Shri Thanedar’s Main Primary Opponent Drops Out, Switches Races

India-West News Desk

DETROIT, MI — Congressman Shri Thanedar’s path to reelection in Michigan’s 13th Congressional District may have just gotten easier.  A chief rival, former state senator Adam Hollier, announced September 10 that he is abandoning another congressional bid and will instead run for Michigan Secretary of State.

Hollier, a 39-year-old Detroit Democrat, had been preparing for a third attempt at unseating Thanedar after losing to him in the 2022 Democratic primary and failing to make the ballot in 2024 due to invalid petition signatures. But now, Hollier said threats to democracy posed by former President Donald Trump and his allies convinced him to redirect his campaign to the statewide race.

Thanedar, who first won the seat in 2022, now faces a reshaped Democratic primary field without his most persistent challenger. His current opponents include State Rep. Donavan McKinney, Nazmul Hassan of Hamtramck, and Shelby Campbell of Detroit. On the Republican side, Andrew Lorenz of Southgate has filed to run, the Detroit Free Press noted.

Thanedar has been consolidating his influence in Detroit’s Black congressional district – where the community’s leaders have looked askance at an Indian-American representing them – and has built a reputation as a self-funded candidate with strong grassroots visibility.