Birnamwood resident Ben Hable is tired of seeing representatives in Congress who don’t look like him and don’t hold his values, so he’s planning to be the voice of the people as he announced his candidacy for the 8th Congressional District seat currently held by Rep. Tony Wied.
So far, three Democrats have announced their candidacy, with the primary just shy of a year away. Besides Hable, Rick Crosson, of Green Bay, and Mark Scheffler, of Appleton, have thrown their hats into the ring. Whoever wins the primary Aug. 13, 2026, is expected to face off against Wied.
“I did decide to run this spring, and that seems like it’s out of nowhere,” Hable said. “It was a long, long time of frustration not seeing candidates I wanted to vote for. Just with the whole way that the political discord is now, I wanted someone looking like me, or a younger candidate.”
Hable, 41, said he’s in a unique situation, having been on disability since February 2022. He noted many candidates for office have jobs that can limit the time that can be spent campaigning, but he has the time to stump.
“The way things go now, you have to have lots of time,” Hable said.
This is the first time Hable has run for political office.
He noted that it’s important to have youth leadership at a time when the average member age of Congress is 57.5 years old, according to the Pew Research Center.
“That’s what I admired most about (George) Washington. He wanted the youth to lead the nation and drive the nation forward,” Hable said. “I think we’ve done him a great disservice by not making sure that there’s turnover and making sure that young voices are in Congress so that we can push things forward.”
Health care is a big issue that Congress is not dealing with, according to Hable.
“The promises we were made through the Affordable Care Act have not really come to fruition,” he said. “They’re right now battling and shutting down the government because of premium prices for insurance, closing hospitals in rural areas. There’s a lot that comes from health care and the cost of health care and even the VA benefits for health care.”
Hable is also concerned about the anger and animosity toward minority groups. He said he speaks from experience, being both transgender and autistic.
“There’s a lot of hate for diversity and for inclusion,” Hable said. “There’s a lot of misinformation about minority groups and different aspects of people’s lives.”
Hable added a lot of the Trump administration’s actions have made it difficult for people to become educated on autism, transgenderism and other issues.
“Trans people have become a political scapegoat,” he said. “We’re being told we’re not allowed to exist by a lot of people.”
The 8th Congressional District has been a Republican stronghold for decades, providing a challenge for Democratic opponents. Hable noted the district is large, which provides any opponents with difficulty in reaching everyone, but he plans to do what is necessary to get people to vote for him.
“I’m hoping that people see who I am, how I’m able to represent myself, how I fight for the things I believe in,” Hable said. “I hope people in this district actually want a congressperson that is there for them instead of just another businessperson. I hope to get a lot of the under-50 crowd really excited to vote.”
Hable added that he’d like to see all primaries with a candidate 40 years of age or less to give younger people the motivation to vote.
lpulaski@newmedia-wi.com
