Democratic Rep. Elissa Slotkin is projected to retain her seat against Paul Junge in Michigan's 8th Congressional District
- First-term Democratic Rep. Elissa Slotkin is projected to defeat Paul Junge in Michigan's 8th Congressional District.
- The district is home to Livingston and Ingham counties and a portion of Oakland County. The cities of Lansing and East Lansing are split between the 8th District and the 4th District.
- The 8th District is one of 30 in the US that voted for President Donald Trump in 2016 but is represented by a Democrat.
- See the live coverage and full results from all US House elections.
First-term Democratic Rep. Elissa Slotkin will hold on to her House seat, defeating the Republican Paul Junge in Michigan's 8th Congressional District, Insider and Decision Desk HQ can report.
The candidates
Slotkin, a former political analyst and intelligence briefer for the CIA, was the director for Iraq for the National Security Council from 2007 to 2009.
In 2018, she defeated Mike Bishop, a two-term incumbent, to join the House of Representatives. She is a member of the Armed Services and the Homeland Security committees.
Junge is a former deputy district attorney and TV anchor. He recently worked in the Trump administration's US Citizenship and Immigration Services agency in the Department of Homeland Security. He ran on a platform focused on border protection, anti-abortion initiatives, and "destroying terrorists."
See live coverage and full results for the US presidential election »
The district
The 8th District, in southeastern Michigan, includes the suburbs and exurbs between the Detroit area and Lansing. The district is home to Livingston and Ingham counties as well as parts of Oakland County. The district shares Lansing and East Lansing with the state's 4th Congressional District.
The district is one of 30 in the country that voted for President Donald Trump in 2016 but is represented by a Democrat in the House. Trump carried the district by 6 points, 50% to 44%, in 2016.
Slotkin defeated Bishop by 3.8 points in 2018. Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer carried the district by 4 points, 50% to 46%, over her Republican opponent. And incumbent Sen. Debbie Stabenow almost tied with the GOP Senate candidate John James in the district.
The money race
According to the Center for Responsive Politics, Slotkin had a massive fundraising advantage over Junge.
Slotkin raised $8.3 million, spent $5.8 million, and had $2.5 million in cash on hand, while Junge raised $1.8 million, spent $1.3 million, and had about $483,296 in cash on hand.
What the experts said
The race between Slotkin and Junge was rated as "leans Democratic" by The Cook Political Report, "likely Democratic" by Sabato's Crystal Ball at the University of Virginia Center for Politics, and "safe Democratic" by Inside Elections.