Most campaigns will have a wordsmith write a flashy bio that makes the candidate out to be much more than meets the eye. I, on the other hand, would rather you know exactly who is running to represent you and why. These are my words, and they come from the heart.

Let me start by saying I am not a politician. I am not a suit who will sell your soul to special interests and corporations to make a buck. I am a proud member and product of the working class who is horrified by the state of affairs in our country and could no longer sit back and watch the devolution of our society and destruction of the American government by a handful of plutocrats.

I was born in Tucson to two wonderful parents who worked hard to raise my brother and I to be productive members of society by teaching the values of honesty, education, hard work, and integrity. As third generation Tucsonans, we came from a line of ancestry that included sharecroppers, civil servants, service members, and leaders in small business. Those same values our parents instilled in us were carried down from generations before them and are, in large part, a significant motivation for wanting to reclaim what is left of the society our ancestors helped create to reverse course before it crumbles to the ground.

While attending Canyon del Oro High School, I became inspired by the message of President Obama who was running for re-election at the time. Despite being sheltered from most of the world’s tribulations as a high school student, President Obama spoke to me with words of hope and change for the future – a message that has become lost in today’s bastardization of public service. Recognizing I was soon to be an adult and had to face the reality of the world beyond school, I subscribed to this message of hope and began doing my part by volunteering on campaigns for candidates I believed in. Before long, I was helping my fellow classmates register to vote by circulating forms and speaking in front of classrooms on the importance of exercising their duty as an American by voting in the upcoming election.

What seems like an eternity has passed since that election and the message of hope has drifted into the past right along with it. In that time, we have witnessed countless lives lost to war, disease, and addiction. We have seen unprecedented polarization and division in the name of party politics. We have seen a remarkable post-pandemic economic recovery shattered by a feckless trade war instigated by petulance at the expense of hard-working Americans. We have seen the systematic dismantling of the very institutions that make us whole as a Nation by an unelected oligarch. What we have not seen, though, is action by enough members of one of the branches of government who actually possess the ability to do something about it. Instead, many of them are too focused on being blind mouthpieces of their regime all the while lining their pockets with dark money from corporations and special interests who buy elected officials like commodities.

These people do not care about you, your problems, or your ability to feed your family because most of them have never had to experience hardship or live paycheck-to-paycheck. I do and I have. I started my career in construction at a young age and quickly learned what it meant to work hard to earn a living and consider myself fortunate to have had the privilege of working alongside many genuinely good people all just trying to make it. Throughout the years, I have shared in their grief of lost loved ones, celebrated marriages and the birth of children, and witnessed unimaginable circumstances that forced good people into the direst of situations. These are new blossoming families outgrowing their rental homes and being unable to compete with multi-billion-dollar asset management companies driving up prices on the real estate market. These are people working two and three jobs to make ends meet. These are parents waiting for the call to tell them their child has fallen victim to the disease of addiction. To most members of Congress, these people are faceless and nameless and do not even show up on the radar unless they are writing a check for the next re-election campaign. To me, these are friends, colleagues, and the people I am surrounded by every day in our community and I am running for Congress to finally give them a voice.

I recognize this will be an uphill battle. The system is not designed to allow young blue-collar workers into the highest levels of our government. The current system is quite content with perpetual tantrums and posturing between the two major parties at the expense of complete inaction. I, on the other hand, am not content, and you should not be either. These people are playing dangerous games with our lives, our livelihoods, and our futures. They have no idea what it means to be a normal American and it shows in every one of their actions. I also recognize I will have to earn your trust as a voter and I am prepared to do just that with the same work ethic I had as a young and ambitious greenhorn electrician. While other members of Congress hide from their constituents, I will be working hard to represent you with honor, integrity, and humility.