Saline Mayor Gretchen Driskell files to make campaign for Michigan House official

"As we saw last week, education will be at the forefront of our campaign," Driskell said in a statement emailed to supporters on Friday afternoon.

"From passing the controversial cyber schools legislation, to raising interest rates on student loans and defunding vital higher education research corridors like at the University of Michigan, Representative Mark Ouimet has the wrong values when it comes to kids, education and creating jobs in Michigan," Driskell continued, arguing Ouimet has "mislead his constituents time and time again by voting against what is best for us."

Driskell said while Ouimet can self-fund much of his campaign, she's relying on help from a large number of grass-roots donors who have already given to her campaign.

"This race will be close and starting early is key," she wrote in her email announcement, calling for donations of $10, $25 or $50 to help get her message out.

Ouimet defended his record in the Legislature, saying the Republicans have taken measures to balance the state's budget without gimmicks for the first time in years.

"Now we're within about a half a percent of the national unemployment rate," he said. "We've added 100,000 new jobs last year. We have improved our bond rating as a state. And we have put in place a tax system that helps 95,000 small business owners, the LLCs."

Added Ouimet: "And the bottom line is we took over with a $1.5 billion deficit and we're at about a $400 million surplus."

Ouimet had choice words for his opponent.

"I completely understand the level of frustration that she has, wanting to go back to the Granholm years," he said. "But I think our state has moved past that now and is focused on the economy and jobs."

The filing deadline is Tuesday. So far, Driskell and Ouimet face no challengers within their respective parties in the August primary.