Ron Meyer announced his official bid to become the nation’s youngest congressman in Virginia's 11th District against the Democratic incumbent Rep. Gerry Connolly (D) Monday, marking an early start to campaign season.
“Congress is robbing my generation blind, and I’m running to be the kick-starter for budget reform,” Meyer, a former spokesman and public relations officer for Young America’s Foundation and American Majority Action, told Townhall Tuesday.
Meyer announced his decision to face Connolly on the Fox News Channel, arguing that it was “time for a young American to lead now” because Congress has been heaping debt and difficult economic decisions onto future generations.
If elected Meyer, who will turn 25 in September 2014, would be among the youngest persons ever elected to the U.S. Congress, barely meeting the Constitution’s minimum age to serve as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives.
He first drew real attention in December and January by helping to stir up trouble against Boehner, initially by using the hashtag “#FireBoehner” on Twitter.
Meyer is the only Republican currently filed to challenge incumbent Congressman Gerry Connolly (VA-11), who nearly lost the seat in 2010—holding on by a mere 1 percent (just 900 votes).
In 2004 Gerry Connolly was charged with a hit-and-run, colliding with a car whose passengers included a baby and a pregnant woman, well-documented by the Washington Post and other media sources, but was found not guilty.
Connolly’s former opponent of the 2010 congressional race, Keith Fimian, claimed, “The judge said Connolly acted wrongly, but let him off because he was a powerful politician. Then Connolly punished the police force for issuing him a citation by firing the police chief.”
Last year Connolly (D-VA) recently told an audience that military Veterans are “unqualified to serve in Congress” because their deployments prevent them from putting “sweat equity” into their districts (via Jim Hoft):
Meyer says he plans to use his communications skills to unseat Connolly from his Fairfax-based district and help stop runaway spending in Washington.
“It seems the more "experience" politicians gain, the more they lose their integrity and forget how to balance a budget. With debt interest payments set to triple over the next decade, Congress needs a game-changer to balance the budget, save Social Security and Medicare, and preserve federal pensions, ” Meyer said in his statement.
“Who better to advocate for young Americans in Congress than a young American? I want to help break the gridlock at the Capitol by making a personal, powerful, and moral case for sustainable government,” Meyer said in a statement announcing his candidacy.
Meyer has so far garnered the endorsements of ex-Democrat, former Congressman Artur Davis who co-chaired President Obama’s 2008 campaign and spoke at the 2012 Republican National Convention and former Congressman Tom Davis, who held the 11th District seat for seven terms and served as the Chairman of the House Government Reform.
Davis said “Ron is a rising star in the Republican Party [and] has the ability to connect with ethnic voters, young people, and Independents as well.”
“The people directly affected by problems are usually the best advocates to solve those problems. Instead of just spouting the math, we need someone who can make a personal, moral case for why we need to balance the budget,” Meyer told Townhall.
No other Republicans have indicated that they plan to run for Congress in the 11th district.
In recent presidential contests, the cosmopolitan district voted 52%-45% for Bush in 2000, but only 50%-49% for him in 2004 and 57%-42% for Democratic nominee Barack Obama in 2008.
Connolly’s campaign declined to comment on Meyer’s announcement.