With Dan Kildee out, Paul Junge says he's running for Congress again

Paul Junge, who last year ran unsuccessfully as a Republican against U.S. Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Flint Township, said Friday he is back in the race again in Michigan's 8th Congressional District following Kildee's announcement that he won't run for a seventh term.

Kildee, 65, announced Thursday that he would not be running next year, saying a bout with cancer this year made him reconsider and decide to spend more time with family. Kildee has been in Congress since 2013, having succeeded his uncle Dale in the seat.

Junge, who lives in Grand Blanc, lost to Kildee 53%-43% in last year's election but the district is considered a tossup without Kildee − whose family has represented the Flint area in Congress since 1977 − running. Junge also previously ran unsuccessfully against U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Lansing, in a neighboring district in 2020.

Martin Blank, an Army veteran and Saginaw police officer, is the only other Republican who has filed to run in the district so far.

"I’m running for Congress to take on the big-spending and job-destroying Washington D.C. establishment, secure the border and aggressively increase American energy production,” Junge said. “While liberal politicians are focused on hoarding more power in Washington D.C. and imposing political correctness, my focus will be empowering the American people to support their family and community."

Junge was born in Michigan but raised in California. He has a background working as a deputy district attorney in California and as a TV anchor in Lansing before taking roles in Washington as investigative counsel for U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and an adviser for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services during former President Donald Trump's term in office.

Contact Todd Spangler: tspangler@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter@tsspangler.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: With Dan Kildee out, Paul Junge says he's running for Congress again