Republican nominee Doug Lee. Skaggs did not respond to a request for comment from The Grand Rapids Herald
Both Diaz and Groff-Blaszak had previously told The Herald that they were privately approached by members of Skaggs’ campaign and pressured to exit the primary.
Diaz claimed he was forced to remove an endorsement from the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce from his website after Skaggs threatened a pending $5 million grant if the group continued to support Diaz. Groff-Blaszak shared a public Facebook post in which she also called out Skaggs for pressuring her against seeking office.
Groff-Blaszak in July also condemned an “attack ad” against her, which was paid for by a donor of Skaggs. Skaggs and his campaign did not respond to repeated requests for comment from The Herald regarding the accusations.
Diaz conceded the race in a statement to The Herald.
“The people have had their say, and although our campaign has not win [sic] the day, our ideas have,” he wrote via text message. “We knew all along that the ultimate goal was to beat the corporate establishment candidate in this race, and we have done so, while nominating a Democrat in Commissioner Groff-Blaszak that believes in single-payer healthcare, a living wage, and more.”
Groff-Blaszak did not respond to requests for comment from The Herald. She acknowledged the election results via Facebook writing “We did it TOGETHER!”
“There was a lot of noise along the way, but we stayed true to who we are and what this campaign has always been about: people, integrity, and community,” she added. “Thank you for believing in better. Thank you for standing with us and showing what is possible when we do this together.”
In the 2022 election for the 29th Senate District seat, state Rep. Winnie Brinks beat Republican challenger Tommy Brann with just over 60% of the vote. That election was notably the first using redrawn district boundaries. In the 2024 presidential elections, Democratic candidate Kamala Harris carried the district by 26 points.
Other Races
Tuesday’s primary election saw Secretary of State Benson mark a decisive win in the state gubernatorial primary over Christopher Swanson. She will face Republican nominee John James.
Cheng-Schulting secured the Democratic nomination for the 80th House District, beating out Kristen Fauson and Kris Pachla. Cheng-Schulting has her Juris Doctor from the Syracuse University College of Law and was born in Taiwan before immigrating to the United States. She lists support for Medicare for all and shutting down the Line 5 pipeline among her priorities.
Pachla, a Kent County commissioner, had the endorsements of Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks, State Rep. Kristian Grant, LaGrand, and several other local Democratic leaders. He conceded the race in a Facebook post early Wednesday morning, congratulating Cheng-Schulting.
Michigan’s 80th House District includes Kentwood, East Grand Rapids, and Cascade Township
Grant, the incumbent representative for Michigan House District 82, handedly won the Democratic nomination against Kent County Commissioner Robert Womack, with nearly three-fourths of the vote, per unofficial county election results.
The 82nd District contains the Eastern and Southeastern portions of Grand Rapids, as well as parts of Wyoming.
Lindsey Perez-Plescher and Steve Tibbe will face each other in the general election for the Grand Rapids First Ward City Commission seat. Perez-Plescher won a majority of the primary vote, with 59% according to unofficial election results. Tibbe received 24%, and Jordoun Eatman received 16%.
The Grand Rapids Public Schools sinking fund millage passed by a large margin, with nearly 25,000 votes in favor and just over 12,000 votes against, according to unofficial county election results early Wednesday morning. The .95 mill will create a sinking fund for major building projects, generating an estimated $7 million annually.
Write to jackson@grherald.com