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Editor’s note: The Michigan Daily Editorial Board has also provided endorsements for other races on the Ann Arbor ballot this November. You can find them all here.
The leading candidates in the U.S. House of Representatives races in Michigan’s 6th District, which includes Ann Arbor and surrounding townships, are incumbent Democrat Debbie Dingell and Republican Heather Smiley. Smiley would be new to politics if elected, while the Dingell family has a long-sustained political dynasty; Debbie Dingell was first elected in 2014, taking the seat her husband, John Dingell, held for almost 60 years. Prior to that, John Dingell’s father, John Dingell Sr., held the seat for almost 22 years.
Dingell vies for progressive health care and environmental policies. A proponent of expanding health care coverage, Dingell is working to restore previous protections under the Affordable Care Act that had been repealed by the Trump administration. She has also worked on several pieces of legislation to increase fuel efficiency and protect the Great Lakes. In addition to these policies, Dingell advocates for progress in jobs and innovation within the automotive industry with a focus on uplifting new Michigan companies.
Smiley, for her part, has a commendable automotive background as a former Ford executive and United Auto Workers member that matches and perhaps even exceeds Dingell’s own. However, this Editorial Board isn’t convinced that her background will spur any substantively pro-union policies within a staunchly anti-union Republican party. Smiley’s platform focuses most on issues of border security and individual freedom, and says little about abortion, despite being endorsed by several anti-abortion political action committees. While Smiley’s platform may have more political buzzwords than Dingell’s, it lacks substance regarding her stances on political issues.
The Republican party controls the House of Representatives by a razor-thin margin, with Democrats only slightly favored to take back control during the 2024 election cycle. House control is vital to not only advance progressive initiatives, but to institute safeguards against probable Republican Senate control and former President Donald Trump, should he return to the White House in November. In short, a vote for Dingell is a vote not just for a blue House of Representatives, but a vote to preserve, if only marginally, democracy against a second Trump term. Given her progressive policy platform and her potential protection of a Democratic House, The Michigan Daily Editorial Board endorses Rep. Debbie Dingell for the U.S. House of Representatives.
This editorial represents the opinion of The Michigan Daily’s Editorial Board. If you are interested in submitting an Op-Ed or Letter to the Editor, please send your submission to tothedaily@michigandaily.com.
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