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U.S. Representative · Congressional District 4 · Maryland · 2026 Primary
A U.S. Representative serves as your district's voice in Congress, where they vote on federal laws, national budgets, and policies that impact daily life. They are responsible for securing federal funding for local infrastructure and helping residents resolve issues with federal agencies, such as the Social Security Administration or the Department of Veterans Affairs. This office matters because it ensures your community’s specific needs and priorities are represented in the national government.
View all candidates in this raceJonathan White is a retired US Public Health Service Commissioned Corps officer who served under four U.S. Presidents leading disaster and crisis response missions for the federal government. He most recently led disaster recovery and behavioral health missions for the Department of Health and Human Services during the Trump Administration, where he pushed back against family separation policies at the Southwest Border. White testified before Congress as the first federal official to describe harms of family separation to children and advocate an end to separation except for child safety reasons. He previously worked as an oncology social worker helping stage 4 cancer patients, taught college English, spent seven years on international labor union campaigns, and is a licensed clinical social worker in Maryland. Now retired from federal service in October 2025, he is running for U.S. Representative in Maryland to defend communities from what he calls Trump's unconstitutional abuses and restore critical federal programs destroyed by the administration.
Sources: Campaign website
I fought back against Trump's cruel family separation policy from inside government. Now I'm retired from the service and ready to fight in Congress.
I will never take a dime from corporations or their PACs. I am not for sale. And no billionaire would ever want me to win. So I count on individual small donations from real humans to keep fighting.
Nothing is more urgent for Democrats than stopping the brutal assault on federal career public servants, and rebuilding the critical federal programs that Trump has gutted.
Federal workers are being illegally fired, and hundreds of thousands of others of us have been forced to retire by a sustained psychological operation of what Russell Vought calls 'traumatizing' patriotic federal workers.
Source: jonathanwhiteforcongress.org
Federal Workforce Restoration
White prioritizes restoring the federal workforce and rebuilding critical programs destroyed by Trump administration, including USAID, CDC offices, and Department of Education. He proposes legislation to prevent presidents from impounding or repurposing funds, clarify Anti-Deficiency Act violations when agencies eliminate Congress-created programs, create direct hiring authority for immediate rehiring without competitive process, and establish monthly reporting requirements with specific timelines for restoration.
“Restore Federal Workers and Critical Federal Programs. Nothing is more urgent for Democrats than stopping the brutal assault on federal career public servants, and rebuilding the critical federal programs that Trump has gutted.”
De-Politicizing Government
White proposes eliminating Schedule C non-Senate-confirmed political appointees and shifting power back to career professionals. He argues political appointees are amateurs giving orders to seasoned professionals, and only politically appointed positions should be specifically created by Congress in statute with most being Senate-confirmed.
“I propose that we eliminate Schedule C. The only politically appointed positions in government should be specifically created by Congress in statute, and most of them should be Senate-confirmed.”
Independent Oversight
White calls for resurrecting independent oversight agencies including Inspectors General and civil rights ombudspersons that Trump has demolished. He proposes a new system with oversight agencies appointed by Congress but not subject to firing by either Congress or the White House.
“Trump, with complicity from his usual enablers on the Supreme Court, has demolished the system of Inspectors General, civil rights ombudspersons, and every other independent check on executive power.”
Hatch Act Modernization
White argues the Hatch Act needs updating to protect career professionals rather than tie their hands behind their backs while political appointees punch them. He notes current enforcement allows some politicians like Kristi Noem to use tax dollars for propaganda mills while ordinary feds face penalties for acknowledging abuse.
“The Hatch Act was intended to be a protective wall between career professionals in government and the political system. But today the Hatch Act is the rope used to tie career feds' hands behind their backs while political appointees punch them.”
“I will never take a dime from corporations or their PACs. I am not for sale.”
Source“Our education, healthcare, public health, scientific research, global humanitarian assistance, and disaster preparedness and response systems have been hit particularly hard.”
Source“I fought back against Trump's cruel family separation policy from inside government. Now I'm retired from the service and ready to fight in Congress.”
Source