The lady on the right is Nicole Bedi. She’s an awesome young woman who I met two years ago when I decided to run for county commissioner here in Oakland County, Michigan.
The dude next to her is her husband, Damanpreet. The adorable little girls are their daughters, as you probably figured.
Nicole is taking a second shot at running to be my state Representative here in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan (that’s how we met, on the campaign trail).
Michigan’s 40th State House district includes Bloomfield Hills, Bloomfield Township and Birmingham, along with about half of West Bloomfield Township. If “Bloomfield Hills” sounds familiar, that’s because it’s literally Mitt Romney’s hometown. Prior to last year, Democratic candidates typically languished in the mid-30% range, and none had ever gotten more than 42%; it’s been solid GOP territory for decades.
Although Nicole came up short in 2016, she crushed expectations, getting 47% of the vote and outperforming every one of the MDP’s officially targeted state house races. That’s a 10 point swing over the best performance any Dem has had in the district...by a first-time candidate against an entrenched, 2-term incumbent Republican with no particular scandals (well, other than being a Republican).
In 2018, MI-HD40 will be an open seat. I already thought it was winnable before last fall’s Blue Wave in Virginia; now I’m certain of it.
Michigan Democrats only need to pick up 9 seats in the state house to win back a majority.
Here’s her bio:
Born and raised Downriver in a working-class community, the daughter of small business owners, I learned the value of education, initiative and hard work. I began my first job at 12 years old, delivering News-Herald newspapers in my neighborhood. I attended Michigan State University and graduated with Bachelor of Science degrees in dietetics and psychology, and went on to complete a dietetic internship at the Massachusetts General Hospital.
For the past fifteen, years I have practiced clinical nutrition in academic medicine, caring for the sickest patients, helping them stay nourished and managing their metabolic needs. In addition to patient care, I have also been successful in publishing textbook chapters and presenting nutritional research at a national level.
In January 2015 I lost a colleague, shot and killed in the hospital where we had worked together. This tragedy would touch my family deeply, and became my call to public service. I began volunteering with a national group to mobilize moms, families and everyday Americans to advocate for stronger gun laws.
I am a graduate of the Emerge Michigan program, a leadership training for women, and I serve on the Board of Trustees for the Race Relations and Diversity Task Force, a sponsored group of Birmingham’s The Community House.
I live in Birmingham with my two smart and funny little girls and husband who is a transplant surgeon. On the weekends, you can often find us playing in the parks or enjoying Birmingham’s shops and restaurants.
Nicole is smart, organized and passionate about progressive ideals...especially gun violence prevention (for reasons which should be obvious from the above), public education, healthcare, supporting working families and improving our infrastructure.
Nicole has been working as a Moms Demand Action volunteer for years, trying to bring common sense gun violence prevention policies to Michigan:
As a mother, I want my two young daughters to grow up without the ever-present threat of gun violence. As a candidate for the Michigan House of Representative serving the 40th district, I want to see our state enact common sense measures to keep our communities safer from shootings, suicide by gun and tragedies involving children and firearms.
Michigan’s 2018 Primary is August 7th, but I believe absentee ballots start getting sent out this week. In recent weeks Bedi has rolled out a bevy of impressive endorsements and/or recommendations.
Please support Nicole Bedi for Michigan’s 40th State House District.
