House - MI 3rd - Hillary Scholten

Democrat running in Grand Rapids and Battle Creek and suburban and rural areas south and west to fill the seat being vacated by Justin Amash

video clip: " Scholten for Congress"

Five generations removed from her family’s arrival from the Netherlands, Hillary Scholten and her husband are raising their two sons in a house around the corner from where her grandfather lived. She is running for Congress to make our laws work better for everyday people in West Michigan.

The daughter of a local reporter and an elementary school teacher, Hillary has spent her career making life better for others. Before and after earning a social work degree she led programs to help homeless women and their children get back on their feet and helped LGBTQ people facing housing discrimination. She got a legal degree, clerked in the Second Circuit and joined the Obama Justice Department as an immigration attorney. When Trump sowed chaos in the Justice Department, she left and joined the Michigan Immigrant Rights Center and also was a volunteer attorney for women facing sexual harassment in the workplace.

She is running against Peter Meijer, the wealthy son of a supermarket-chain family. Meijer needed to personally provide over 1/3 of the money he spent to win his primary. He has been endorsed by the hard-right Republican leadership in Congress, including Kevin McCarthy and Steve Scalise, and joins them in his advocacy to eliminate the Affordable Care Act. One of his major contributors is the Betsy DeVos family. He’s expressed his opposition to the $600 federal supplemental unemployment insurance by deriding it as “an unemployment bonus.” And he opposes a $15 minimum wage.

In contrast EMILY’s List describes Hillary as a “dedicated fighter for justice and equality”. For her that means protecting and expanding the Affordable Care Act, protecting public school funding from transfers to private schools, and ensuring safe water in a state that knows its importance to health and equality. Hillary says, “As a mom, a public interest lawyer, and a Michigander, protecting our environment is one of the driving forces behind this campaign.” She has been endorsed by the League of Conservation Voters, Planned Parenthood and the Voter Protection Project.

While the district gave Trump a 9% victory margin, it also went for Obama in 2008. Governor Whitmer took 49.8% of the district’s vote in 2018, compared to the 38% won by the Democratic candidate for governor in 2014.

In a district looking for sensible leadership, strong Michigan values and protection for the basics of clean water, good schools and affordable, accessible healthcare, Hillary has the talent, background and determination to win. Our donations could help make the difference.