Michigan Rep. Schwarz denied a second term
Freshman Rep. Joe Schwarz (R-Michigan) lost his bid for a second term in office Tuesday, falling to former state Rep. Tim Walberg (R) in the GOP primary. Walberg was one of several Republicans Schwarz defeated in 2004 to win the Republican nomination. It was a major win for the Club for Growth, an organization that backs candidates who support limited government and less taxes.
Last night, the Club took credit for helping Walberg raise $600,000 from its members as well as spending an additional $500,000 on radio and television ads criticizing Schwarz. Walberg is the favorite to win this race in a district in which President Bush defeated Sen. John Kerry (D-Massachusetts) by nine percentage points in the 2004 presidential election.
"Rep. Schwarz was one of the worst examples of Republican politicians who have abandoned any real commitment to limited government and pro-growth policy," said former Rep. Pat Toomey (R-Pennsylvania), who now serves as the Club's president. "But Michigan voters have responded by replacing him with a true economic conservative who will work to enact the pro-growth agenda. We look forward to seeing Tim Walberg win in November and then serving in Washington in the 110th Congress."
Despite Schwarz's loss, Sarah Chamberlain Resnick, executive director of the Republican Main Street Partnership, said her organization would continue to fight the Clubs' efforts to defeat incumbent Republicans.
"We are very upset by Joe's loss and will do everything we can to make sure the Club doesn't succeed in its goal to drive the Republicans into a minority party," she told the Grind.
In another high profile Michigan contest, Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard won the Republican Senate primary and will face Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Michigan), who is favored, in November. Bouchard defeated Minister Keith Butler for the GOP nod. And Republicans officially chose Dick DeVos to challenge Gov. Jennifer Granholm (D) in what is expected to be a very competitive contest. Full results for this and all other Michigan contests are available on the
Secretary of State's Web site.
