Brian Poindexter stands at a construction site in steel-toed boots, a hard hat on his head, and 25 years of ironworking experience in his bones. He's an apprentice instructor at Ironworkers Local 17, a five-term Brook Park City Councilman, and one of eight Democrats challenging Republican Rep. Max Miller in Ohio's 7th Congressional District.

Max Miller stands in Congress with a Trump endorsement in his pocket, a family fortune built on real estate development behind him, and a voting record that puts corporate tax cuts ahead of workers' rights.

The contrast isn't subtle. It's the point.

The Candidates: Two Worlds Apart

Brian Poindexter is 53 years old, a union ironworker who has spent his life building things — bridges, hospitals, schools. He's an apprentice instructor at Ironworkers Local 17, teaching the next generation the trade that built his livelihood. He's served five terms on the Brook Park City Council, representing the working-class community where he lives.

Max Miller is the scion of the Forest City real estate empire. His grandfather, Samuel H. Miller, was the co-chair emeritus of Forest City Realty Trust, a real estate development firm acquired in 2018 for $6.8 billion (excluding debt). Miller loaned more than $1 million to his own campaign from his personal wealth. Before entering Congress, he served as a White House aide to Donald Trump.

One candidate learned his trade on the job site. The other inherited a fortune and a political connection.

Poindexter's campaign message is direct:

"He either doesn't know what working people are going through, or he doesn't care."

The Record: Who Stands With Workers?

The voting record tells the story.

Max Miller's record:

• ❌ Voted against the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act — legislation that would make it easier for workers to form unions and bargain collectively
• ❌ Supported legislation that stripped collective bargaining rights from federal workers
• ❌ Backed Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill" tax package — delivered tax cuts to the wealthy and corporations while cutting Medicaid, SNAP, and ACA coverage, causing hundreds of thousands to lose health insurance

Brian Poindexter's platform:

• ✅ Supports raising the federal minimum wage (hasn't increased since 2009)
• ✅ Sharp critic of trickle-down economics and trade deals like NAFTA that pit American workers against lower-wage workers abroad
• ✅ Argues that investing in workers drives growth more effectively than tax cuts at the top

The difference is personal for Poindexter.

"We don't have the money for things to help working people out, but we have money for wars and bombing people," Poindexter said. "I really disagree with all that."

The District: Working-Class Roots, Republican Leaning

Ohio's 7th Congressional District is a Republican-leaning district that includes:

• Southern and western Cuyahoga County
• Northern Wayne County
• All of Medina and Ashland counties

The district backed Trump by 11 points in the last election. The Cook Political Report gives Republicans a 5 percentage point edge.

"Ohio's 7th Congressional District is a great place to live, work & raise a family. And it could be the best place to watch the @Browns win in the future!" — @RepMaxMiller, X/Twitter

But it's a district with deep working-class roots. It's a district of factory workers, ironworkers, teachers, and small business owners. It's a district that, like much of the Midwest, has seen:

• Jobs disappear
• Wages stagnate
• Costs rise

That's where Poindexter sees his opening.

"I am tired of the Republicans who are in the pockets of the rich and the corporations. And sell out Democrats too, the ones who fight for everybody else, except for the working people." — Brian Poindexter, campaign announcement

He argues that Democrats let their worker-first message get crowded out by social issues, and that's why the party has been losing working-class and rural voters. He believes his blue-collar bona fides will give him credibility with those voters — credibility that a wealthy, Trump-loyalist incumbent can't match.

Republican Rep. Max Miller, who served as a White House aide to Trump before entering Congress, speaks at a 2022 campaign rally. Miller is one of Trump's most loyal followers and is being challenged by eight Democrats including union ironworker Brian Poindexter.

The Field: Eight Democrats, One Primary

Poindexter isn't alone. Eight Democrats are challenging Miller in the May 5 primary:

1. Brian Poindexter — Union ironworker, Brook Park City Councilman
2. Ed Fitzgerald — Former Cuyahoga County Executive (2014 Democratic nominee for governor)
3. Ann Marie Donegan — Former Olmsted Falls Mayor
4. Scott Schulz — Former Bay Village School Board President
5. Michael Eisner —Attorney
6. John Butchko — Retired United Methodist Church pastor
7. Laura Rodriguez-Carbone — Lakewood
8. Keith Mundy — Parma, repeat congressional candidate

What makes Poindexter stand out is the union backing he's secured.

"There is a reason so many candidates have crowded into the Democrat primary. Not one has a record of real accomplishment with the credibility to clear the field." — Rep. Max Miller

"They are competing to prove who can be the furthest to the left and the most disconnected from the priorities of this district" and running "fantasy presidential campaigns built on national talking points." — Rep. Max Miller

### Poindexter's Endorsements

• 🎯 U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (Vermont)
• 🎯 Ohio AFL-CIO
• 🎯 United Auto Workers
• 🎯 Ironworkers International
• 🎯 State Sen. Nikki Antonio
• 🎯 U.S. Rep. Chris Deluzio (Pennsylvania)
• 🎯 U.S. Rep. Ro Khanna (California)

For a first-time congressional candidate, that's notable — and it speaks to the strength of his working-class credentials.

The Issues: Economy, Healthcare, War

💰 The Economy

Poindexter: Says the country is "in crisis mode with affordability." Calls for:

• Raising the federal minimum wage
• Strengthening workers' ability to form unions and bargain collectively
• Critical of tariffs imposed by Trump that have made everyday life unaffordable

Miller: Supported the "One Big Beautiful Bill" tax package that:

• Delivered tax cuts to the wealthy and corporations
• Voted against extending federal subsidies that helped his constituents obtain health insurance under the Affordable Care Act

🏥 Healthcare

All eight Democratic candidates have made healthcare access a centerpiece of their campaigns:

• Fitzgerald: Supports "Medicare for All" universal health care
• Donegan: Registered nurse and health care executive with 30 years in the health insurance industry — gives unique insight into what works and doesn't

Miller's record:

• Voted for the tax package that cut ACA coverage
• His office gives constituents "the runaround" on healthcare inquiries, Donegan said

🎯 War in Iran

The U.S. military intervention in Iran has emerged as a point of distinction.

Fitzgerald: Calls the military action "erratic" and says it reflects "a disturbing trend of cutting Congress out of the process of authorizing force." Says the War Powers Act needs to be reformed.

Poindexter: Says he has found no voters in the district who regard going to war with Iran as a priority.

"We have people here who are teetering on the brink of bankruptcy,"* he said. *"We have people here who are getting kicked off of health care. But at the same time, we're neglecting our infrastructure."

Miller: Backed Trump's military action in Iran. Critics say he's been more interested in enabling Trump than in representing the working families of Ohio's 7th congressional district.

The Money: Wealth vs. Working-Class Support

The financial disparity tells its own story.

Max Miller:

• Ended 2025 with more than $1 million in campaign money
• Loaned more than $1 million to his campaign from personal wealth
• Grandson of Samuel H. Miller, late Forest City Enterprises co-chair

Democratic challengers:

• Fitzgerald: Over $70,596 in the bank
• Schulz: $19,310
• Eisner: $788
• Others: None reported raising money

But Poindexter has secured institutional support from labor unions and progressive organizations — support that money can't buy and that represents thousands of working-class voters.

Eisner's approach: Running a self-described grassroots campaign that accepts only individual contributions.

"There can be no argument of the people's candidate being corrupted by special interests," he said.

The Approach: Town Halls vs. Absent Representation

Miller's record:

• Criticized for refusing to hold in-person town halls for constituents
• Has one of the worst attendance records in the House
• Missed 4.3% of votes since he came to Congress (vs. lifetime median of 2.1% among Congress members)

Democratic approach:

• Fitzgerald: Pledges to have held more than 22 town halls across the district by May
• Eisner: If elected, constituents "will get actual representation with a congressperson who shows up and is available to listen, instead of performative political theater"

"Miller dodges town halls because he's afraid of constituents' opinions," Eisner said. "His actions show he works for special interests and the president, not OH-7 voters."

The Race: Upset in the Making?

The numbers:

• Cook Political Report gives Republicans a 5 percentage point edge
• District backed Trump by 11 points
• Miller won last re-election by a slender 51%

But national conditions could shift the playing field. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has included Ohio's 7th District on its list of "in play" districts — places where Republicans are favored to win but where Democrats could pull off an upset under extremely favorable circumstances.

The theory: If national conditions break strongly enough in Democrats' favor in November, a place like Ohio's 7th District could become competitive.

But this race is about more than national conditions. It's about a district with deep working-class roots, and a candidate who speaks that language fluently.

Brian Poindexter is running a campaign that frames the choice starkly:

A union ironworker who knows what it means to work for a living vs. a Trump loyalist who inherited a fortune and votes for tax cuts for the wealthy.

The contrast isn't subtle. It's the point.

The Stakes: Two Visions of Representation

At its core, this race is about who represents working people in Congress.

Brian Poindexter says Miller "either doesn't know what working people are going through, or he doesn't care." It's a sharp critique, but it's rooted in:

• A voting record that puts corporate interests ahead of workers' rights
• A personal background that includes a family fortune built on real estate development

Miller, for his part, has been a loyal Trump ally, voting in lockstep with the former president's agenda:

• ✅ Backed the tax cuts
• ✅ Supported military action in Iran
• ❌ Opposed legislation that would make it easier for workers to organize

The voters of Ohio's 7th District will have a clear choice in November:

"The choice isn't subtle. It's the point."

And in a district that backed Trump by 11 points but has deep working-class roots, it's a choice that could surprise people —if the working class shows up to vote for one of their own.

More Than One Election

Brian Poindexter's campaign is about more than just one election. It's about whether the Democratic Party can reconnect with the working-class voters it has been losing — voters who feel the party has let its worker-first message get crowded out by other issues.

Poindexter believes he's the candidate who can bring those voters back into the fold.

"I really disagree with all that," he said, of the wars and tax cuts that benefit the wealthy. "We have people here who are teetering on the brink of bankruptcy. We have people here who are getting kicked off of health care."

The question is whether enough voters in Ohio's 7th District agree with him — and whether they're ready to send a union ironworker to Congress instead of a Trump loyalist who inherited a fortune.

The choice isn't subtle. It's the point.