Angela Rigas

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In 2022, Rigas ran for the Michigan House of Representatives from the House District 79 in southwest Michigan. [4] The district encompasses the portion of Kent County that is south of M-6 and west of Alto, as well as a portion of Allegan and Barry counties. [8] Rigas was one of at least 13 January 6 attendees to run for office in 2022, [6] and one of ten 2022 Michigan candidates endorsed by Trump. [9]

She defeated two rivals in the August 2022 Republican primary election. [10] In the November 2022 general election, she faced Democratic nominee Kimberly Kennedy-Barrington, of Byron Center, a Navy veteran and small business owner. [8] Rigas won with 29,510 votes (65.77%), defeating Kennedy-Barrington, who took 15,360 votes (34.23%). [11] Statewide, however, Michigan Republicans suffered historic losses, with Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer winning a second turn and the Democrats winning majorities in both the state House and state Senate for the first time in forty years. [12] Days after the general election, Rigas, along with fellow Republicans Neil Friske and Steve Carra, formed the Grand New Party, a PAC that accused Michigan Republican leaders of being "too moderate" and called for a more aggressive strategy against Whitmer. [12]

Tenure

Upon taking office in 2023, Rigas joined the newly declared Freedom Caucus, a far-right faction of eight Republican state representatives. New Speaker Joe Tate initially did not give a committee assignment to Rigas, as well as Mike Hoadley and Matt Maddock; later, the three were added to the House Committee on Housing; Rigas complained about her assignment. [13] In March 2023, Rigas was appointed to the executive board of the House Republican Campaign Committee. [2]

In 2023, Rigas denounced a package of gun bills introduced by Michigan Democrats, including the Michigan red flag law, safe storage law, and universal background checks. [14] [15] In a floor speech, Rigas called the package an example of "tyrannical government"; [15] at a rally against the bills, she said, "We will fight those until they're overturned." [14] She sponsored legislation to allow the concealed carrying of handguns without a permit and described Michigan as a "Democrat dictatorship." [16]

In June 2023, Rigas was one of a handful of representatives to vote against legislation to raise the minimum marriage age to 18. The bill passed on a 104–5, with four other Republicans (Carra, Friske, Maddock, and Josh Schriver) also voting no. [17]

In September 2023, Rigas was one of 11 Michigan Republicans who sued the state in federal court, contending that Michigan voter-approved initiatives that expanded voting access (specifically, Proposal 3 of 2018 and Proposal 2 of 2022, which expanded access to in-person early voting and mail-in voting) were illegal. [18] The federal district court dismissed the case in April 2024. [19]

Rigas has been variously described as a resident of Alto [20] or Caledonia. [19]

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References

  1. ↑ "Angela Rigas". Ballotpedia. Retrieved 2024-02-08.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Laina G. Stebbins, Democracy expert cites concerns after election denier tapped for House GOP campaign panel, Michigan Advance (March 1, 2023).
  3. ↑ Eggert, Douglas (May 21, 2020). "Seven Barbers Ticketed For Cutting Hair". Newspapers.com. Detroit Free Press. p. A5. Retrieved 2024-03-28.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Laina G. Stebbins, Jan. 6 protester says police union endorsed her for the Michigan House, Michigna Advance (September 23, 202).
  5. 1 2 Lahut, Jake (2023-12-28). "Dems Target GOP State Lawmakers With Jan. 6 Credentials". The Daily Beast. Retrieved 2024-03-08.
  6. 1 2 Hutzler, Alexandra (2021-12-28). "These Candidates Who Were at Stop the Steal on 1/6 Are Running for Office". Newsweek. Retrieved 2024-03-28.
  7. ↑ Malachi Barrett, One year after Jan. 6 riot, Michigan election deniers hold more influence in Republican politics, MLive (January 6, 2022).
  8. 1 2 Audra Gamble, Two small business owners vying for West Michigan House seat, MLive (October 11, 2022).
  9. ↑ Jordyn Hermani, Trump candidates for Michigan Legislature go 6-0. But they were never likely to lose., MLive (November 19, 2022).
  10. ↑ 3 Republicans face off in Aug. 2 primary for state House’s 79th District, MLive (July 20, 2022).
  11. ↑ 2022 Michigan Election Results, Michigan Secretary of State.
  12. 1 2 Mauger, Craig (November 14, 2022). "Michigan lawmaker launches 'Grand New Party' PAC, says GOP was 'too passive'". The Detroit News. Retrieved 2024-03-28.
  13. ↑ Jon King, New GOP House members complain about committee assignments, Michigan Advance (January 14, 2023).
  14. 1 2 Nichols, Anna Liz (2023-10-07). "Michigan Republican legislators rally for gun rights". Michigan Advance. 'The Democrats have been able to ram through safe storage, universal background checks and red flag laws,' state Rep. Angela Rigas (R-Caledonia) said. 'We will fight those until they're overturned'.
  15. 1 2 Joey Cappelletti, Gun bills coming in Michigan after 2nd school mass shooting, Associated Press (March 12, 2023).
  16. ↑ Jordyn Hermani, If you can own a gun, you should be able to conceal it, say Michigan's GOP lawmakers, MLive (June 13, 2023).
  17. ↑ Michigan Legislature votes to ban child marriage, WXMI (June 20, 2023).
  18. ↑ Early voting, no-reason absentee is illegal, 11 Michigan Republicans contend, MLive (September 28, 2023).
  19. 1 2 Beth LeBlanc, Federal judge rejects GOP lawmakers' lawsuit challenging new voting rights in Michigan, The Detroit News (April 11, 2024).
  20. ↑ Brian McVicar, Kent County Democrats win big in state House, lose one of two key Senate races, Mlive (November 13, 2022).

See also

Angela Rigas
Angela Rigas by Gage Skidmore.jpg
Member of the MichiganHouseofRepresentatives
from the 79th district
Assumed office
January 1, 2023
102nd Legislature (2023–2025)
Speaker of the House
Joe Tate (D)
Speaker pro tempore
Laurie Pohutsky (D)
Majority Floor Leader
Abraham Aiyash (D)
Minority Leader
Matt Hall (R)
  1. ▌ Tyrone Carter (D)
  2. ▌ Tullio Liberati (D)
  3. ▌ Alabas Farhat (D)
  4. ▌ Karen Whitsett (D)
  5. ▌ Natalie Price (D)
  6. ▌ Regina Weiss (D)
  7. ▌ Helena Scott (D)
  8. ▌ Mike McFall (D)
  9. ▌ Abraham Aiyash (D)
  10. ▌ Joe Tate (D)
  11. ▌ Veronica Paiz (D)
  12. ▌ Kimberly Edwards (D)
  13. ▌ Mai Xiong (D)
  14. ▌ Donavan McKinney (D)
  15. ▌ Erin Byrnes (D)
  16. ▌ Stephanie Young (D)
  17. ▌ Laurie Pohutsky (D)
  18. ▌ Jason Hoskins (D)
  19. ▌ Samantha Steckloff (D)
  20. ▌ Noah Arbit (D)
  21. ▌ Kelly Breen (D)
  22. ▌ Matt Koleszar (D)
  23. ▌ Jason Morgan (D)
  24. ▌ Ranjeev Puri (D)
  25. ▌ Peter Herzberg (D)
  26. ▌ Dylan Wegela (D)
  27. ▌ Jaime Churches (D)
  28. ▌ Jamie Thompson (R)
  29. ▌ James DeSana (R)
  30. ▌ William Bruck (R)
  31. ▌ Reggie Miller (D)
  32. ▌ Jimmie Wilson Jr. (D)
  33. ▌ Felicia Brabec (D)
  34. ▌ Dale Zorn (R)
  35. ▌ Andrew Fink (R)
  36. ▌ Steve Carra (R)
  37. ▌ Brad Paquette (R)
  38. ▌ Joey Andrews (D)
  39. ▌ Pauline Wendzel (R)
  40. ▌ Christine Morse (D)
  41. ▌ Julie Rogers (D)
  42. ▌ Matt Hall (R)
  43. ▌ Rachelle Smit (R)
  44. ▌ Jim Haadsma (D)
  45. ▌ Sarah Lightner (R)
  46. ▌ Kathy Schmaltz (R)
  47. ▌ Carrie Rheingans (D)
  48. ▌ Jennifer Conlin (D)
  49. ▌ Ann Bollin (R)
  50. ▌ Bob Bezotte (R)
  51. ▌ Matt Maddock (R)
  52. ▌ Mike Harris (R)
  53. ▌ Brenda Carter (D)
  54. ▌ Donni Steele (R)
  55. ▌ Mark Tisdel (R)
  56. ▌ Sharon MacDonell (D)
  57. ▌ Thomas Kuhn (R)
  58. ▌ Nate Shannon (D)
  59. ▌ Doug Wozniak (R)
  60. ▌ Joseph Aragona (R)
  61. ▌ Denise Mentzer (D)
  62. ▌ Alicia St. Germaine (R)
  63. ▌ Jay DeBoyer (R)
  64. ▌ Andrew Beeler (R)
  65. ▌ Jaime Greene (R)
  66. ▌ Josh Schriver (R)
  67. ▌ Phil Green (R)
  68. ▌ David Martin (R)
  69. ▌ Jasper Martus (D)
  70. ▌ Cynthia Neeley (D)
  71. ▌ Brian BeGole (R)
  72. ▌ Mike Mueller (R)
  73. ▌ Julie Brixie (D)
  74. ▌ Kara Hope (D)
  75. ▌ Penelope Tsernoglou (D)
  76. ▌ Angela Witwer (D)
  77. ▌ Emily Dievendorf (D)
  78. ▌ Gina Johnsen (R)
  79. ▌ Angela Rigas (R)
  80. ▌ Phil Skaggs (D)
  81. ▌ Rachel Hood (D)
  82. ▌ Kristian Grant (D)
  83. ▌ John Wesley Fitzgerald (D)
  84. ▌ Carol Glanville (D)
  85. ▌ Bradley Slagh (R)
  86. ▌ Nancy De Boer (R)
  87. ▌ Will Snyder (D)
  88. ▌ Greg VanWoerkom (R)
  89. ▌ Luke Meerman (R)
  90. ▌ Bryan Posthumus (R)
  91. ▌ Pat Outman (R)
  92. ▌ Jerry Neyer (R)
  93. ▌ Graham Filler (R)
  94. ▌ Amos O'Neal (D)
  95. ▌ Bill G. Schuette (R)
  96. ▌ Timothy Beson (R)
  97. ▌ Matthew Bierlein (R)
  98. ▌ Gregory Alexander (R)
  99. ▌ Mike Hoadley (R)
  100. ▌ Tom Kunse (R)
  101. ▌ Joseph Fox (R)
  102. ▌ Curt VanderWall (R)
  103. ▌ Betsy Coffia (D)
  104. ▌ John Roth (R)
  105. ▌ Ken Borton (R)
  106. ▌ Cam Cavitt (R)
  107. ▌ Neil Friske (R)
  108. ▌ David Prestin (R)
  109. ▌ Jenn Hill (D)
  110. ▌ Gregory Markkanen (R)
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