Elissa Slotkin

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Elissa Slotkin
Elissa Slotkin, official portrait, 116th Congress.jpg
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Michigan's 8th district
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 3, 2019
Preceded byMike Bishop
Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs
In office
November 14, 2014 – January 20, 2017
PresidentBarack Obama
Preceded byDerek Chollet
Succeeded byKenneth Handelman (Acting)
Personal details
Born
Elissa Blair Slotkin

(1976-07-10) July 10, 1976 (age 45)
New York City, New York, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse(s)
David Moore
​
(m. 2017)​
Children2 stepdaughters
ResidenceHolly, Michigan, U.S.
EducationCornell University (BA)
Columbia University (MIA)
AwardsSecretary of Defense Medal for Outstanding Public Service
WebsiteHouse website

Elissa Blair Slotkin (born July 10, 1976) is an American politician serving as the U.S. Representative for Michigan's 8th congressional district since 2019.[1] A member of the Democratic Party, she previously served as a Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) analyst and Department of Defense official. Her district is based in Lansing, and stretches into the outer northern and western suburbs of Detroit.

Early life and education[]

Slotkin was born on July 10, 1976, in New York City, the daughter of Curt Slotkin and Judith (née Spitz) Slotkin.[2][3] She is Jewish.[3][4][5] Slotkin spent her early life on a farm in Holly, Michigan. She attended Cranbrook Kingswood School in Bloomfield Hills. Her family farm was part of Hygrade Meat Company, founded by her grandfather, Hugo Slotkin. Hygrade is the original company behind Ball Park Franks, a brand now owned by Tyson Foods.[6]

Slotkin received a BA in sociology from Cornell University (1998) and an MIA from Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs (2003).[7]

Early career[]

Slotkin while serving in the Obama administration

Slotkin was recruited into the Central Intelligence Agency after graduate school. Fluent in Arabic and Swahili, she served three tours in Iraq as a CIA analyst. During the George W. Bush administration, she worked on the Iraq portfolio for the National Security Council. During Barack Obama's presidency, she worked for the State Department and the Department of Defense.[6] Slotkin was acting assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs from 2015 to 2017.[8]

After leaving the Defense Department in January 2017, Slotkin moved back to her family's farm in Holly, where she owned and operated Pinpoint Consulting.[9] Since 2019, she has served on the Transatlantic Task Force of the German Marshall Fund and the Bundeskanzler-Helmut-Schmidt-Stiftung.[10]

U.S. House of Representatives[]

Elections[]

In July 2017, Slotkin announced her candidacy for Michigan's 8th congressional district.[11] She said she was motivated to challenge two-term Republican incumbent Mike Bishop when she saw him smile at a White House celebration after he and House Republicans voted to repeal the Affordable Care Act.[12] On August 7, she defeated Michigan State University criminal justice professor Christopher Smith in the Democratic primary, with 70.7% of the vote.[13]

In November 2018, Slotkin defeated Bishop[1] with 50.6% of the vote.[14] She is the first Democrat to represent Michigan's 8th district since 2001,[14] when Debbie Stabenow gave up the seat run for the U. S. Senate.

Tenure[]

In September 2019, Slotkin and six other freshman House Democrats authored an opinion piece in The Washington Post calling for an impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump. Its publication led to widespread Democratic support for an impeachment inquiry.[15][16] Slotkin voted for Trump's first and second impeachments.

Slotkin was the main sponsor of the 2020 Iran War Powers Resolution, which passed 224–194.[17]

Committee assignments[]

Caucus memberships[]

Political positions[]

Slotkin has been described as a moderate Democrat.[16][22] As of August 2021, Slotkin had voted in line with Joe Biden's stated position 100% of the time.[23]

Slotkin supports the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare). During her 2020 campaign, she described the protection of health care coverage for individuals with preexisting conditions as the most important issue for her district. She supports allowing Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices for those insured by Medicare.[24]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Slotkin supported the bipartisan CARES Act relief package, which passed Congress in March 2020. In May 2020, she voted for the Heroes Act, a $3 trillion stimulus package.[25]

Electoral history[]

Michigan's 8th congressional district, 2020[26]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Elissa Slotkin (incumbent) 217,929 50.9
Republican Paul Junge 202,519 47.3
Libertarian Joe Hartman 7,896 1.8
Total votes 428,344 98
Democratic primary results
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Elissa Slotkin 57,819 70.7
Democratic Christopher E. Smith 23,996 29.3
Total votes 81,815 100.0
Michigan's 8th congressional district, 2018
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Elissa Slotkin 172,880 50.6
Republican Mike Bishop (incumbent) 159,782 46.8
Libertarian Brian Ellison 6,302 1.8
Taxpayers David Lillis 2,629 0.8
Total votes 341,593 100.0
Democratic gain from Republican

Personal life[]

Slotkin's husband, Dave Moore, retired as an Army colonel and Apache helicopter pilot.[27] They met in Baghdad during the Iraq War and reside in Holly.[27] Slotkin has two stepdaughters, one an Army officer and the other a physician.[28]

See also[]

  • List of Jewish members of the United States Congress
  • List of Jewish American politicians
  • Women in the United States House of Representatives

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b "Democratic ex-CIA analyst Elissa Slotkin defeats Republican Rep. Mike Bishop to claim a Michigan congressional seat". Associated Press. Archived from the original on November 20, 2018. Retrieved November 7, 2018.
  2. ^ "Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress". Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress. Archived from the original on August 8, 2020. Retrieved April 9, 2020.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b "Candidate Conversation - Elissa Slotkin (D)". Inside Elections. Archived from the original on November 6, 2018. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
  4. ^ "Judith Slotkin loses life to cancer". Archived from the original on April 4, 2019. Retrieved April 4, 2019.
  5. ^ "These Jewish women are running for office because of Trump". The Times of Israel. August 10, 2017. Archived from the original on April 16, 2019. Retrieved April 18, 2019.
  6. ^ Jump up to: a b "Elissa Slotkin Is Sounding the Alarm. Will Democrats Listen?". politico. Archived from the original on July 17, 2020. Retrieved July 17, 2020.
  7. ^ Wasserman, David (August 4, 2017). "House: Can Democrats Dodge the Carpetbagger Label in 2018?". The Cook Political Report. Retrieved March 19, 2021.
  8. ^ Howard, Phoebe Wall (November 9, 2018). "Why Elissa Slotkin took heat from angry Democrats during her campaign". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved March 19, 2021.
  9. ^ Melinn, Kyle (May 3, 2018). "Yes, a Democrat could be our next member of Congress. Her name is Elissa Slotkin. Her game is beating Mike Bishop". City Pulse. Lansing, MI. Archived from the original on January 6, 2019. Retrieved January 6, 2019.
  10. ^ The German Marshall Fund and Bundeskanzler-Helmut-Schmidt-Stiftung Launch “Transatlantic Task Force” Setting Path Forward for U.S.-Europe Relations Archived December 14, 2019, at the Wayback Machine German Marshall Fund, press release of December 12, 2019.
  11. ^ "Former U.S. Defense official Elissa Slotkin announces Congressional run". MLive.com. Archived from the original on November 20, 2018. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
  12. ^ "Democrat Elissa Slotkin tells of mother's ovarian cancer in new ad". CBS News. Archived from the original on October 24, 2018. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
  13. ^ "Michigan Primary Election Results". The New York Times. September 24, 2018. Archived from the original on January 11, 2019. Retrieved January 12, 2019.
  14. ^ Jump up to: a b Spangler, Todd; Howard, Phoebe Wall; Anderson, Elisha (November 7, 2018). "Elissa Slotkin wins Michigan Congress seat, Mike Bishop concedes". Detroit Free Press. Archived from the original on September 23, 2020. Retrieved January 12, 2019.
  15. ^ Pathé, Simone (December 16, 2019). "Facing pro-Trump chants, Elissa Slotkin explains support for impeachment". Roll Call. Retrieved March 19, 2021.
  16. ^ Jump up to: a b Stolberg, Sheryl Gay (December 16, 2019). "Slotkin, Backing Impeachment, Draws Instant Protests, and Applause". The New York Times. Retrieved March 19, 2021.
  17. ^ These Republicans voted yes on the War Powers resolution Archived January 10, 2020, at the Wayback Machine By Clare Foran, Haley Byrd, Holmes Lybrand, & Caroline Kelly, CNN, January 10, 2020
  18. ^ FOX 47 News (January 15, 2019). "Rep. Elissa Slotkin Appointed to House Armed Services Committee". Fox47. Archived from the original on January 19, 2019. Retrieved January 18, 2019.
  19. ^ Thompson, Bennie. "Chairman Thompson Announces Homeland Security Committee Democratic Members". U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Homeland Security. Archived from the original on January 31, 2019. Retrieved January 31, 2019.
  20. ^ "Members". New Democrat Coalition. Archived from the original on February 8, 2018. Retrieved February 5, 2018.
  21. ^ "Featured Members". Problem Solvers Caucus. Retrieved March 28, 2021.
  22. ^ Alberta, Tim. "Elissa Slotkin Braces for a Democratic Civil War". POLITICO. Retrieved November 13, 2020.
  23. ^ Bycoffe, Anna Wiederkehr and Aaron (April 22, 2021). "Does Your Member Of Congress Vote With Or Against Biden?". FiveThirtyEight. Retrieved August 31, 2021.
  24. ^ Scott, Tyler. "Partisanship, coronavirus spending, health care dominate Slotkin-Junge debate". www.michiganradio.org. Archived from the original on September 24, 2020. Retrieved September 27, 2020.
  25. ^ "U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin faces challenge from Paul Junge in Michigan's 8th Congressional District". mlive. September 26, 2020. Archived from the original on September 27, 2020. Retrieved September 27, 2020.
  26. ^ "Michigan Election Results: Eighth Congressional District". January 5, 2021 – via NYTimes.com.
  27. ^ Jump up to: a b Lessenberry, Jack (April 25, 2018). "Hot dogs, the CIA, and Congress". Metro Times. Detroit, MI. Archived from the original on January 13, 2019. Retrieved January 12, 2019.
  28. ^ Cavitt, Mark (October 22, 2018). "ELECTION 2018: Elissa Slotkin Q&A". The Oakland Press. Pontiac, MI. Archived from the original on January 12, 2019. Retrieved January 12, 2019.

Public Domain This article incorporates public domain material from the United States Government document: "US Department of Defense".

External links[]

U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by
Mike Bishop 		Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Michigan's 8th congressional district
2019–present 		Incumbent
U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial)
Preceded by
Mikie Sherrill 		United States representatives by seniority
349th 		Succeeded by
Abigail Spanberger
  • v
  • t
Michigan's delegation(s) to the 116th–present United States Congress (ordered by seniority)
116th
Senate: D. Stabenow • G. Peters
House: F. Upton • T. Walberg • J. Amash • B. Huizenga • D. Kildee • D. Dingell • B. Lawrence • J. Moolenaar • J. Bergman • P. Mitchell • A. Levin • E. Slotkin • H. Stevens • R. Tlaib
117th
Senate: D. Stabenow • G. Peters
House: F. Upton • T. Walberg • B. Huizenga • D. Kildee • D. Dingell • B. Lawrence • J. Moolenaar • J. Bergman • A. Levin • E. Slotkin • H. Stevens • R. Tlaib • L. McClain • P. Meijer
Retrieved from ""