Tom Izzo is running for state representative in Lansing. But it's more complicated than that

LANSING — Tom Izzo will be on the August ballot as a Republican candidate for state representative.

If your reaction is why would a Hall of Fame basketball coach run for public office, you're probably thinking of Tom Michael Izzo, the longtime Michigan State University basketball coach.

Tom Gerald Izzo, a candidate for the 74th House District seat that covers Delhi Township and southwestern Lansing, is a General Motors retiree. And a longtime MSU athletics fan.

"I was born in Lansing, grew up on the west side, now I'm on the southwest side," said Tom Gerald Izzo, who was out of high school and into his GM job by the time he heard about the other Tom Izzo.

The election won't be the first time people have mistaken the 61-year-old Tom Gerald Izzo for the 69-year-old Tom Michael Izzo. It's been happening since the early 1980s, when the older Izzo came to MSU for his first assistant coaching gig.

"It was right away," the younger Izzo said. "I started getting all kinds of phone calls, getting videotapes sent to the house. Parents would send in stuff for their sons."

The politics would come far later.

Izzo the candidate said he began to be actively involved in politics in 2020 during the presidential race.

"I saw all the irregularities in Detroit for the 2020 election," Izzo said. "That's when I got upset and started saying there's something going on here that is not correct, it's not right. After a year of watching everything, my daughter was telling me: 'Dad, quit yelling at the TV and do something.'"

So Izzo ran for Ingham County precinct delegate and won. He decided to run for state representative this year.

The 74th House District seat is currently held by Democrat Kara Hope, who is seeking another term. The Holt resident won the longtime Democratic seat in 2022 with 69% of the vote.

A look at their politics

Tom Izzo, the basketball coach, doesn't dabble much in politics, according to state and federal records, although his disdain for the University of Michigan is well-documented.

He gave $450 to the 1994 U.S. Senate campaign of Joel Ferguson, a longtime former MSU trustee. Ferguson lost the Democratic primary that year.

Michigan State University Athletics spokesman Matt Larson was traveling and not available for comment.

Tom Izzo, the GM retiree, was an active small-dollar donor to Republican campaigns from 2020 to 2022 with at least $460 in donations under his name.

He gave dozens of times. His highest donation was $42.75 to Donald Trump for President Inc., and his lowest was 9 cents to the Republican National Committee. His donations included giving to Kristina Karamo's Secretary of State campaign, Trump Make America Great Committee and WinRed, a Republican fundraising platform.

Securing the border

Izzo said his priorities would include securing the country's southern border and preventing Michigan from becoming a sanctuary state or having sanctuary cities as a way to combat fentanyl overdoses.

"I have a personal aspect to that, I lost a 39-year-old nephew to it last year," Izzo said. "Every other issue, every other vote that I would take, I would take into account the economy, and how it would affect the people that are living paycheck to paycheck."

Hope, the Democrat incumbent, said she plans to remind voters of her record, including working with Democrats to reform juvenile justice, as well as efforts to fully fund special education and offer free lunches and breakfasts for school students.

"I will stand on my record and people will maybe be shocked to learn that this Tom Izzo is a conspiracy theorist and election denier, or at least that’s what his Facebook page says," Hope said.

Candidate Izzo said he has been a Michigan State University athletics fan for decades and has met the famous Izzo a handful of times.

They do pronounce their names differently. The candidate uses Eye-zo, while the coach uses Iz-zo.

He said he's traced his ancestors, including a grandfather who was a shoemaker, to a small Italian town near where he believes the other Izzo's grandfather was also a shoemaker. The GM retiree believes they're at least distantly related.

Expect the green and white to be present in candidate Izzo's campaign.

"Any advertisements or publications I put out?" Izzo said, "Yes, they will be green and white."

Contact Mike Ellis at mellis@lsj.com or 517-267-0415

This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Tom Izzo is running for state representative in Lansing. But it's not that Izzo