Hamtramck voters get to pick a new representative for Congress in the August 5th Primary Election.
Since Hamtramck’s district, the 14th, is heavily Democratic, it’s a given that the Democratic candidate who gets the top vote will go on to win the November election.
Since our current representative, Gary Peters, is running for the Senate seat vacated by Carl Levin, the race for representative is wide open.
There are four candidates vying for the position. So far, it looks like former Congressman Hansen Clarke and Southfield Mayor Brenda Lawrence are the front runners.
Clarke is no stranger to Hamtramck.
He has visited the city quite often, and has roots in the Bengali community. His father was born in Bangladesh and his mother is African-American. Both died by the time he was 19 years old.
That tragedy forced Clarke to grow up quickly. His road to maturity was rough, but he pulled himself through some very hard times, which he credits to his faith in God.
Clarke knows the challenges of growing up poor and in the city. Hamtramck can identify with him.
Lawrence has been running for one office or another ever since she became mayor of Southfield. It’s as if she would rather be anywhere else than Southfield.
Hamtramck voters would do well in supporting Clarke. During his one term in Congress, before his district was eliminated by Republicans in charge of redrawing the state’s political districts, Clarke was in the forefront of forgiving the financial burden of student loans and stopping home foreclosure.
It’s a shame he was unable to complete the jobs he set out to accomplish.
When you talk with Clarke you know you are talking with the real deal. He is personable and speaks with authority when it comes to the needs of the low-income.
That’s not to say he’s at odds with the more well-off constituents he will be representing in the new 14th Congressional District, which meanders from southwest Detroit, to Detroit’s east side while swinging west through Bloomfield and up to Auburn Hills.
Although a Democrat, Clarke has the unique ability to talk and compromise with Republicans – a rare gift in these days of deep political divide.
That’s because he knows how to reach a common ground with his Republican colleagues. More often than not, we as Americans all have the same issues that need to be dealt with.
HANSEN CLARKE is the candidate to get things done and make our country strong.
Make your vote count and support CLARKE for Congress.
Ken Hissong
July 23, 2014 at 12:01 pm
I have to disagree that Mr. Clarke is the best candidate to represent Hamtramck. I sat next to Mr. Clarke at a Citizen’s Watch meeting two years ago. I talked with him about the auto insurance problem (aka Redlining) residents in Hamtramck face. He agreed. I gave him my e-mail address and he said he’d get back to me. Fast forward one year, still no word from Mr. Clarke. E-mailed him again and even went to his Face Book page and left a message. As of today, July 23, still have not heard back. This was not a personal problem but an issue that effects every driver in Hamtramck, in fact everyone who drives and owns a car and lives south of 8 Mile. If Mr. won’t address this issue, what other major issues can we count on him to ignore?