The Michigan Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday that John Conyers III won’t be among the official field of candidates running for his father’s vacant seat in Congress.
When John Conyers stepped down in December after more than five decades in Congress, he endorsed his 27-year-old son to replace him.
Conyers III filed paperwork to get on the August Democratic primary ballot. But his cousin, Detroit State Senator Ian Conyers, who’s also running for the seat, challenged his nominating petitions.
The Wayne County clerk upheld that challenge, finding Conyers III did not get enough valid petition signatures to make the ballot. Conyers III’s campaign appealed that ruling, but lost in Wayne County Circuit Court and now in the Michigan Court of Appeals as well.
That means Conyers' name remains off the ballot, with a write-in campaign likely his only remaining option. A call to Conyers III’s campaign headquarters was not answered Thursday.
There are six Democrats on the August primary ballot in Michigan’s 13th Congressional District. In addition to Ian Conyers, they include State Senator Coleman Young II, Detroit City Council President Brenda Jones, former state representatives Rashida Tlaib and Shanelle Jackson, and Westland Mayor Bill Wild.
Whoever wins that primary will go to Congress, because there are no Republicans running in the 13th District.
