Adam Hollier running for Congress again, aiming to defeat Shri Thanedar

Former state Sen. Adam Hollier of Detroit is back to mount a Democratic primary challenge to two-term U.S. Rep. Shri Thanedar in what is his third bid for the U.S. House seat representing most of Detroit, the Grosse Pointes and Downriver communities.

Hollier, who served in Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's cabinet, last cycle secured several major endorsements including Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, Wayne County Executive Warren Evans and former U.S. Rep. Brenda Lawrence of Southfield; however, he dropped out of the race in June after getting disqualified from the ballot over signatures that had been forged and duplicated by circulators.

Hollier told The Detroit News that he was motivated to run again by the people he's talked to in the district who feel no one is trying to do anything about their struggles to buy their first home, afford their rent or why their hours are being cut back at work amid tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump.

"Every day you hear from people all across the country that they're tired of millionaires and billionaires trying to buy our government: Folks like Elon Musk and Donald Trump and Congressman Thanedar," Hollier said.

"We can absolutely do better, and I want to build something that was meaningful to the kind of work that I was able to do in the state Legislature. ... People are looking for leaders who are not talking a big game or putting their names on billboards but people who are really committed to doing the work."

Asked why Democrats should put their support behind him again after the disappointing episode with his nominating petitions, Hollier said he's heard from many of his neighbors and others in the community who have assured him they will do so ― and will help collect valid voter signatures for him to make the ballot.

"I made a mistake. I trusted somebody who I shouldn't have, and it was the most expensive lesson I will ever learn. But I promise you, it is a lesson that I 1,000% learned, and we're going to get this done the right way and done very early," Hollier said.

"This is a moment where Detroiters know that you get knocked down, but we are a place where you don't stay down, you get back up. And that's what I've done over the last year," Hollier added.

"I have done the work to talk to folks, to engage with them, and I have shown up in their churches, on their porches, knocking doors for other candidates, serving at those things and doing the work. Because we are resilient people, and that's what Detroiters want to see."

Leaders of the Congressional Black Caucus and others had hoped Hollier could resurrect majority-Black Detroit's African American representation in Congress, which was lost for the first time in nearly 70 years when the self-funding Thanedar, an Indian American, won a nine-way primary in 2022.

In his last campaign, Hollier criticized Thanedar as an "out-of-touch millionaire" who doesn't understand what working families are up against and who hasn't made tangible progress on 13th District priorities such as affordable housing or gun violence. He also hit Thanedar for spending an outsized amount of his official budget on TV, radio and billboard advertisements to promote himself.

Thanedar said Monday that his office has "solved" more than 2,800 constituent problems, recovered $3 million for constituents and delivered "world class constituent communication, including a record 11 in-person town halls."

The second-term congressman also slammed Hollier's "irredeemable incompetence" for failing to qualify to be on the ballot last year. Thanedar challenged Hollier's nominating petitions a year ago in a bid to shed a primary opponent.

"Congressional candidates have the simple task of getting 1,000 qualified signatures to get on the ballot," Thanedar said in a statement. "Voters in the 13th District, 30% of whom are at or below poverty, have serious problems they need addressed. They are looking for someone competent and qualified, not someone who will hire his friends and disastrously fail to accomplish simple tasks."

Hollier, 39, is the first Democrat to declare a challenge to Thanedar this cycle, but others are likely to jump in. Democratic insiders say that other possible contenders include state Rep. Donavan McKinney, former state Sen. Ian Conyers and Detroit City Councilwoman Mary Waters, who lost in the primary last year to Thanedar by 21 percentage points.

Hollier, who lives in Detroit's North End, is of Black and Native American descent and is a member of the Muscogee Creek Nation. He was elected to the state Senate in 2018 and served on the Appropriations Committee.

He previously served as director of the Michigan Veterans Affairs Agency, shepherded the creation of Detroit's Public Lighting Authority and served as a volunteer firefighter. Hollier serves in the U.S. Army Reserves, where he is a captain, paratrooper and civil affairs officer.

Since he suspended his House campaign last year, Hollier has been teaching urban studies at Wayne State University, he said. He also joined the boards of the American Indian Health and Human Services in Detroit, which serves a seven-county area, and of the Ruth Ellis Center, which works with LGBTQ youth.

Hollier's prior campaigns have focused on affordable housing, health and child care, voting and abortion rights and improving infrastructure, including transportation. He took fire from opponents over his 2018 vote to construct a tunnel to contain Line 5 and his support from the pipeline owner Enbridge's PAC and from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. 

On the issues, Hollier supports "Medicare for All who want it," student loan forgiveness and an assault weapons ban. He also suggested that he would support continuing sending weapons and security aid for Israel with no conditions.

"Israel is an incredibly important strategic partner. Honestly, I believe we should be doing everything we can to support a quick end to this war while taking care of Palestinian civilians," Hollier said.

"It is unconscionable that we are not doing more to provide them with aid and security. We should be doing it."

mburke@detroitnews.com