Jim Slezak

Jim Slezak
Candidate for
U.S. House, Michigan, District 5
Party	Republican
Prior offices
Michigan State House of Representatives
2008-2010
Education
Bachelor's	Yale University (1989)
Personal
Birthday	08/29/1966
Place of birth	Muskegon, MI
Websites
Campaign website
Jim Slezak campaign logo

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Jim Slezakwas a 2012 Republican candidate who sought election to the U.S. House representing the 5th Congressional District of Michigan. Previously, he was a Democratic member of the Michigan House of Representatives, representing District 50 from 2009 to January 1, 2011.

Biography

Rep. Slezak is a graduate of Yale University with a BA in political science. He and his wife, Kathleen, live in Davison Township and have three children, Bridgette, Gabrielle and Jack.

Career

• Owner, Photo Factory United States of America
• Representative, Michigan State House of Representatives (2008-2010)

Committee Assignments, 2009-2010

• Government Operations
• Labor
• Tax Policy
• Tourism, Outdoor Recreation and Natural Resources

Voting record

Key votes of 2009-2010

• Click below to see how this representative voted.
• Super Speedway, Lawmakers voting on whether TO EXTEND A SPECIAL TAX PERK for a super speedway.
• Driver Responsibility Fees, Lawmakers voting on whether TO IMPOSE 'driver responsibility fees.'
• Crony Capitalism, Lawmakers voting on whether TO RESTRICT THE RIGHT of shareholders to sell their own stock.
• Right to Work, Lawmakers voting on an amendment SUPPORTING RIGHT-TO-WORK zones.
• Dept. of State Cost-Saving, Lawmakers voting on whether TO SLOW DOWN PROGRESS ON THE SECRETARY OF STATE'S COST-SAVING CONSOLIDATION PLAN.
• Golf Carts, Lawmakers voting on whether TO SUBSIDIZE the production of electric vehicle batteries.
• Home Court Disadvantage, Lawmakers voting on whether TO GIVE MORE TAXING POWER to local government in Kalamazoo so it can finance a taxpayer-subsidized sports arena.
• Fire Safe Cigarettes, Lawmakers voting on whether TO BAN the sale of cigarettes that are not "fire safe."
• Balancing Act, Lawmakers voting on a budget to CUT REVENUE SHARING PAYMENTS to local governments as a way to balance the state budget without raising taxes.
• Balancing Act 2, Lawmakers voting on a cut of less than 3 percent to K-12 school aid payments so as to balance the state budget without tax increases.
• A Good Tax Gone Bad?, Lawmakers voting on the Michigan Business Tax.
• It’s From the Children, Lawmakers voting on whether to RAID $90 MILLION from the Michigan Higher Education Student Loan Authority.
• Left Behind, Lawmakers voting on whether TO FINANCE "No Worker Left Behind" with a 59.9 percent increase in general fund spending in the 2009 DELEG budget.
• First Class Schools, Lawmakers voting on whether to keep Detroit Public Schools' "first class" status even though the district no longer meets the population standard.
• Politically Correct Capitalism, Lawmakers voting on whether to INCREASE SUBSIDIES for plug-in traction battery packs used in electric cars.
• Politically Correct Capitalism 2, Lawmakers voting on whether to GIVE SUBSIDIES for Michigan film production.
• Politically Correct Capitalism 3, Lawmakers voting on whether to INCREASE ELECTRIC CAR SUBSIDIES for a subsidiary of a Korean battery company.
• Secret Ballot, Lawmakers voting on whether to keep a SECRET BALLOT for union elections.
• Property Taxes Assaulted Again, Lawmakers voting on whether to allow public schools to EXPAND THE USE OF SINKING FUND property tax spending.
• Sneak Attack, Lawmakers voting on whether to allow public schools to EXPAND THE USE OF SINKING FUND property tax spending.
• Grapes of Wrath, Lawmakers voting on whether TO BAN home shipment of beer and wine to Michigan consumers.
• Subsidize Manufacture of Electric Cars, Lawmakers voting on whether to authorize a refundable Michigan Business Tax credit for makers of plug-in traction battery packs used in electric cars.
• Authorize Special Tax Breaks for Ethanol Gas Stations, Lawmakers voting on whether to authorize a non-refundable Michigan Business Tax credit equal to 30 percent of the costs incurred by a gas station to convert existing pumps and tanks, or acquire new ones that deliver E85 ethanol or biodiesel fuel.

More voting record details

• List of all of Jim Slezak’s roll call votes, bills introduced, and floor amendments from MichiganVotes.org (use site’s “advanced search” to narrow by date range, issue category and/or keyword).
• List of Jim Slezak’s 0 missed roll-call votes

Elections

2012

See also: Michigan's 5th congressional district elections, 2012

Slezak was defeated by democrat Dan Kildee. Slezak ran in the 2012 election for the U.S. House, representing Michigan's 5th District. He defeated Tom Wassa in the August 7 Republican primary. He faced Dan Kildee (D), Gregory Creswell (L), and David Davenport (I) in the general election on November 6, 2012.

U.S. House, Michigan, District 5 General Election, 2012
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Dan Kildee	65%	214,531
	Republican	Jim Slezak	31.5%	103,931
	Libertarian	Gregory Creswell	1.5%	4,990
	Independent	David Davenport	2%	6,694
Total Votes				330,146
Source: Michigan Secretary of State "Official Election Results, 2012 General Election"

Primary results

Michigan's 5th Congressional District Republican Primary, 2012
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Jim Slezak	63.9%	16,929
Tom Wassa	36.1%	9,567
Total Votes		26,496

Media

In the video below, Slezak announced his candidacy in Michigan's 5th congressional district elections.

Jim Slezak, "Slezak Announcement"

Campaign Issues

Slezak highlights four issues on his campaign website.

• Creating a Climate for Job Creation

Excerpt: "Simplify our overly complex IRS Tax Code, remove burdensome regulations, and offer job creators more certainty."

• Healthcare

Excerpt: "The Federal Government takeover of healthcare has to stop. Jim believes we need to repeal the healthcare legislation that was passed in Washington D.C. The government cannot and should not be able to force the public purchase a product."

• Education

Excerpt: "The fundamental flaw we have in our education system is the Federal Government’s increased involvement in education. The government has spent too much time throwing money at education without understanding how to best spend our taxpayer money."

• Military

Excerpt: "Jim believes we must maintain a strong National Defense. The world we live in today is filled with uncertainty and the way to keep peace is through strength."

2010

Slezak did not run for re-election, although he was eligible to do so under Michigan's term limits.

2008

On November 04, 2008, Jim Slezak ran for District 50 of the Michigan House of Representatives, beating Douglas O'Neal and Kevin McKague.

Jim Slezak raised $81,217 for his campaign.

Michigan House of Representatives, District 50
Candidates		Votes
Jim Slezak (D)		29,792
Douglas O'Neal (R)		11,290
Kevin McKague (Write-In)		32

Campaign donors

2012

Above is a breakdown of funds for the 2012 election, according to source.

Slezak lost the United States House of Representatives election in 2012. During that election cycle, Slezak's campaign committee raised a total of $57,221 and spent $56,950.

United States House of Representatives, 2012 - Jim Slezak Campaign Contributions
Total Raised	$57,221
Total Spent	$56,950
Total Raised by Election Winner	$721,598
Total Spent by Election Winner	$579,339
Top contributors to Jim Slezak's campaign committee
Photo Factory Usa	$5,000
David Slezak Dds	$2,864
D&W Window	$1,000
D&W Windows	$1,000
Top 5 industries that contributed to campaign committee
Printing & Publishing	$15,700
Retired	$12,000
Health Professionals	$3,864
Special Trade Contractors	$3,400
Misc Business	$2,500

2008

In 2008 Jim Slezak collected $81,217 in donations.

His five largest contributors in 2008 were:

Donor	Amount
Jim Slezak	$52,514
Michigan Chamber of Commerce	$2,650
Michigan Education Association	$2,000
United Automobile Aerospace & Agricultural Implement Workers of America	$1,500
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan	$1,500

Campaign contributions

Contributions Report from Michigan Secretary of State

External links

Suggest a link

• Jim Slezak official campaign site
• Jim Slezak's personal website
• Michigan Legislature - Representative Jim Slezak
• Project Vote Smart legislative profile
• Project Vote Smart biography
• Michigan Votes - Jim Slezak
• Campaign Contributions: 2008