Democratic state Sen. Jeremy Moss announces run for US House
Democratic state Sen. Jeremy Moss, a 38-year-old former Southfield city councilman who also served in the state House, on May 8 announced his candidacy for the Oakland County-based congressional seat being vacated by U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Birmingham, who is running for Michigan's soon-to-be-open U.S. Senate seat.
'Hundreds of thousands of voters in the 11th Congressional District have trusted me to be their voice in the state Senate and now I'm ready to take that fight to Congress,' said Moss, whose current district runs through Bloomfield Hills, Bloomfield Township, Pontiac and Auburn Hills, covering much of the 11th District represented by Stevens. 'With looming threats from Donald Trump and Elon Musk, Democrats can no longer be the party that shows up to this tough fight ahead with another pie chart."
Southfield itself, where Moss lives, is not covered by the congressional seat. It is not a requirement that a member of Congress live in his or her district, though most do, and Moss − who at various times has represented as much as half of the 11th Congressional District − is expected to move this year into the 11th.
Moss, who as president pro tempore of the state Senate is a key member of Democratic leadership in that chamber and who worked for state Rep. Rudy Hobbs and former U.S. Rep. Brenda Lawrence, gives the party its first formal entry into the race to succeed Stevens, who has held the seat since 2019. After redistricting in 2021, the district lines were changed such that the 11th Congressional District is much more Democratic-leaning.
No other candidates have announced, though media reports have said that Oakland County Commissioner Dave Woodward of Royal Oak is looking at it. The Detroit News has also said that former U.S. Rep. Andy Levin, D-Bloomfield Township, who lost a fractious primary to Stevens in 2022, said he was being urged to run.
Moss, who is Jewish, is well known in political circles in Oakland County and was Southfield's youngest-ever councilman when elected at age 25. He is also the first openly gay person to serve as a state senator and has advocated for civil and voting rights. In terms of accomplishments in Lansing, he points to his efforts at helping to pass legislation to protect access to abortion, gun safety legislation and repeal taxes on seniors.
He also points to $50 million he was able to secure for the redevelopment of downtown Pontiac.
Moss said he can represent a district that a decade ago was supporting Republican officeholders like former Gov. Rick Snyder and former U.S. Rep. Dave Trott, R-Birmingham, and remains aligned with business interests and manufacturing, which has been a key area of interest for Stevens, who is running next year for the seat being vacated by Sen. Gary Peters, a Democrat.
"I don't think these (business interests and progressive policies) are competing values in this district. You talk about the changes in Oakland County over the last decade and a half (during which time it has become much more Democratic-leaning). Donald Trump prompted that. These attacks on civil rights and voting rights and abortion rights and LBGTQ rights are high priorities now in this district because they're being driven by the Trump administration. I'm certainly a leader in all those fights."
"He's also causing a lot of threats on economic stability in Oakland County and the rest of the state (with) these erratic tariffs," he said, referring to the Republican president's broad plans to use import taxes on goods to raise federal funds and bring back manufacturing though they have rattled the stock market, threaten high prices and have automakers concerned about lost sales. "That's a focus as well."
Contact Todd Spangler: tspangler@freepress.com. Follow him on X @tsspangler.
.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Democratic state Sen. Jeremy Moss announces run for US House
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
29 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump Suffers Major Blow in Attempt to Overhaul U.S. Elections
A federal judge blocked portions of a Trump administration order Friday that would have required voters to show proof of citizenship at the voting booth. In a 44-page memorandum, U.S. District Judge Denise Casper ordered that adding layers of difficulty to the voting process would only harm eligible voters by adding significant barriers before they can cast their ballots. Casper further noted that Donald Trump's order was an executive overreach and that the authority to set new election requirements rests with Congress. 'There is no dispute (nor could there be) that U.S. citizenship is required to vote in federal elections and the federal voter registration forms require attestation of citizenship,' Casper wrote. 'The issue here is whether the president can require documentary proof of citizenship where the authority for election requirements is in the hands of Congress, its statutes … do not require it, and the statutorily created [Election Assistance Commission] is required to go through a notice and comment period and consult with the states before implementing any changes to the federal forms for voter registration.' One of five provisions in the executive order blocked by Casper mandated that the Election Assistance Commission collect and record information on provided documentary proof of citizenship in the national voter registration form. Casper's ruling also intervened in a White House decree that ordered the secretary of defense to update the absentee application for overseas voters or Americans in the military, which under Trump's direction would have required such voters to provide proof of citizenship as well as proof of eligibility to vote in their respective states. 'Neither the Constitution nor any statute grants the president the authority to enact' such an order, the judge wrote. Since Trump lost the 2020 election, he and his allies have obsessed over contrived claims of voter fraud—a statistical nonissue in U.S. elections. For instance, a statewide audit out of Georgia, the epicenter of Trump's baseless theory, revealed in September that just 20 noncitizens out of 8.2 million residents existed on the state's voter roll. Out of those 20, only nine participated in elections, years ago, before ID was required as a part of the voter verification process. The other 11 individuals were registered but never actually voted, according to Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger. Critics argue that restrictions on the front end of the electoral process—such as one-day voting and requiring day-of voter ID, which Trump pledged to apply in December—would minimize voter turnout and limit the democracy's ability to represent its constituents. This would especially be true in high-density areas like the nation's biggest cities, where those stipulations would significantly drain resources (i.e., boost the number of volunteers required) and require more time to process, potentially leading to delays. Trump's continued focus on the nativist nonissue belies the fact that it is, of course, already illegal and impossible for noncitizens to vote in U.S. elections, including in Georgia, where the individuals who fell through the cracks in the system accounted for just 0.00024 percent of the state's voting population. Meanwhile, Trump has said nothing about campaign finance reform, an electoral issue that has, over the last few decades, increasingly placed politicians in the pockets of major corporations and billionaire donors. Instead, the president's allies have actually lobbied him to loosen campaign finance laws, raise limits on campaign contributions, and oppose Federal Election Commission reforms that would help the agency enforce the laws regarding the country's elections.
Yahoo
29 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Second judge blocks most of Trump's executive order on elections
A federal judge on Friday blocked key provisions of President Donald Trump's executive order that sought to make it harder to register to vote in federal elections, including a requirement for voters to prove their citizenship. Massachusetts U.S. District Judge Denise Casper wrote in the ruling that the Constitution gives the power to regulate elections to Congress, adding that lawmakers have not passed any laws that authorize Trump's actions or otherwise delegate their authority to the president. Casper, an Obama appointee, blocked parts of Trump's March order that directed federal and local officials to require documentary proof of citizenship when people register to vote and to assess citizenship before distributing voter registration forms at designated public assistance agencies, such as Medicaid offices. Those parts of Trump's executive order have also been blocked by a federal judge in Washington, D.C., in a separate lawsuit filed by voting rights groups and Democratic party officials. The latest ruling by Casper, which came in a case brought by the Democratic attorneys general in 19 states, went further to block most of Trump's executive order. Casper's decision bars enforcement of another provision that required proof of citizenship from military members and citizens living abroad. And it blocks provisions seeking to prevent states from counting ballots that were mailed on or before Election Day, but arrive afterward; and from allowing voters to fix timely submitted ballots that include minor, technical mistakes. 'Only Congress has the power to adjust state election rules,' Casper wrote, noting that the legislature 'has done so through its enactment of' the National Voter Registration Act and other laws. 'Defendants cannot point to any source of authority for the President to impose' the new requirements in the executive order, the judge wrote.
Politico
30 minutes ago
- Politico
Richard Grenell has talked with Trump as he weighs running for California governor
Richard Grenell, the longtime Trump ally and special presidential envoy, spoke with President Donald Trump this week about potentially running for governor of California. Grenell, who also serves as the interim executive director of the Kennedy Center, said in an interview on 'The Conversation' with Dasha Burns that he would 'have to take a look' at vying for the top job in California if former Vice President Kamala Harris launches a bid of her own. 'I want to see if Kamala runs. If Kamala runs, I think there's a whole bunch of Republicans who are going to have to take a look at it, not just me,' Grenell said in the interview, which was taped Thursday and scheduled to air in full on Sunday. 'If she runs, it is going to make me have to take a look at it. Right now, I'm not running for governor.' Grenell also said he had spoke this week with Trump about a run, but declined to share details about the conversation. Harris is expected to decide on whether to announce a run by the end of the summer. Grenell, who has a home in the Los Angeles area, traveled with Trump earlier this year to survey wildfire damage. Trump has been sharply critical of Gov. Gavin Newsom's response to the January wildfires and his handling of anti-immigration protests over the past week. Trump has sent in hundreds of additional military personnel to Los Angeles, heightening tension between protesters and law enforcement. The president also called in the National Guard to Los Angeles against Newsom's wishes, sparking a high-stakes legal battle. Grenell told POLITICO he believes the Trump administration has more credibility than Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass — even with Democrats. 'I would say that there is zero confidence in Karen Bass and Gavin Newsom right now from Democrats,' he said. 'When Donald Trump decided to send in law enforcement and send in the National Guard and send in the military, there are a lot of Democrats in California who said, 'Thank God,' because Karen Bass isn't cut out to be a leader.' Grenell previously considered a run for governor in California ahead of the 2021 vote to recall Newsom, which ultimately did not pass. Grenell also weighed in on Trump's visit to the Kennedy Center this week to take in a performance of 'Les Misérables,' arguing that despite the mixed reaction Trump received, the Kennedy Center is now 'much more tolerant.' 'I think we want people here who sit next to each other, who voted for somebody completely different for president,' Grenell said in the interview, which was taped at the Kennedy Center. 'You could have somebody sitting next to a Trump supporter who also voted, somebody who voted, for, you know, Bernie Sanders. No one gets vocal and no one gets into an argument because we're watching Les Mis. You know, that's the whole idea of tolerance.'
