Election '06
State Senate Battle
Andy Levin faces his father's old foe
in 13th District race.
Harry Kirsbaum
Staff Writer
T
he names are the
same but the race has
changed, and so has one
face.
Andy Levin, .a Democrat and
son of U.S. Rep. Sander Levin,
D-Royal Oak, and nephew of
U.S. Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., is
entering politics for the first time
in a battle against Republican
challenger John Pappageorge for
a vacant seat in the 13th State
Senate District consisting of
Berkley, Birmingham, Bloomfield
Hills, Bloomfield Township,
Clawson, Madison Heights, Royal
Oak and Troy.
Pappageorge ran for Congress
and lost three times against
Sander Levin in 1992, 1994 and
1996.
Pappageorge said he is confi-
dent because the dynamics and
scope of the race this time are
different.
"I am the more legislatively
experienced candidate in this
race he said. "It is also a State
Senate race, which is smaller
than a congressional district and
requires a more familiar under-
standing of the communities, its
leaders and its citizens. Also, as a
point of reference, I beat the con-
gressman [Sander Levin] in the
portion of that congressional dis-
trict that is the 13th State Senate
district on two occasions!'
Andy Levin said he is confi-
dent that his district wants a new
face for representation.
"I am so energized by the sup-
port I've been getting from the
community about my ideas and
my plan for the new Michigan
economy," he said. "People are
hungry for a new direction and
leadership, and I believe that I
represent both!'
Here are the candidates' views
on the three main issues in this
race.
Economy
Pappageorge: "We must
reform our tax structure to
make it relevant in a 21st-cen-
tury economy, streamline our
convoluted regulatory system
to better attract emerging
technologies and overhaul
our appropriations process to
eliminate pork barrel funding
and better reflect the priorities
of Michigan's citizens!'
Levin: "I would create good
jobs by strengthening our core
manufacturing base and diver-
sify our economy by expanding
into new industries like alter-
native fuels, bio-technology
and life sciences. Michigan
should and could be the world
leader in designing and manu-
facturing the cars of the future,
cars that will be more fuel effi-
cient, flex-fuel capable, etc!'
Health Care Reform
Pappageorge: "Our long-term
care system is inefficient and
unresponsive, and it needs to
change. Despite consuming the
lion's share of health care-relat-
ed funding, our most vulnerable
citizens are not receiving the
kind of care that they deserve.
I have spent the last two years
since leaving the legislature
advocating for long-term care
reform that can better represent
the wishes of our seniors to
reside in their community with-
out costing taxpayers another
dime."
Levin: "I would transform our
health care system to lower
costs for businesses and provide
every man, woman and child
with health care coverage. Right
now, businesses are shouldering
the burden of health care, and
that is hampering their ability
to compete in the global market.
When I was 39, I was diagnosed
with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.
John Pappageorqe
Andy Levin
Two of my four children have
Crohn's disease and, believe
me, I know that if we had not
had good insurance, my family
would now be bankrupt."
Education
Pappageorge: "While tax and
regulatory reform will provide
the stimulus we need to get our
economy moving in the short
term, a highly educated work
force is imperative to our long-
term economic viability."
Levin: "I would prepare the
workforce of the future by
strengthening K-12 education
and doubling the number of
college graduates. Right now,
Michigan is 38th out of 50
states in college graduates and
that simply isn't good enough.
We must invest in our future
by preparing our children for
the 21st-century workforce.
We must explore all options
to ensure that any high school
graduate who wants to go to
college can have access to high-
er education!' F-
Andy
Levin
Age: 46
City: Bloomfield Twp.
Family: Wife, Mary Freeman,
and four children.
Education: Berkley Public
Schools; graduated Williams
College, Williamstown,
Mass., bachelor's in reli-
gion cum laude; University
of Michigan Rackham
Graduate School; Harvard
Law School, cum laude.
Background: Worked on
behalf of nursing home
workers and labor man-
agement issues. Served
as a staff attorney for the
Presidential Commission
on the Future of Worker-
Management Relations
and on national economic
policy in the deputy sec-
retary's office in the U.S.
Department of Labor. Now
at Klimist, McKnight, Sale,
McClow and Canzano, P.C. in
Southfield.
Web site: www.andylevin.org
John
Pappageorge
Age: 75
Residence: Troy
Family: Wife, Cristina; 3
children; 4 grandchildren
Education: Graduated West
Point Academy, New York,
bachelor's in engineering;
graduated University of
Maryland, master's in gov-
ernment and politics
Background: 30 years of
active duty, U.S. Army
Infantry; retired as a colo-
nel. Director of strategic
and business planning,
General Dynamics
Political: Oakland County
commissioner, 1989-1992;
Michigan Republican Party
vice chair,1995; state rep-
resentative,1999-2004
Web site:
www.johnpappageorge.net
October 19 • 2006
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