People across Central and Southside Virginia are hard workers. From teachers, to roofers, to small business owners, to parents just trying to get through the day—we know hard work and we know what it looks like to show up for one another. But right now, the system is stacked against hardworking people here at home. The gap between billionaires and working families is the widest it’s been in a century, and Washington politicians aren’t standing up to corporations that took everything they could then left our communities behind. We need a just tax system where the wealthy pay their fair share and hard working Virginians can catch a break. We need an economy where people’s wages don’t stagnate for decades while their costs keep rising. Mike will fight for policies that give us the opportunity to get ahead and stay ahead.

Too many central and southside Virginians can’t afford to live in the places they call home. Ever since suffering at the hands of a predatory landlord in his first year of military service, Mike has been an advocate for fair and affordable housing practices. But currently, the federal government doesn’t invest in affordability with rural communities in mind, meaning too often communities like ours get overlooked and neglected. Mike will champion investments and partnerships to make our towns and counties more affordable for everyone.

Congress has been asleep at the wheel protecting hard working Americans. Mike has stood up to corporate special interests in the courtroom, and he’ll do it in Congress, from cracking down on predatory banks, lenders, and price-fixers to protecting our land and jobs from unchecked AI development.

We deserve high quality, affordable healthcare. Mike will fight cuts to Medicare and Medicaid that impact our families, seniors, and veterans. He’ll stand up to protect rural hospitals and expand rural healthcare. He’ll always work to protect reproductive rights and ensure we have access to reproductive care.

From watching his dad repair machines on the factory floor to his own years spent in the engine rooms, network hubs, and machine shops aboard warships, Mike understands the value of technical education and careers in the trades. Whether in advanced manufacturing or new fields, he’ll champion investment in apprenticeships, innovative job training programs, and efforts to strengthen our workforce that would give central and southside Virginiania’s future generation access to careers and futures, not just jobs.

Growing up in the ruins of a former mill town, Mike has lost family, and loved ones to the addiction, desperation, and despair our communities face when they’re overlooked and left behind. Our country should enable hardworking people to live their best lives without instability, insecurity, and anxiety. Programs like Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare can play an instrumental role in keeping folks afloat. But what if we had the support throughout our lives, not just when we're in retirement or dangling at the end of our rope? That’s why Mike will work to bring economic opportunity, services, and investment to Central and Southside Virginia, where our families can not just get by, but thrive.

We need to keep our promises to those who step up to serve and their loved ones. After serving three tours and deploying twice to combat zones, Mike knows firsthand the challenges servicemembers face when they come home. From improving job training pipelines, to ensuring older veterans get the benefits they deserve, Mike is invested in improving the lives of Virginia veterans and their families.