Both candidates in Michigan’s 6th Congressional District race focus on putting Southeast Michigan’s concerns on the national stage in Washington. The district includes Washtenaw County and portions of Wayne, Oakland, and Monroe counties.
Democrat Debbie Dingell is running for re-election and has served in Congress for over a decade. She says getting the Gelman Dioxane Plume onto the Environmental Protection Agency’s National Priorities List was a major accomplishment for her this term. She adds she wants to continue addressing concerns about affordability and federal funding.
“I want to fight so that we are getting dollars into our community to make sure that the kind of important research that's going on in this district is happening.”
Dingell says she’d like to work on mending America’s relationship with Canada. She adds that it’s become increasingly strained.
“I care deeply about our relationship with Canada, upon which we are both economically intertwined and national security. I hope that we are able to reduce some of these tariffs.”
Heather Smiley is the Republican challenger. She recently retired from doing data insights and analytics for Ford Motor Company. She says she wants to encourage companies to hire U.S. citizens over visa holders. She adds that companies need to offer American workers fair wages rather than undercut them by favoring foreign labor they can pay less for.
“Because I've worked with these businesses throughout my career, I know what it takes to bring jobs into Michigan.”
Smiley says she wants to give communities being eyed for future data centers more protections. She says data center companies need more transparency in how much energy demand will impact the local area.
“Where is your historical data to say what is the true impact on the infrastructure from an energy perspective in the community and does it adversely impact our grid?”
Both candidates agree the federal government should help address local issues.
This story is part of a series previewing major local races in the 2026 midterm elections. Click here for more of WEMU's local election coverage.
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