Former House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md. is being primaried by a man who once appeared on "Jeopardy!"
Harry Jarin, a 35-year-old emergency services consultant, said Hoyer, 85, "represents a bygone era of politics that isn't working.
"I've seen from the inside how the Democratic Party has totally lost touch with working people," Jarin, who also serves as a volunteer firefighter, said. "We didn't present a vision of the future or politicians that people could relate to, and that's what opened the door for Trump and extremist Republicans to take power."
In his statement, Jarin highlighted Hoyer's age and the fact that he's the longest-serving Democrat in Congress.
"He's held this seat since 1981," Jarin said. "He's been in Congress for over 44 years — and he'll be 89 years old at the end of the next term. Hoyer and the old guard in Washington had decades to fix the problems we're now drowning in. They didn't take on the fascist MAGA movement when it was rising — and now it's firmly in power. Democrats lost because too many voters stopped believing we could actually deliver for them. Maryland deserves a new generation of leadership.
Hoyer has yet to announce if he's running for re-election.
"Steny is still operating in this 1980s information environment where maybe he does some media hits and he stands on the floor of the House and makes a speech to an empty chamber and nobody's watching," Jarin told Politico. "We're not reaching young voters. I'm not trying to be cruel or callous, but I want Democrats to win, and there are consequences for having this gerontocracy, and we have to reckon with that."
Jarin's primary challenge comes as Democratic National Committee Vice Chair David Hogg has vowed to spend $20 million primarying Democrat incumbents he believes are "ineffective and asleep-at-the-wheel." Hogg has said he will not fund a primary challenge against Hoyer.
Jarin appeared on Jeopardy last December, where he finished in third place.
Sam Barron ✉
Sam Barron has almost two decades of experience covering a wide range of topics including politics, crime and business.
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