KYLE BLOMQUIST

IRON MOUNTAIN — An Iron Mountain City Council member will seek to represent Michigan’s 1st District in Congress, campaigning as a Democrat in the 2026 election for the seat now held by U.S. Rep. Jack Bergman, R-Watersmeet.

Kyle Blomquist, 40, an architect, said his campaign will focus on fighting for working-class families.

“As I seek to represent the hard-working people of northern Michigan, my guiding belief is this: to the highest extent possible, the government should provide for its people’s basic needs and should ensure that the people cannot be priced out of anything that is necessary to live a full, happy life,” Blomquist said in a news release.

Blomquist named these key issues:

— Medicare for All: Providing universal, inclusive and comprehensive health care to Americans, regardless of age or income, making claim denial and medical debt things of the past.

— Housing for All: Creating truly affordable public housing for all that need it and banning private equity from hoarding homes and pricing American families out of their own communities.

— Prosperity in Work: Fighting to protect unions, ensure living wages, paid time off, universal child care and paid parental leave for all American workers.

— Dignity in Retirement: Expanding Social Security benefits to lift retirees out of poverty.

A 2004 graduate of Iron Mountain High School, Blomquist attended Grand Valley State University with a dual focus in art and engineering, and obtained a masters’ degree in architecture from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. His graduate studies focused on alternative housing models as a vehicle for urban renewal in Detroit.

After graduating, he and his wife, Megan, returned home to the Upper Peninsula, going on to spark successful careers at Blomquist Architects, volunteering their time within the community and raising their twin sons.

He has served more than a decade on the Iron Mountain City Council and Planning Commission and is the city’s current mayor pro tem.

Blomquist said his vision for the future is to create a system designed for the good of working people, not to benefit the wealthy and powerful.

“I’m excited to meet working people all over northern Michigan — Democrats, Republicans, and Independents — to tell them that they deserve so much more than they have been led to believe, that their pain is real, and their frustration is warranted,” Blomquist said. “Many of our systems are broken by design, but preserving or replacing those systems is a policy choice we can make at any time. I want my friends and neighbors to know that a better world is possible, it is within our reach, and that we can build it together.”

Bergman has represented Michigan’s First Congressional District — a position that includes the entire Upper Peninsula and northernmost third of the Lower Peninsula — in Washington since 2017. He has already indicated he will seek a sixth term in 2026.

Callie Barr, who ran against Bergman in 2024 as the Democratic candidate, has declared as well for the 2026 race. An attorney from Traverse City, Barr has taught high school and advocated for military families.

In 2024, she won the primary race against Dr. Bob Lorinser to become the first woman in the district’s history to run for this seat in a general election.

Bergman in November secured 59.2% of the votes to 37.9% for Barr; a Working Class Party candidate and a Libertarian earned 1.8% and 1.1%, respectively.

Also running are Republican Justin Michal and Democrat Wayne Stiles.

Michal, who was raised in the town of Grayling downstate, started his professional career by serving in the U.S. Army. After retiring from the military, Michal’s work focused on veteran advocacy and his academic research has influenced systemic change in housing allowances for student veterans.

Stiles is focusing his platform on working families and community service, as well as advocating for the marginalized. A resident of Traverse City, he is a is a design architect and the son of union workers.

———

Compiled by Betsy Bloom, managing editor.