Republican James DeSana is seeking re-election and faces democrats Darian Counts and Rich Li in an August primary before the November general election. The three candidates are running for the 29th District in the Michigan House of Representatives.
James DeSana
James DeSana, 62, currently serves as Michigan State Representative for 29th District, a position he has held for two terms since 2022.
The Ash Township resident has been married to Stephanie for 40 years and has eight children. He is a farmer and member of Saint Stephen’s Church, Knights of Columbus, Michigan Sheep Producers, Michigan Cattlemen’s Association and served as head baseball coach at St. Mary Catholic Central from 2001 to 2009.
DeSana said he is running for state representative to serve the people of Monroe County and Downriver.
“I am fighting for a much smaller government, to return our State to limited government. I believe that Michigan is a great place to live,” he said. “I have eight children and 18 grandchildren, and I want to help protect and preserve their future and the future of the working families of our state.”
If elected, DeSana said his number one goal is to end taxes on homesteads and family farms.
“People should own their homes and not rent them from the government,” he said. “I also want to prioritize and help fund essential services, especially public safety, specifically police and fire. I want to also focus on eliminating all waste, fraud and abuse of taxpayer dollars.”
Darian Counts
Darian Counts said he is a proud son of Michigan’s Downriver community, raised by a hardworking bookkeeper and car salesman who instilled in him the values of discipline, resilience and personal responsibility.
A graduate of Woodhaven High School, Class of 1984, Counts attended Henry Ford Community College and Wayne County Community College, where he studied marketing and business management. He is an entrepreneur, founder of “Detroit Live Magazine” and works at Southgate Ford.
Counts said he stands as a voice for those who believe in hard work, fairness and opportunity.
He is running for office “because Americans deserve a government that focuses on Americans, not foreign and corporate interests.”
If elected, Counts said, “Some of the current issues I expect to confront facing Michigan are ICE detention centers, data centers and environmental issues. I consider myself a Bernie Sanders-style progressive.”
Rich Li
Rich Li, 40, left his job as a warehouse operations manager to run for office. He is a first-time candidate.
“Since the 80s with Reagan cutting the taxes for the rich and cutting social programs, we have had a healthy middle class squeezed into living paycheck to paycheck,” Li said. “American education has regressed, climate change is threatening our future, and the politicians self-serve themselves and the ultra-wealthy who keep them in power.”
He said republicans keep making tax cuts for the rich while dismantling the guardrails of democracy to stay in power.
“Establishment democrats fight progressives from trying to make meaningful change,” he said. “I felt like I could no longer be a bystander and I want to try to help change and reform these broken systems so that everyone can stop focusing on just surviving week to week but to actually thrive.”
If elected, Li said the UAW has put forth a good plan for single payer healthcare that can be adopted as a state/regional version as well.
“I would like to advance a state/multi-state regional plan. I believe this would be a big burden lifted off the shoulders of all Americans,” he said. “Minimum wage should be a livable wage. Michigan’s minimum wage is just under $14 and that is not enough to live on. The minimum should also be updated every 1-3 years to ensure that it is a livable wage. Raising minimum wages is a tide that raises all boats, so everyone making more will also be making gains on their wages.”
This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: Meet the candidates for Michigan’s 29th House District
Reporting by Lisa Vidaurri Bowling, The Monroe News / The Monroe News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
