With Rep. Bart Stupak (D-MI), headed for the exits Democrats are searching for new Democrats who can take his place in the conservative, GOP-leaning district he won by big margins for more than a decade.
So far, Democrats in D.C. aren’t talking about Connie Saltonstall, the pro-choice candidate backed by national progressive groups. She’s already in the race, but with a platform right out of the NARAL playbook, it’s likely she won’t be the one national Democrats turn to in the hopes of hanging onto Stupak’s seat.
A few new names have floated to the surface since Stupak made his announcement this morning. Many of them are local and state office holders from inside Stupak’s massive MI-01 district.
According to TPMDC sources, Democrats mentioned as possible replacements for Stupak include state Sen. Mike Prusi, former Rep. Jim Barcia, state Sen. Gary McDowell and state Reps. Joel Sheltrown and Jeff Mayes. Other outlets have also listed State Rep. Mike Lahti as a potential candidate.
Many of these names are from the moderate to conservative wing of the Democratic party, which would be in keeping with Stupak’s views. Barcia, for example, was the highest-rated Democratic member of Congress from Michigan by the American Conservative Union when he represented the 5th District from 1993-2003. He’s anti-abortion, like Stupak, and is currently serving as a state Senator.
Prusi differs from Stupak on the abortion issue. A state senator from inside Stupak’s 1st Congressional District, Prusi has said in the past that abortion should be “always available” to Michigan women, and has said that there should be buffer zones around clinics to keep protesters at least 15 feet away.
Stupak has always contended that his anti-abortion views reflect those of his district, which suggests that Prusi might have the same problems someone like Satlonstall might if she were the nominee.
Lahti will be joining Stupak at his press conference today, leading some to speculate that he’s Stupak’s choice. In 2008, Lahti joined with 24 other Democrats in the state legislature (and all the Republicans) and voted in favor of a late-term abortion ban in the state. The bill did not include provisions to allow late-term abortions in the cases concerning the health of the mother.
In an interesting local twist on the speculation, Lahti is currently running to replace Prusi in the state Senate. Prusi is term-limited and cannot run again.
Evan McMorris-Santoro
Evan McMorris-Santoro has covered politics for TPM since 2009. Before that, he was a reporter at National Journal’s Hotline covering election 2008. He started his career covering local politics at newspapers in TN and his native NC.
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