Bryan Kennedy has some compelling reasons for running for office and a unique perspective that is needed in Washington. His modest upbringing and middle class values have shaped his views and continue to inspire him to fight for the "regular guy."

Bryan was born on February 4, 1970, in Hagerstown, Maryland, a largely blue collar, middle class city in western Maryland. Bryan spent much of his youth as the only child of a single mother. He was very close to his maternal grandparents and spent a great deal of time with them when his mother was working. When Bryan was a teen, he and his mother joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. His mom eventually remarried and Bryan inherited two step brothers, in addition to gaining a father.

Bryan’s household was home to a pro-labor, working-class family, as his father and grandfather were members of the NEA and UAW, respectively. Growing up relatively poor instilled in Bryan an understanding that work is essential for success in life. With encouragement from his mother and grandparents, he excelled in school and learned to value education as a stepping-stone to a better life.

Bryan graduated in the top ten of his high school class and attended Brigham Young University on an academic scholarship. He took a two-year leave of absence to serve as a missionary for the LDS Church in northern Portugal. After returning to college, he became interested in Brazil and began pursuing the study of Brazilian culture and literature.

He graduated with his BA in Portuguese and political science in 1994 and went to work briefly on Capitol Hill for former Congressman Bill Orton (D-UT 3rd). Just after graduation, Bryan married his college sweetheart, Heather. Heather was raised on a family farm in eastern Oregon and studied social work as an undergraduate. After a year in DC, they moved to North Carolina to pursue graduate education. His wife Heather completed a master’s in social work and went to work as a psychotherapist.

Bryan became very actively involved in politics while a graduate student at the University of North Carolina. Bryan served for one year as President of the 9,200 member graduate and professional student body. During that year, Bryan successfully lobbied for significant state funding to benefit graduate assistants. He managed to secure $10.4 million for full tuition remission and graduate assistant health insurance for the UNC system. He did this by organizing graduate student government associations at several other UNC system schools and using the collective graduate student voice to lobby the state House and Senate. Bryan has worked on nearly a dozen political campaigns in Maryland, Utah, North Carolina and Wisconsin, including John Edwards’ victorious Senate campaign in 1998.

While Bryan was still in graduate school he and Heather had their first child, Noah. Leighton, their second child, was born at St. Mary's Ozaukee Hospital in Mequon in late 2001. Recently, the couple welcomed Aneliese, who was born on December 30, 2003.

After completing his Ph.D. in Romance Languages and Latin American studies, Bryan taught Spanish for one year. He was hired several years ago to come to UW-Milwaukee and reinvigorate a Portuguese language program that had been floundering. In the first year alone, enrollments tripled. The second year they increased another 35%. Bryan’s academic research is centered on life in the favelas (shantytowns) of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He travels there several times per year and lives among the poor, studying their way of life, culture, religious and political beliefs, and other aspects of their daily lives. He is most impressed with organizations that empower the poor to take control of their lives and try to pull themselves out of poverty through hard work and fiscal discipline.

Education has played an important role throughout Bryan’s life. Like his father, Bryan is an educator and union member. As a high school senior, Bryan served on his local school board. His experiences have taught him to place a tremendous value on learning. He knows the opportunities for advancement that a solid education can provide and therefore believes it is crucial to extend those opportunities to every American. Bryan has plans to improve the quality of K-12 education and to improve access to higher education by making it more affordable for every family.

In addition to his union membership, Bryan’s father was also a Vietnam-era Army veteran. In the 1990’s, Bryan’s older brother served in the U.S. Navy. Because of his family connections, Bryan knows first-hand what military families do for all of us, and also the struggles they face to make ends meet. Bryan thinks it is appalling that in the wealthiest nation in the world many of our servicemen and women qualify for food stamps and are often living just above the poverty level. He steadfastly supports our troops and will fight to grant them the pay and benefits they deserve.

He also understands that few things are as important as keeping families safe and healthy. As a member of the middle class, Bryan knows the costs of health care have risen astronomically and are often too expensive for the average family. One of Bryan’s highest priorities is to make quality healthcare more affordable. His signature proposal, a universal catastrophic healthcare system, is designed to remove the most expensive elements from the healthcare pool, to introduce competition in the health insurance industry, and to bring healthcare costs down.

Bryan will bring the values of a middle class family man to Washington. He understands the struggles of everyday people because he is one. He knows how hard the middle class work to pay their taxes, afford healthcare, and pay for their children’s education, and he believes that government must act responsibly with the people’s money. Unlike our current representative, Bryan’s achievements are due to hard work - not a privileged upbringing. He has worked hard for his family for years and he will work hard for yours in Washington.

External Links

Campaign site

Democratic Party of Wisconsin profile