Dozens of medical professionals are running for Congress and top state offices in this year's midterm election. The Hill describes it as a Democrat-led response to the "Make America Healthy Again" (MAHA) agenda, which has had a large influence on national health policy 1.
Seven physicians are running for Congress, including Democrats Abdul El-Sayed of Michigan, Annie Andrews of South Carolina, Amish Shah of Arizona and Richard Pan of California. Nurse.org counts 14 non-incumbent nurses running as well 1. Congress now has 20 doctors, 16 in the House and four in the Senate, plus four nurses. More doctors and nurses are running than currently serve 1.
Why Democrats are recruiting them
A KFF poll released in June found that more people trusted their own doctor or health care provider than the FDA, the CDC, President Trump or Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. 1. A University of Pennsylvania survey in March found 86 percent trusted their primary care provider for public health information, compared with 38 percent who said the same of Kennedy 1.
Democratic strategist Celinda Lake said medical professionals often have no wish to enter politics, and that MAHA helped push them to run 1. Andrews, a pediatrician, has said she decided to run after Kennedy was nominated to lead the Department of Health and Human Services 1.
From Channel GOPEl-Sayed lists Mike Rogers' corporate donorsAbdul El-Sayed · 138 plays · captioned, with the source named
What MAHA has been good for is recruiting them, because so many of them see what’s going on and feel like they have to speak up.
The group 314 Action, a political action committee that backs Democrats in science and medicine, is supporting more than 120 medical professionals in congressional and state legislative races 1. Its executive director, Erik Polyak, said earlier this year that 2026 would be "the year of the doctor" 2.
Medicaid is a central theme
Many of these candidates attack the 2025 Republican budget law. Democrats say it includes about $1 trillion in Medicaid cuts over 10 years. Republicans say the goal is to reduce waste, fraud and abuse 2. Medicaid is the government health program for low-income people, including many seniors in nursing homes.
Mitchell Berman, an emergency room nurse challenging Republican Rep. Bryan Steil in Wisconsin, said Medicaid "afforded my mom an additional eight years of life" 2. Steil responded that Wisconsin began receiving an additional $1 billion a year in record federal Medicaid funding 2.
Republicans have doctors in the race too. The Hill lists neurosurgeon John Cowan of Georgia and internist Ralph Alvarado of Kentucky, both running for the House 1. Of the 20 doctors in Congress, 14 are Republicans 2.
What to watch
Two of the highest-profile races are close. Recent polling shows neither El-Sayed nor Andrews with a strong lead over their Republican opponents 1. Andrews faces the Republican incumbent senator in South Carolina 1.
If either Andrews or El-Sayed wins, they would be the first Democratic M.D. in the Senate since Ernest Gruening of Alaska left office in 1969 1. The Hill also notes that El-Sayed never completed a residency or held a medical license. His opponent, former Rep. Mike Rogers, a Republican, has used that against him 1.
That matters because health care costs and Medicaid are among the issues voters raise most. Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3.
The Record
- Survey from the University of Pennsylvania's Annenberg center found 86 percent trusted their primary care provider and 38 percent trusted Kennedy 1.
- A KFF poll found more people trusted their own doctor than the FDA, CDC, Trump or Kennedy 1.
- The Hill reports seven physicians and 14 non-incumbent nurses are running for Congress 1.
Sources
- The Hill, “How MAHA fueled a new wave of doctors running for office” (2026-10-24). thehill.com/policy/healthcare/6166776-doctors-running-congre
- ABC News / Good Morning America, “Democratic doctors and nurses aim to flip Congress seats with a focus on health care” (2026-09-18). goodmorningamerica.com/news/story/democratic-doctors-nurses-
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