By Michael Piwowarski
SAGINAW – A former Saginaw city councilman is running for office.
Clint Bryant, who served on the council since 2016 and resigned earlier this year, kicked off his campaign for state representative Thursday, Feb. 27 at the SVRC Marketplace in Saginaw.
“I’ve seen a lot of change and been part of a lot of change on the city council,” says Bryant. “One of the things that I wanted to do when I was elected was, really, to be able to reach out to our students and to our neighbors.”
The SVRC Marketplace filled up with supporters as Bryant delivered his fiery remarks, focusing on poverty, labor and environmental issues.
“When eight in 10 of our students within our district live in poverty, our time is now,” Bryant exclaimed to an enthusiastic crowd. “[…] When we have polluters who are damaging our waterways, our soil, our environment, our time is now! When large, corporate special interests seek to infringe on workers’ rights, robbing them of the ability to organize collectively and bargain collectively, our time is now!”
Bryant considers transportation to be a major issue for his campaign. He believes Governor Gretchen Whitmer did a good job putting out her plan to fix Michigan’s roads, but acknowledges that it is difficult getting people from both major parties to work together on one issue.
“I imagine that we’ll be able to work on something within this next legislature to get something done,” says Bryant. “Because at the end of the day, we all travel the same roads. We all drink the same water. But the time for change is now.”
Another major campaign issue for Bryant is “workforce development,” having a background in public service. Bryant once served, for two terms, as president of the United Steelworkers of America Local 8410 / 9036-3.
“When I was growing up, everybody always pushed us to go to college. […] And I ended up with a significant amount of student loan debt because of that. But there’s other ways that our students can be successful. A lot of folks in our community are used to an economic climate in which they are able to work with their hands. And I still think that we can do that through skilled trades,” says Bryant.
Bryant points at a new skilled trade training center operated by YouthBuild USA, which will be opening up in Saginaw on May 1, as funded by a $1.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Labor.
With a background in public education, having served as a tutor for special education students at Saginaw Public Schools, Bryant wants to be a voice for students and teachers.
“I’ve personally gone into my pocket, but I’ve seen countless teachers do the same thing, where they’re having to buy pencils, paper resources that our students just don’t have,” says Bryant. “So being a school bus driver, I think, helps as well to see where our students live and see the conditions in which they come from and do what we can to bring about some change in their lives.”
Bryant, a Democrat, is running for the 95th district, which covers the City of Saginaw, Buena Vista Township, Bridgeport Township and Spaulding Township. He is running to replace term-limited incumbent Vanessa Guerra (D). Guerra is seeking election as Saginaw County Clerk.
The Michigan Secretary of State website also lists Brandell Cortez Adams, James Graham and Amos O’Neal as candidates who have filed to run for Guerra’s seat. They are also Democrats.
Bryant’s website is clintbryant.com, where supporters can go and donate to his campaign.
