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Democrat: Gretchen Driskell
Republican: Tim Walberg

Incumbent: Tim Walberg
No Open Seat

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 Background Information on the Primary Race

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 Background Information on the Primary Race

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Michigan hold 14 seats in the House 4 which are held by Democrats, 9 by Republicans and 1 vacant.
In the Democratic Primary Election, Gretchen Driskell won with 82.5% of the vote out of 61,247 registered votes. In the Republican Primary Election, Tim Walberg was the only one running, so he got all of the votes.

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Information on Candidates: Gretchen Driskell

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Information on Candidates: Gretchen Driskell

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She has a lot of political experience and its is her not her first time running for Congress. She has ran for Mayor of Saline, Michigan and she was the first woman to serve in that position. She also served in Michigan's House of Representatives, representing district 52, through 2012 to 2017. She took part in their agriculture, communication and technology committees in 2015. Gretchen Driskell  got her BS in Accounting from Lynch berg College (1976-1980) and is a graduate from George Washington University School of Business (1985-1987) with a MBA (Master of Business Administration).

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It is not his first time running for Congress, he ran in 2006 and won but lost in the re-election in 2008 to Mark Schauer. He won back in 2010 but he began his career in the Michigan's House of Representatives (1983-1998).  In the U.S House he served in the Education and Workforce Committee (2011-2018) and Energy and Commerce Committee (2017-2018) but he has served in other ones as well. He is a graduate from Wheaton College with an M.A in communications (1978) and he got his bachelors from the Fort Wayne Bible College.

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How the candidates fit in their party platform

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How the candidates fit in their party platform

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Tim Walberg fits the Republican Party ideologically because as of 2014 he was a "far-right Republican". He advocates for preventing undue regulations and expanding markets in the agriculture market to aid in the economic well prosperity of Michigan. He is also against Obamacare which is a strong point of the Republican platform. Gretchen Driskell was endorsed by the Michigan League of Conservation voters, and the plan parenthood advocates. Those two point are major in the Democratic party platform and her being endorsed by them backs up her credit as a Democrat, also what she stands for too.

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(U.S Census Bureau 2010)
-Population: 701,436
-Gender: 50.2% Male, 49.8% Female
-Race: 91.8% White, 4.1% Black, 4% Hispanic
-Unemployment: 11.8%

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Statistics for 2016 Presidential Election

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Statistics for 2016 Presidential Election

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-0.3%: President Trump's margin of victory.
-65%: Registered voters who voted.
-87,810: Number of voters who registered but did not vote.
-52%: Percentage of the vote Trump won compared to 42% for Clinton.
-75: Number of Michigan's 83 counties won by Trump.

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Voter Turnout in the 2016 Presidential Election

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Voter Turnout in the 2016 Presidential Election

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In the 2016 presidential election, Michigan's history as a Democratic state took a huge turn. On Nov.8, as votes began to roll in, Donald Trump pulled through by roughly 13,225 votes, as recorded by the Michigan Secretary of State. Michigan, along with other states, has always been part of the "blue wall". The only other time Michigan went to the Republicans was in 1988, when George H.W. Bush was elected.

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On November 6, 2012, the 7th Congressional District of Michigan held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives, in which incumbent Tim Walberg won. Tim Walberg got 53.3% of the total votes for the Republican party. Compared to 2016, Tim Walberg received more than half of the votes but the percentage went up to 55% in 2016 due to the number of voters increasing. In the 2016 presidential election, it can also be noted that the majority of the Michigan state voted for republican Donald Trump, similar to how they voted for Republican Tim Walberg in 2012.

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In order to vote in Michigan, a voter must:
-be a United States Citizen.
-be 18 years of age by Election Day.
-register 30 days prior to the election.
-have valid ID to present at the polls.
FELON VOTING RIGHTS:
-Felon must complete sentence before voting rights are restored.

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Sample size: 400

Margin of error: R+6.6

Source: DCCC targeting team

Info: Driskell falls 4 points behind republican Walberg
(no recent polls found)

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Tim Walberg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qwl1BXAH2eI

Gretchen Driskell

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4mPK8HHl2w

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Tim: Energy companies are interest groups because he is part of the energy and commerce committee, no outside state help

Gretchen: worker unions are interest groups; no outside state help

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Education

Gretchen: improve the public system and include hands-on training classes

Tim: grants for public and private schools

Health care

Gretchen: improve Obama care

Tim: get rid of Obama care

Jobs

Gretchen: affordable training for everyone in an effort to promote small and local businesses

Tim: voted no on improving the minimum wage but, votes yes on temporary government assistance

On all issues they both fit the ideologies of their parties

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Republican: Ted Cruz
Democrat: Beto O'Rourke

Incumbent: Ted Cruz
No Open Seat

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Republican,Ted Cruz is running for re-election against the Democrat, Beto O'Rourke and Libertarian Neal Dikeman.
Recently, Donald Trump held a rally in support of Ted Cruz though he did run against him in the Republican candidate race for the 2016 presidential election.

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Information on Candidates: Beto O'Rourke

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Information on Candidates: Beto O'Rourke

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Beto has a lot of experience when it comes to politics. He ran for the U.S Congress in 2012 and won against an 8 year incumbent. Before that in 2005 he ran for the El Paso City Council and served 2 terms in office. In Congress he served in the House Committees of Armed Services and Veteran Affairs, focusing on veterans to get health care and other benefits. He also, proposed the " No Pact act" that did not allow the candidates to rely on the money they are getting for campaigns. He is a graduate from Columbia University and stayed to work in New York for a while before moving back to El Paso.

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Ted Cruz also has a lot of experience in politics and is not a newbie. He ran for U.S Senate in 2012 and won with the help of the Tea Party, while in 2016 he announced he was running for the Republican presidential nominee. Before politics he was a lawyer and an adviser for the George W. Bush campaign in 2000. He was the director of the FTC in 2001 and in 2003 he was the solicitor general in Texas. In 2013 he was the reason for the government shutdown against Obamacare. In his ideology he opposes same sex marriage and abortion. He earned his bachelor at Princeton University and went on to Harvard University.

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How the candidates fit their party platform

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How the candidates fit their party platform

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-Beto O'Rourke fits the Democratic platform on some of ideology. A few of is his opinions like on guns and marijuana are influenced by Liberians like Bernie Sanders. Unlike most Democrats he does not support Medicaid for all but to expand it and protecting the ACA. Like Democrats he promotes "creating a public opinion" and "achieving universal medicaid coverage" but he still need to give clear response to that topic.
-Ted Cruz like most Republicans are against Obamacare, and ACA (Affordable Care Act). He also wants energy deregulation and more surveillance on the Southern border. He fits in the very conservative side of the Republican Party when it comes to the ACA ; he also believes in tax cuts and confirming "strong constitutional judges". Ideologically he fits right in the Republican Party.

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Population: 28,704,330
Gender: 50.4% female and 49.6% male
Race: 74.8% Caucasian, 11.9% African American, 4.4% Asian , .5 Native North Americans, 5.8% other, and 2.5% two or more races.
Unemployment: 4.0%

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- 4.4% President Trump’s margin of win

- 59% Registered voters who voted

- 6,131,861 Number of voters who registered but did not vote

- 52.2 % Percentage of the vote Trump won compared to 43.2% for Clinton

- 227 Number of Texas’ 254 counties won by Trump

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Republican: Ted Cruz- 56.2% (4,440,137 votes)

Democrat: Paul Sadler- 40.6% (3,194,927 votes)

Libertarian: John Jay Myers- 2.1% (162,354 votes)

Green: David B. Collins- 0.9% (67,404)

TOTAL VOTES: 7,864,822

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In order to vote in Texas you must:
-At least 18 on Election Day
-Resident of a Texas country in which application for registration is made
-Not finally convicted as a felon
-if you have one, present photo ID
-Can be without ID/ Social Security but must have some sort of identification when presenting themselves to vote.
FELONIES:
-Must be pardoned/ released by disability to vote
-Fully discharged the sentence

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Sample size: 781

Margin of error: -/+ 3.7%

Source: https://www.emerson.edu/news-events/emerson-college-today/emerson-poll-west-virginia-senate-race-tightens-texas-senate-race-remains-close-republicans-look-hold-three-house-seats-wv#.W-EZgJNKjIW

Info: Ted Cruz 50%, Beto O’Rourke 47%, Undecided 2%

Sample size: 588

Margin of error: +/-4.04%.

Source: https://dfw.cbslocal.com/2018/10/30/cruz-abbott-pull-ahead-in-latest-poll/

Info:  Ted Cruz 50%, Beto O’Rourke 42%, Undecided 5% also provides information on other races occuring in the state and shows how all races are lead by the republican candidate

Sample size: 927

Margin of error: +/- 3.22

Source:https://www.texastribune.org/2018/10/26/ut-tt-poll-ted-cruz-leads-beto-orourke-texas-senate/

Info: Ted Cruz 51%, Beto O’Rourke 45%, Neal Dikeman 2%, someone else 2%

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Ted: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIraxytxIaY

Beto: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=29&v=YWdkOH4HITI

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Ted: Real estate and oil and gas companies are major interest groups because Cruz is part of the Commerce, Science, and Technology committee which regulates insurance policies and the promotes tech for the expansion of the oil industry in Texas

Beto: does not intend to take money from special interest groups

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Immigration-

Ted: supports President’s border wall decision

Beto: advocates for dreamers and a legal status in the country

Health care-

Ted: wants to get rid of Obama care

Beto: supports Obama care

Environment-

Ted: pro business and wants to reduce restrictions for the energy industry in Texas

Beto: voted for taxes concerning oil industry due to political environmental issues; advocates for “clean” energy

on all of the issues they both follow their party's ideologies strongly

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We believe, based on statistics of previous races for Michigan’s 7th Congressional District, that the incumbent, Tim Walberg, will win the election with a majority vote. There are many factors that will aid in his winning for the election, such as his popularity and well-known presence since he has already run for an election before. Also, the state of Michigan, a previous Democratic state, became a more republican state, as seen in the 1988 and 2016, when they elected Trump as president. Since Tim Walberg is running for the republican party, he is more likely to win in a republican majority state. One thing that might affect his election, is the contributions to his campaign. Gretchen Driskell is raising more funds and contributions to her campaign which aids her in becoming well-known and heard in the state.

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One of the main factors that will certainly help his winning in the race, is the fact that he is an incumbent candidate. Incumbents typically get re-elected for office due to their popularity in the state. People already know the incumbents and what they stand for, so the supporters generally re-elect them back into office to keep their interests heard. In the 2016 primary election, he received 55% of the votes and won the majority as a republican. Majority of the people who voted for him have already voted for him in the last election.

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Another factor that will help him in the 2018 primary election, is the demographics of the area. It is known that the older you get, the more likely you are to vote, and females tend to vote more democratic then republican like the males. In Michigan 7th district a little more than half of their demographics is male with 50.2% and females 49.8%; also, with the district voting for the republican Donald Trump in 2016 when in 2012 they voted for the democrat Barack Obama, that can inform you how the district is not in one solid party.

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On the other hand, Gretchen Driskell could win because she has more endorsements under her belt than Tim Walberg. That can give the advantage in her campaign and win over the people of Michigan making another blue wave since the 2012 presidential election.  The more money she gets, the more ads to support her to vote will show up in a last-minute effort to have people take the Democratic side. Though he is the incumbent, that does not always guarantee he will win and Gretchen can take the lead which would have Michigan have one more Democratic seat in the House with 5 instead of 4.

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Overall, the election does seem to favor Tim Walberg with one being the incumbent and having the demographic of voters having more of a possibility voting Republican. Though there can also be the possibility that he could no win due to not having as much funding as Gretchen, he still has most of the votes with enough money or not.

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https://www.sos.state.tx.us/elections/historical/70-92.shtml

https://www.nytimes.com/elections/2016/results/texas

https://www.opensecrets.org/members-of-congress/summary?cid=N00033085

https://www.sos.state.tx.us/elections/historical/presidential.shtml

https://betofortexas.com/about/

https://votedriskell.com/issues/#education

http://www.ontheissues.org/MI/Tim_Walberg.htm

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https://ballotpedia.org/Michigan%27s_7th_Congressional_District_election,_2018
https://ballotpedia.org/Gretchen_Driskell
https://ballotpedia.org/Tim_Walberg
https://walberg.house.gov/issues/health-care
https://betofortexas.com/about/
http://worldpopulationreview.com/states/texas-population/
https://www.biography.com/people/ted-cruz
https://www.sos.state.tx.us/elections/pamphlets/largepamp.shtml
https://www.lansingstatejournal.com/story/news/local/2018/10/09/gretchen-driskell-tim-walberg-congress-7th-district-2018-elections/1507858002/
ttps://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/shows/houston-matters/2018/09/13/303934/ted-cruzs-platform-includes-deregulation-border-surveillance-and-replacing-obamacare/
https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/election/election2018/