East Grand Rapids City Commissioner Abbie Groff-Blaszak pulled off an upset in the Democratic primary race for Michigan’s 29th Senate District.
Groff-Blaszak won 54% of the vote, besting state Representative Phil Skaggs who took 30% and Kent County Commissioner Ivan Diaz’ at 17%.
Groff-Blaszak is a community organizer, current East Grand Rapids City Commissioner and Grand Rapids Community College instructor.
She defeated Skaggs, despite his long political resume as a former union leader, county commissioner and current state representative who previously chaired the Kent County Democratic Party.
Groff-Blaszak credits her win to a strong ground game of connecting on a personal level.
“We knocked over 17,000 doors over the last six months, thousands of phone calls, postcards, et cetera. And just, you know, looking for any avenue where we could connect with people and hear from them.”
The 29th State Senate District covers southern Kent County, including parts of Grand Rapids, East Grand Rapids, Kentwood, Wyoming, and Grandville.
Grand Rapids Democrat Winnie Brinks is vacating the seat due to term limits.
Groff-Blaszak will face Republican Brady Middleton in the November general election.
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