PoliVion · Midterms 2026← Back to all races

2026 Michigan District 8 House Election

Kristen McDonald Rivet (D)

About this race

This is a closely divided district where either party can win. Nobody in this race has donations linked to AIPAC, the pro-Israel lobbying group, according to available records. The November ballot lists 5 candidates: one Democrat, one Republican, one independent, one Libertarian and one Green.

Key issues in Michigan

Major issues facing Michigan, based on 2025–2026 reporting. Compare them with what each candidate says they focus on below.

Candidates & funding

Kristen McDonald Rivet Democrat Nominee

✓ No AIPAC-linked FEC record
2026 fundraising (FEC)$6,820,546 raised · $3,628,168 spent · $3,209,409 cash on hand through Sep 30, 2026
Focus: Lowering costs, affordable healthcare, public safety, fixing a broken system, bipartisan results

Thomas J. Smith Republican Nominee

✓ No AIPAC-linked FEC record
2026 fundraising (FEC)$550,119 raised · $311,857 spent · $238,262 cash on hand through Sep 30, 2026
Focus: The Constitution, Faith, Freedom — 'Tom is in this race to WIN.'

C. Mia Pettus Libertarian Nominee

✓ No AIPAC-linked FEC record
Focus: Restore trust in government, constitutional freedoms, transparency, and public accountability.

Kathy Goodwin Independent Nominee

✓ No AIPAC-linked FEC record

Where the money comes from

FEC campaign finance data through Sep 30, 2026. Campaign dollars, by source.

Kristen McDonald Rivet DThomas J. Smith RC. Mia Pettus LJim Casha GKathy Goodwin I
Raised$6.8M$550K———
Individuals$4.3M64%$11K2%———
PACs & parties$1.9M27%$14K3%———
Self-funded$0$8K1%———
Other$614K9%$518K94%———
AIPAC-linked*—————
Outside spending†—————

* AIPAC-linked money is already counted in the rows above — it flags the pro-Israel share, not extra money.

† Independent spending on ads for or against a candidate. It never goes to their campaign.

“Individuals” covers both small-dollar (under $200) and large donors.

Who are the biggest donors?

Every donor ranked by how much they gave, from the candidate’s own FEC filings — individuals, PACs, and party committees all in one list. Expand a candidate to see theirs, then tap any name to learn more about the donor.

Why are so many gifts exactly $10,000? That’s the legal maximum a PAC can give one candidate for the whole cycle — $5,000 for the primary plus $5,000 for the general — so many PACs give the max. Individuals can give up to $3,500 per election.

Kristen McDonald Rivet 2476 donors
FINANCIAL POSITION
Campaign raised$6.8M
Campaign spent$3.6M
Cash on hand$3.2M
FEC 2026 through 09/30/2026
CANDIDATE-CONTROLLED MONEY
Individuals64%
PACs / committees27%
Self-funding0%
Share of campaign receipts. FEC 2026.
  • Membership PAC$23K
  • Individual$14K
  • Individual$12K
  • Individual$12K
  • Individual$11K
  • Individual$10K
  • Cooperative PAC$10K
  • Corporate PAC$10K
  • Trade association PAC$10K
  • PAC$10K
  • Corporate PAC$10K
  • Corporate PAC$10K
  • Leadership PAC$10K
  • Leadership PAC$10K
  • Corporate PAC$10K
  • Labor PAC$10K
  • PAC$10K
  • Leadership PAC$10K
  • Corporate PAC$10K
  • Labor PAC$10K
  • Membership PAC$10K
  • Trade association PAC$10K
  • Trade association PAC$10K
  • PAC$10K
  • Leadership PAC$10K
  • Corporate PAC$10K
  • Leadership PAC$10K
  • Labor PAC$10K
  • PAC$10K
  • PAC$10K
  • Leadership PAC$10K
  • PAC$10K
  • Leadership PAC$10K
  • Labor PAC$10K
  • Corporate PAC$10K
  • Cooperative PAC$10K
  • Labor PAC$10K
  • Labor PAC$10K
  • Corporate PAC$10K
  • Trade association PAC$10K
  • Labor PAC$10K
  • Corporate PAC$10K
  • Leadership PAC$10K
  • PAC$10K
  • Corporate PAC$10K
  • Labor PAC$10K
  • PAC$10K
  • Membership PAC$10K
  • Leadership PAC$10K
  • Labor PAC$10K

Showing the 50 biggest of 2476 donors. The other 2426 gave $4.3M combined.

Plus $388K from small donors giving under $200 each — those aren’t itemized by name.

See Kristen McDonald Rivet’s full FEC filings →

These figures come from the candidate’s own itemized FEC reports (2026 cycle, through the coverage date above), with amendments applied and refunds netted. Joint fundraising transfers are left out of the ranking: they’re pass-throughs, and the individual donations behind them are listed above. Bank interest, vendor refunds, and other non-donation receipts are excluded. Donor names are as reported — the same person can appear twice if their name was recorded differently. Independent spending on ads is never included here — see the Outside spending column.

Related news

More Michigan races

← Michigan District 7Michigan District 9 →
Share:XFacebookWhatsAppEmail