Michigan voters have already started casting ballots ahead of the August primary.

Perhaps the biggest contest on the ballot is the Democratic race in the 8th Congressional District.

Last November, incumbent Democratic congressman Dan Kildee surprised many when he announced he would not seek re-election in 2024.

The decision marked the end of decades of Kildee family control of the mid-Michigan congressional seat, and possibly along with it, a half century of Democratic control of the seat representing Flint.

The 8th District, which stretches from Democratic strongholds in Genesee County to solidly Republican Midland County, is seen as a toss-up.

“Hi everybody. Welcome, please feel free to gather round,” a speaker told a small crowd gathered last month on the Saginaw County courthouse lawn to mark the anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

At the rally, State Sen. Kristen McDonald Rivet (D-Bay City) related the importance of the 8th district race to the abortion debate.

“In this toss-up U.S. House race, we have pro-choice Democrats running against anti-abortion extremists. Period. That is the choice that’s on the ballot,” McDonald Rivet told the pro-choice crowd.

McDonald Rivet is one of three candidates vying for the Democratic nomination in the 8th Congressional primary. The others are state Board of Education president Pamela Pugh and former Flint Mayor Matt Collier.

While each candidate placed reproductive rights as a top issue in November, McDonald Rivet sees the economy as the key issue in the Democratic Party primary.

“We have to talk about our fundamental rights. We have to talk about gun violence,” said McDonald Rivet, “But people really want folks who are going to roll up their sleeves and figure out how to make it easier to live in the middle class.”

McDonald Rivet says congress needs to do more to address the cost of housing, saving for retirement and paying for prescription drugs.

Pamela Pugh announced her plans for the 2024 election early in 2023. But at the time, Pugh’s plan was to run for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by retiring Senator Debbie Stabenow. But plans change. After Kildee’s retirement announcement, Pugh switched her campaign to the 8th district.

Sitting in a Saginaw coffee shop, Pugh discussed what she sees as the top priority in the 8th district Democratic primary.

“Economy, economy, economy.” Pugh said, “It doesn’t matter what neighborhood you’re in. It doesn’t matter what sector I’m talking to. It is about the economy.”

Pugh contends “economic dignity for all” and a family sustaining wage are essential to a good quality of life. She cites investing in education as key to addressing the economy.

Pugh and McDonald Rivet both currently serve in high profile elected offices.

For Matt Collier, it’s been nearly 40 years since he was elected Flint’s youngest mayor back in the 1980s. Since then, the West Point grad has worked in the private sector, as well as the Obama administration.

“My story starts here on the ice in Flint, where you learn how to pick yourself up when life knocks you down,” Collier said in his first TV campaign commercial, showing him playing hockey at a local ice rink.

Sitting in a Flint diner, Collier said keeping the seat, long-held by Dale and Dan Kildee, Democratic is important.

“There’s pressure — but not because of the Kildee family — more because on the Democratic side to retain the seat for this country, for the sanity of this country,” said Collier.

The former mayor said political divisions in Washington has resulted in the current session of Congress being one of the least productive in U.S. History.

Paul Rozycki is a retired political science professor at Mott Community College. The longtime observer of Flint regional politics says the August primary winner may face a significant challenge keeping the eighth district in the Democratic column in November.

“I have a hunch that in many ways you could take a look at the 8th District and see it as a mirror of some of the dissatisfaction that’s rumbling across a lot of the country in the last almost eight years,” said Rozycki.

Rozycki expects the 8th district will be the most competitive race in Michigan this fall.

Two weeks after winning an NBA title, Xavier Tillman has signed on to stay with the Boston Celtics.

Tillman, the Grand Rapids native and former Michigan State player, signed a two-year contract to return to the Celtics, according to ESPN.

The Boston Globe reported that the contract will be for a veteran’s minimum salary, approximately $2.2 million per year, and is fully guaranteed.

Tillman joined the Celtics in a midseason trade from the Memphis Grizzlies; he averaged 5.3 points and 3.9 rebounds over the course of the season.

He played sparingly in the playoffs but saw 11 minutes of action in Game 3 of the NBA finals, recording three points, four rebounds and two blocks in a Celtics win.

Tillman has now played four NBA seasons since being a second-round pick out of Michigan State in 2020.

Tillman is the second former Michigan State to sign since NBA free agency opened on Monday; Gary Harris signed a two-year contract with the Orlando Magic.

Michigan is in good shape for Fourth of July fireworks and campfires thanks to recent rains throughout the state, but experts still recommended caution as the holiday approaches.

Only a portion of central Michigan is considered “abnormally dry” on the national drought monitor’s latest condition report. Above-average rainfall through the first half of the year staved off the kinds of dry conditions that could make campfires and fireworks especially dangerous.

It won’t last forever. Michigan’s typical dry season starts mid-July and picks up intensity in mid-August. This year likely will follow that pattern, said Paul Rogers, Michigan Department of Natural Resources fire prevention specialist.

“Conditions are actually far better than they were last year,” Rogers said, referring to the dry early summer in which Gov. Gretchen Whitmer warned Michigan residents not to light campfires. “We’re starting to see some typical seasonal drought, but a lot of areas around the state have gotten a fair amount of rain so conditions are fairly good.”

Around the Fourth of July holiday, careful fireworks and campfire use is top of mind for Michigan fire fighters even with the relatively good conditions.

Despite the relatively good statewide conditions, long grass or bushes could still be unexpectedly dry, Redford Township Fire Department Chief Scott Demhoff said. And they burn fast.

“People don’t realize it’s actually on fire until it’s too late,” he said.

Demhoff recommended people water their lawns before lighting campfires.

The biggest issue with campfires in Redford Township is smoke, Demhoff said. Township residents are supposed to burn seasoned wood, nothing recently cut, to keep smoke levels down and avoid filling a neighbor’s yard or house with smoke.

Humid weather also exacerbates the problem, since smoke hangs low to the ground and doesn’t dissipate, Demhoff said.

Fire safety also is on people’s minds in northern Michigan during the Fourth of July weekend, when the region experiences heavy vacation traffic. A 97-foot-tall Smokey Bear balloon will be parade marshal for the DTE Energy Foundation Cherry Royale Parade at the National Cherry Festival in Traverse City on Saturday, marking the character’s 80th birthday.

“Smokey is a fire prevention icon,” Rogers said. “The balloon brings attention to Smokey’s very important cause.”

The cause? Forest fire prevention. That’s especially important to remember when lighting Fourth of July celebratory fireworks, Rogers said.

“We always ask people not to launch fireworks off into the woods because they can sit there and smolder for long amounts of time,” he said.

When it comes to campfires, Rogers said people should check that they are allowed before gathering kindling. The DNR determines when burn permits are needed in the Upper Peninsula and northern Lower Peninsula. Municipalities or local fire departments make those decisions in the southern Lower Peninsula.

People should always have water and a shovel nearby before lighting campfires, Roger said, and never throw spent fireworks into a fire.

“You don’t know what’s left in them,” he said. “Put them into a bucket of water and let them soak down.”

The Fourth of July and weekend weather forecast is pretty typical for July, said Alex Manion, a National Weather Service meteorologist stationed in White Lake.

Temperatures will be in the mid-80s on the Fourth of July, with temperatures in Detroit reaching a few degrees warmer, Manion said. Winds should be light during the day. There could be showers or storms in the afternoon and evening, but only with a likelihood of about 25%, he said.

Meteorologists expect showers and storms on Friday afternoon, Manion said. The rest of the weekend likely will be dry, with temperatures around 80 degrees on Saturday and low to mid-80s on Sunday.

ckthompson@detroitnews.com