Michigan's 8th District
Meet Kristen
Small Town Roots
Growing up in a small town in Michigan, Kristen McDonald Rivet was raised in a working-class household that valued hard work, education, and service to others.
For most of Kristen’s childhood, her Mom stayed home to care for Kristen, her twin sister Karen, and her older sister Lisa-Marie. Kristen’s Dad worked construction, often clocking in 70 to 80 hours a week. When the construction season slowed down and it got cold, he worked snow removal to make ends meet. Like many people in this district, he showered at the end of his work day, not before. Her dad wasn’t afraid to get calluses on his hands through a tough day’s work.
Kristen and her sisters were the first generation in the family to go to college, with their Mom joining them at the same time. Kristen went to Michigan State University and later got her master’s degree at the University of Michigan-Flint.
The Michigan Dream
Through hard work and grit, the McDonald family was able to achieve what Kristen calls the Michigan Dream: to own a home, pay the bills, put a little away for retirement, and, every once in a while, have the chance to go on vacation. With rising costs and flat wages, the Michigan Dream is slipping away for families today, and Kristen is committed to doing whatever it takes to make it a reality again.
A Record of Results - Before Holding Public Office
Kristen has dedicated her career to helping families and children have more opportunities to thrive, with particular focus on making childcare more affordable. \
As the Executive Director of Michigan Head Start, Chief of Staff for Michigan’s Department of Education, and Vice President of The Skillman Foundation, Kristen made big changes in Michigan to improve child care and education outcomes for children, revitalize communities, increase youth development programs, and create public policy that levels the playing field.
Serving Michiganders in Congress
Now, Kristen proudly serves Michigan’s 8th District in Congress, where her top priority is to take on the broken system and level the playing field for working families. She works with Republicans and Democrats on common-sense solutions that will make a difference — introducing bipartisan bills to lower the cost of groceries, housing and medicine, and to invest in child care.
She led the effort to allow working families on SNAP to buy hot rotisserie chicken. She stands by Michigan seniors and protects Social Security from extremists seeking to reduce benefits, and when Elon Musk tried to shut down Saginaw’s Social Security office, she rallied the community to successfully save it. She always stands on the side of people, not special interests.
Michigan needs more high-wage jobs. Kristen is helping us invest in our workforce to prepare Michiganders for the jobs of tomorrow, because while college isn’t for everyone, good-paying jobs should be. In the Michigan Senate, Kristen authored the largest tax cut for working families in Michigan’s history. She fights to make sure that we make things here in Michigan and stand up to China. And she prioritizes our safety, security, and hard-earned freedoms.
Kristen lives in Bay City with her husband Joseph, and their youngest son Elijah They have five other adult children – Courtney, Grant, Laken, Madison, and Ella and they just welcomed their first grandchild.
