Michael Bridgford is running for Congress as an independent, hoping to gain a seat in the US House of Representatives that acts as a marriage counselor or relationships therapist between Republicans and Democrats. He tells us that his independent voice is an advantage for him and for Iowa.
Most voters write-off independent candidates, but Iowa is a different story he says. 144,161 Iowans are independents. That number is within striking distance of the 166,348 registered Republicans and 153,396 Democrats in Iowa. Bridgford also explains his mission to get big money out of politics and restore the individual’s voice in Congress.
Bridgford is gaining traction in Iowa’s 1st Congressional District, where recent polling places him at 11%. Pointing to major party approval ratings sitting at 25% or less and Gallup data showing 45% of Americans identifying as independent, Bridgford sees an appetite for systemic change. “We’ve reached this point in time where we need people to actually represent the people in the district, not special interests, not having a party boss to answer to,” Bridgford stated.
After gathering nearly 4,000 signatures in 40 days to secure his ballot position, Bridgford aims to utilize the U.S. House’s tight two-vote margin—where 218 votes are required to elect a speaker—to force votes on single-issue bills like term limits and overturning Citizens United.
Hear from Iowans directly. No algorithms.
Don’t let the algorithms choose your news. Enter your email address to hear directly from Iowans leading news in politics, community, agriculture and business. No editing. No clickbait. No rage. No agenda.
Confronting Fiscal Debt and Market Competition
Central to Bridgford’s platform is confronting federal spending. With the U.S. spending $7 trillion against $5 trillion in revenue, the national debt expands by $90,000 every second, creating a burden of $120,000 per citizen. Bridgford highlighted that in July, 42 cents of every income tax dollar went strictly toward paying interest on national debt. To curb this, he proposes zero-based budgeting and a gradual path to a balanced budget by eliminating 25% of the deficit annually over four years. Bridgford also urged immediate action on entitlement funding before Social Security faces a mandatory 25% cut in six years, noting, “There’s just no conversation taking place.”
In addition to fiscal reforms, Bridgford champions antitrust enforcement in healthcare supply chains and advocates for surgical, targeted tariffs over broad trade wars. Positioning himself as a unifying negotiator, Bridgford stressed that fixing complex national issues requires bipartisan collaboration. “We need people in Washington that are willing to work with both sides, ’cause right now both sides are not willing to work with each other.”