SerpApi.Org
Six-term Republican Congressman John Moolenaar won Michigan’s 2nd Congressional District, a largely rural district covering the west central part of the state’s Lower Peninsula, by 33 percentage points in 2024.
Despite that gap, three Democrats are competing for their party’s nomination to run against him in November.
Ben Ambrose, Jamie Hill and Clyde Welford will appear on the Aug. 4 primary ballot in the 2nd District, which covers all of Barry, Clare, Gladwin, Gratiot, Ionia, Isabella, Lake, Manistee, Mason, Mecosta, Montcalm, Newaygo, Oceana and Osceola counties, and parts of Eaton, Kent, Midland, Muskegon, Ottawa and Wexford counties.
Here is a bit more about each of the candidates:
Ben Ambrose
Michigan native Ben Ambrose served 20 years in the Marines. After leaving the military, he worked for former U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, and then as a consultant for the federal government.
Priorities for Ambrose include affordability, education, Medicare for All, veteran services, protecting the natural environment and community safety, according to his website, https://ambrose4congress.com/.
Ambrose’s affordability vision includes holding corporations accountable for price gouging, strengthening collective bargaining rights, using "Buy American" policies to bring manufacturing jobs to Michigan, investing in clean energy manufacturing, supporting small businesses and expanding job training opportunities.
His education plan includes increasing federal funding and reducing class size for public schools, improving pay and professional development for teachers, and expanding Pell Grants with a goal of making college more affordable.
Jamie Hill
Jamie Hill is a physician’s assistant with experience as a paramedic, EMS trainer and residential builder, and is running with an emphasis on fighting for rural regions and restoring governmental checks and balances.
Hill, who is nonbinary, is a lifelong resident of rural Michigan. Hill's website lists priorities as a “return to normalcy” following the first two years of President Donald Trump’s second term, defending democracy, holding politicians and billionaires accountable and putting Americans’ wellbeing ahead of profits.
“From healthcare access to economic fairness, rural communities like ours are being left behind,” Hill says on the website, https://electjamie.net/. “I’m running to fight for the issues that matter most to us, not what’s trending in Washington.”
Hill also supports protecting the Second Amendment, locally owned farms, reproductive and LGBTQ health care, and LGBTQ rights.
Hill can be reached by email at [email protected]
Clyde Welford
A retired teacher and current Lake County Road Commissioner, Clyde Welford grew up in Grand Rapids before relocating to Baldwin.
Welford’s platform emphasizes affordable health care, strong public education and growing the state’s economy. He says he wants to protect Medicare, lower drug costs and expand health care access.
His economic vision includes strengthening manufacturing, supporting local businesses and expanding access to broadband internet.
Also priorities for Welford are health care and mental health services for veterans. His website is https://www.clydewelford.com/ and his Facebook page is facebook.com/clyde.welford
Welford's email is [email protected] and his phone number is 231-429-9201.
The deadline to register online or by mail to vote has passed, but Michigan residents can still register to vote in-person at their local clerk's office.
