Sen. Tom Barrett Announces Run For Congress In Lansing Area

CHARLOTTE, Mich. (AP) — Republican state Sen. Tom Barrett is running for a congressional district in the Lansing area.

Barrett, of Charlotte, made the announcement Monday. He said he is leaving the Army after 21 years.

Sen. Tom Barrett | Credit: Michigan Senate Republicans

He criticized President Joe Biden's handling of the withdrawal from Afghanistan and his requirement that military members get the COVID-19 vaccine, saying he already was infected with the coronavirus.

Michigan's redistricting commission has not finalized the new congressional map, but all three drafts include a toss-up seat in Lansing and the surrounding counties.

Second-term Democratic U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin, of Holly, has said she will run for the new district. It includes a portion of her current seat.

Barrett has served overseas in Iraq and elsewhere and is a helicopter pilot in the Army National Guard. He is in his first Senate term and previously served two terms in the state House.

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