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December 4, 2025
By Guy Marzorati
As Democrats look to make health care a defining issue in next year’s midterms, the party and allied groups are recruiting doctors to run against Republicans in some of the nation’s most competitive House districts.
Two California doctors — Assemblymember Jasmeet Bains and Rep. Ami Bera — are running in GOP-held seats seen as key to Democrats’ chances of flipping the House. Their early campaign ads and logos, filled with lab coats, stethoscopes and heart-rate lines, underscore Democrats’ bets that health care will be friendly terrain for the party and that doctors remain trusted voices for most voters.
That strategy builds on how Democratic leaders in Congress have fought the Trump administration on health care this year — from opposing Medicaid cuts in the GOP budget bill to grilling Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. over vaccine policies to shutting the government down in an attempt to force an extension of Obamacare subsidies.
“I think health care is going to be one of the number one issues next year,” said Shaughnessy Naughton, president of 314 Action, a group that works to elect scientists and physicians to public office.
Naughton founded 314 Action nearly a decade ago with the goal of electing more scientists. This year, the group launched an initiative, Guardians of Public Health, aiming to raise $25 million by 2030 to elect 100 health care professionals to state and federal offices.
“This year it became very clear that we needed to have a very strong message directly to physicians that are concerned about what is going on in our country,” Naughton said.
Across the country, Democrats with medical backgrounds in battleground districts include Amish Shah in Arizona’s 1st District, Tina Shah in New Jersey’s 7th District and Ada Cuellar in Texas’ 15th District.
Democrats are buoyed by polling that shows widespread public dissatisfaction with much of the Trump administration’s health care agenda.
A recent survey by KFF, a nonpartisan health policy research organization, found 63% of adults held an unfavorable view of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which paired an extension of tax cuts with historic reductions to Medicaid, the nation’s health care safety net.
Meanwhile, 78% of adults want Congress to extend enhanced tax credits for people who buy insurance through the Obamacare marketplace. Democrats failed to win an extension during the shutdown fight, but Republicans are now facing political heat as they near an end-of-year deadline to avert dramatic premium increases.
Even in the debate over childhood vaccinations, KFF found that a majority of parents value childhood vaccination for measles and polio — and distrust vaccine information from Kennedy.
The findings reinforce a longstanding Democratic advantage on health care, Ashley Kirzinger, KFF’s director of survey methodology, told me. Crucially, independents share Democrats’ dissatisfaction with the Trump administration’s health care moves.
And doctors running for office could be well-positioned to drive home the case.
“We know that doctors and health care providers are the most trusted sources of information,” Kirzinger said.
In California, that trust will be put to the test in the gauntlet of a midterm campaign.
After California voters approved Proposition 50 to redraw congressional district lines, Bera opted to run in the new 3rd District, currently held by Republican Rep. Kevin Kiley.
Kiley is deciding whether to run in his current seat against Bera or in the neighboring 6th District, where another Democratic doctor, former state Sen. Richard Pan, is running.
Bains launched her campaign for the 22nd District in July after incumbent Rep. David Valadao voted for the budget bill, which stands to hit the Bakersfield district particularly hard: Roughly two-thirds of residents rely on Medicaid, the most of any seat in California.
“Nowhere else has this much to lose,” Bains said in a campaign video, dressed in a lab coat.
Bains’ spot in the general election is not assured, as she faces strong competition from Visalia school board member Randy Villegas. Likewise, Pan faces a growing field of Democratic challengers in the Sacramento-based 6th District.
Both candidates will also have to contend with attacks from Republicans, including arguments that their most relevant jobs aren’t doctor but state legislator.
National Republican Congressional Committee spokesman Christian Martinez previewed a potential GOP line of attack: targeting votes by Bains and Pan to extend health coverage to undocumented immigrants through Medi-Cal, the state’s Medicaid program.
“They all have records of voting for extreme, radical policies — for defending and voting for illegal immigrants over the Californians that they’re supposed to represent,” he said.
But Democrats remain confident that as long as they’re talking about health care, they’re winning. An October survey by the Pew Research Center found the largest advantage for Democrats on any issue was health care by a 42%-29% margin.
December 1, 2025
(Philadelphia, PA) — New reporting from Bloomberg Government highlights how Democratic doctors are stepping up to run for federal office in response to RFK Jr. They’re running against his anti-science and anti-health care policy agenda, the risks that the Make America Healthy Again agenda poses to public health, and the Republican cuts to Medicaid and rising costs of health care.
“RFK Jr. is our greatest recruitment tool for doctors,” said Erik Polyak, 314 Action’s executive director. “With health care on the line for millions of Americans—2026 will be the health care election, and Democratic doctors and scientists are ready to lead Americans out of the mess that Donald Trump and Republicans have created.”
Bloomberg Government: “Democrats Are Running Against a Kennedy Over Health Care”
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November 28, 2025
By Mica Soellner
Democrats are recruiting dozens of doctors and nurses to run for office and give their counter-messaging against Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. a shot in the arm.
These Democratic candidates are highlighting their opposition to Kennedy’s Make America Healthy Again agenda. The controversial push, endorsed by President Donald Trump, favors cuts in Medicaid and health care spending, changes to how vaccines are tested, aims to eliminate food dyes, and investigates the causes of autism.
There are 28 medical professionals serving in the House, but just nine are Democrats, according to the House Clerk’s office. The Senate only has four medical professionals — all Republicans.
If Democratic candidates are successful, they could narrow the gap with Republican medical professionals and give the party new voices to speak about health care. Democrats only need three seats to regain the House, so a successful run by just handful of doctors-turned-candidates could shift control.
More than 50 candidates with a medical background are running for Congress or statewide this cycle, according to 314 Action, a group that seeks to elect Democrats with science or medical backgrounds. At least half a dozen Democrats are running in competitive seats.
“RFK Jr. is our greatest recruitment tool for doctors,” said Erik Polyak, 314 Action’s executive director. “With health care on the line for millions of Americans—2026 will be the health care election, and Democratic doctors and scientists are ready to lead Americans out of the mess that Donald Trump and Republicans have created.”
The focus on Kennedy — who is the nephew of former President John F. Kennedy and the eldest son of former Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy — extends the rare break for the party that has long revered the Massachusetts political dynasty.
Candidates rarely focus on the HHS secretary during their campaign, but Kennedy’s name recognition has made him a target. And Democratic contenders are showing few concerns about bashing the secretary, regardless of his family’s Democratic ties.
Most of the Kennedy clan has opposed Kennedy at HHS. Kennedy’s cousin, Jack Schlossberg, is running for Congress in an open New York City-area seat and has campaigned against his relative’s leadership at the agency.
Jack Schlossberg, grandson of former US President John F. Kennedy, is running against RFK Jr.’s policy platform in his House bid.
Meanwhile, HHS has defended Kennedy’s oversight of the federal health agencies and hit Democrats over the Covid-19 pandemic.
HHS press secretary Emily Hilliard said policies such as mask mandates and vaccine passports supported by Democrats have weakened trust in public health.
“They now present themselves as defenders of science after decades of overlooking the nation’s worsening health,” Hilliard said in a statement. “The American people supported transparency, accountability, and a system that restores decision-making authority to individuals. That is what HHS and Secretary Kennedy are delivering.”
But Democrats are aggressively continuing their crusade against Kennedy.
In January, House Majority Forward — the main Democratic leadership-aligned dark money group — launched nine Kennedy-focused digital ads against Republicans in swing districts.
Dr. Richard Pan, a pediatrician challenging vulnerable Rep. Kevin Kiley (R-Calif.), said running against Kennedy’s agenda has proven to be one of his most effective methods of fundraising.
“Parents are really nervous and even scared about what RFK Jr. is doing,” Pan told Bloomberg Government. “There’s a reason his popularity is actually even lower than Donald Trump’s.”
Many of those candidates are directly taking on Kennedy, who has been one of Trump’s most visible Cabinet members, often sparring with Democratic lawmakers over the MAHA agenda.
Dr. Tina Shah, who is challenging Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (R-N.J.) , said Kennedy’s agenda is “unprecedented,” and his rise was one of her motivations for running for Congress. Shah cited Kennedy’s firing of vaccine advisers earlier this year among her top concerns.
“As a practicing doctor, I just can’t take it anymore,” Shah said. ” We need to make sure we hold RFK accountable.”
Kennnedy’s HHS has also sought to cut funding for vaccine research and other research grants as part of the Trump administration’s efforts to shrink the size of the federal government.
Dr. Amish Shah, who is seeking a rematch against Rep. David Schweikert (R-Ariz.), said cuts to scientific research and grants have alarmed him.
“We want to keep progressing towards cures, towards better treatment,” Amish Shah said. “When you cut the funding for a lot of that research, it has us asking why are you doing that?”
Rep. Kim Schrier (D-Wash.), who is among the nine doctors in her party serving in the House, said she has been meeting with multiple medical professionals making runs next year. Schrier cited public trust in physicians as a reason they will make compelling candidates.
The push isn’t only coming in House races.
Dr. Annie Andrews, who is running against Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-.S.C.), has focused her campaign on health care too. She said that as Kennedy’s policies come into focus for voters, they are increasingly unpopular, and she has used Graham’s vote to confirm RFK Jr. as HHS secretary against him.
Kennedy was narrowly confirmed by the Senate, 52-48.
“It’s a deeply irresponsible vote that I plan to hold Lindsey Graham accountable for, and I plan to continue to campaign on the absurdity of RFK Jr. ascending to lead our nation’s health care system,” Andrews said.
November 20, 2025
by Joseph Choi and Nathaniel Weixel
On its “Autism and Vaccines” webpage, the CDC now states, “The claim ‘vaccines do not cause autism’ is not an evidence-based claim because studies have not ruled out the possibility that infant vaccines cause autism,” further claiming that studies supporting this link have been “ignored by health authorities.”
This change aligns the agency closely with the views of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. who has long promoted vaccine skepticism and for decades has supported the debunked theory that they could be linked to autism spectrum disorder.
Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), who was the deciding vote in confirming Kennedy’s nomination, pushed back on the update without naming anyone.
“It’s deeply troubling that, according to HHS officials, they appeared to have canceled hundreds of millions in research on autism genetics. Redirecting attention to factors we definitely know DO NOT cause autism denies families the answers they deserve,” Cassidy wrote on social media.
Major medical organizations summarily rejected this update.
“As public health professionals, we unequivocally support the use of vaccines to prevent infectious diseases. The science behind vaccines is robust and well-tested and the overwhelming consensus of scientific evidence is clear that there is no link between vaccines and autism. Vaccines have been rigorously tested and examined for decades,” the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials said in a statement.
The American Medical Association said, “Despite recent changes to the CDC website, an abundance of evidence from decades of scientific studies shows no link between vaccines and autism. Extensive and rigorous studies consistently show that vaccines are safe and effective at protecting against serious illness.”
The progressive political action committee 314 Action, which works to get Democrats in STEM elected to higher offices, labeled the page as “anti-vaccine propaganda.” 314 Action Executive Director Erik Polyak spread blame between both Kennedy and Cassidy, writing the senator’s decision to elevate Kennedy was a “reckless move that dismissed urgent warnings from thousands of scientists and medical professionals nationwide.”
Overnight, the Washington Post reported that the CDC has updated its website to promote disproven links between vaccines and autism. In response, 314 Action Executive Director Erik Polyak released the following statement:
“RFK Jr. has hijacked this CDC,” said 314 Action Executive Director Erik Polyak. “We are in dangerous territory when misinformation is being spread through official channels. Americans deserve access to trusted sources of public health information not political propaganda that has no scientific basis. There is no evidence that vaccines cause autism.”
“Senator Bill Cassidy is squarely to blame for this. He cast the deciding vote to confirm RFK Jr. as HHS Secretary—a reckless move that dismissed urgent warnings from thousands of scientists and medical professionals nationwide. Cassidy ignored the evidence before him and he’s the reason we’re this mess. Now, it’s time to elect doctors and scientists to Congress we can trust to get us out of it.”
314 Action is already working with nearly 100 campaigns launched for 2026 and 1 in 5 candidates are doctors. In response to this reckless administration and its unprecedented attacks on science and health care, a growing number of doctors are running for office. Earlier this year, 314 Action launched Guardians of Public Health, a targeted recruitment campaign and $25 million commitment to elect 100 doctors, nurses and healthcare professionals by 2030.
November 19, 2025
(Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) — Today 314 Action Fund, the nation’s only organization dedicated to recruiting, training and electing doctors and scientists announced the endorsements of Audrey Denney for California’s 1st Congressional District; Representative Dr. Ami Bera for California’s 3rd Congressional District; Dr. Richard Pan for California’s 6th Congressional District; and Dr. Jasmeet Bains for California’s 22nd Congressional District.
“California is going to be crucial as we work to flip the House and the best path to victory is by electing doctors and scientists to Congress,” said Shaughnessy Naughton, President of 314 Action. “Earlier this year, we were proud to stand with California during the redistricting fight. Now, we’re proud to endorse four candidates running in some of the most competitive districts across the state. These doctors and scientists have the expertise and experience to defeat vulnerable Republicans.”
Naughton continued, “We know that STEM candidates are most trusted among voters, especially when it comes to health care, giving our candidates a sharp advantage going into 2026. Dr. Ami Bera, Audrey Denney, Dr. Richard Pan, and Dr. Jasmeet Bains are ready to take on this fight and we’ll be supporting their campaigns every step of the way.”
Dr. Bera is one of 314 Action’s Vanguards of Science—the 314 Action-endorsed Members of Congress running in some of the most competitive seats this election cycle
Dr. Richard Pan and Dr. Jasmeet Bains are both 314 Action’s Guardians of Public Health candidates. They’re answering the call to run for office as 314 Action works to elect 100 new doctors and health care leaders to office by 2030.
314 Action is the only national organization working to recruit, train and elect Democratic scientists across all levels of government—from the Senate down to local school boards. The organization is powered by a grassroots community of over six million people supporting scientists and health care professionals who will use science and facts to address the most urgent issues facing our generation.
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November 19, 2025
(Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) — Today 314 Action Fund, the nation’s only organization dedicated to recruiting, training, and electing scientists and doctors endorsed Dr. Ami Bera for California’s 3rd Congressional District. With his 13 years in Congress, Dr. Bera is one of 314 Action’s Vanguards of Science—the 314 Action-endorsed Members of Congress running in some of the most competitive seats this election cycle.
“Dr. Ami Bera is not only joining the fight to protect and restore health care as a doctor, but as a proven leader in Congress,” said Shaughnessy Naughton, President of 314 Action. “As a founding member of the Democratic Doctor Caucus, Dr. Bera has gone toe to toe with RFK Jr. and pushed back against Republican attacks on public health. His expertise and knowledge is unparalleled, which is why we’re proud to endorse Dr. Bera as a Vanguard of Science. We look forward to electing him to California’s 3rd Congressional District.”
“Health care will be one of the top issues in the 2026 elections and, as a physician, I will always work to expand access to quality health care,” said Representative Ami Bera. “Since day one, I’ve fought to keep Californians healthy and safe. But now, Republicans are hiking insurance premiums, gutting funding to Medicaid, and promoting anti-science conspiracy theorists to run our health departments. I’m ready to take the fight to California’s new 3rd Congressional District and deliver real results for Sacramento County families. I’m proud to be endorsed by 314 Action and look forward to continuing to work alongside them.”
Dr. Bera was first elected to represent Sacramento County in November 2012. Dr. Bera served this community for 21 years as a doctor, as Sacramento County’s Chief Medical Officer, and then as a Clinical Professor of Medicine at UC Davis, where he taught the next generation of doctors to care for their patients. He’s a founding member of the Democratic Doctors Caucus.
314 Action is the only national organization working to recruit, train and elect Democratic scientists across all levels of government—from the Senate down to local school boards. The organization is powered by a grassroots community of over six million people supporting scientists and health care professionals who will use science and facts to address the most urgent issues facing our generation.
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November 19, 2025
(Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) — Today 314 Action Fund, the nation’s only organization dedicated to recruiting, training, and electing scientists and doctors endorsed Dr. Richard Pan for California’s 6th Congressional District. As a pediatrician, Dr. Pan is a Guardian of Public Health candidate. He’s answering the call to serve his community as 314 Action works to elect 100 new doctors, nurses and health care professionals to office by 2030.
“Dr. Richard Pan has the expertise, knowledge, and experience needed to stand up to Trump and Republicans in Congress,” said Shaughnessy Naughton, President of 314 Action. “Not only has Dr. Pan delivered real results for California families, but he’s taken on RFK Jr. twice after preventable disease outbreaks. There’s no one better equipped to meet this moment than Dr. Pan. As a Guardian of Public Health, he will deliver real results as he works to better the lives of everyone in the district. We’re proud to endorse Dr. Pan and look forward to supporting his campaign.”
“As a pediatrician, I devoted my life to ensuring that we keep our children safe and healthy,” said Dr. Richard Pan. “As a California state legislator, we reduced the number of uninsured by almost two thirds. In Washington, we need leaders who will fight to lower health care costs, not make it more expensive. I’ve proven it’s possible and I’m ready to take the fight to Washington with 314 Action.”
Dr. Richard Pan is a pediatrician, UC Davis professor and former California legislator. He earned his BA in Biophysics at Johns Hopkins University, MD at the University of Pittsburgh, and MPH at Harvard University and currently teaches health policy at UC Davis. In the legislature, Dr. Pan chaired the Committee on Health and led the state’s implementation of the Affordable Care Act. He also reduced the uninsured rate by two-thirds and authored California’s landmark vaccination laws.
314 Action is the only national organization working to recruit, train and elect Democratic scientists across all levels of government—from the Senate down to local school boards. The organization is powered by a grassroots community of over six million people supporting scientists and health care professionals who will use science and facts to address the most urgent issues facing our generation.
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