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Ex–Microsoft leader launches congressional bid amid Trump-era concerns
Positioning himself as a political outsider, Pyati has emphasized that he is not a career politician and said his decision to run followed months of waiting for party leaders to respond effectively to the current political environment.
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Malvika Choudhary - Sat, 03, Jan 2026
- 16:23 EST
- 69
Nick Pyati / X (Nick Pyati)
For Nick Pyati, the decision to run for Congress came not from long-held ambition but from frustration with Washington’s trajectory in recent months.
“I had no plans to run for office. I liked my job and had no reason to leave. But after the first hundred days of the Trump Administration—and Democrats’ failure to respond—I left my job to help build a party that can win again,” Pyati said, announcing his run on social media.
Also Read: Saritha Komatireddy launches bid for NY Attorney General
The former Microsoft strategy executive and Justice Department attorney, who is running to fill the seat left open by retiring Democratic Rep. Jan Schakowsky in Illinois' 9th congressional district, called for a “stronger, fairer, and freer America.”
I’m Nick Pyati and I’m running for Congress because I'm tired of politics that rewards the next in line instead of the next big idea.
— Nick Pyati (@NickPyati) July 16, 2025
I'm tired of waiting for Democrats to prove they have a plan to win.
I'm done waiting. So I’m running. pic.twitter.com/MukHtpmRsY
In the campaign launch video, Pyati pointed to what he described as a failure by political leadership to meet the current moment, arguing that “unprecedented times” have been met with recycled ideas rather than a coherent strategy within his party to counter Trump-era policies.
According to him, the central idea that once built both the Democratic Party and the country had “gone missing,” and his campaign was “bringing it back.”
Beyond dysfunction in the Democratic Party, Pyati’s campaign centers on a broader vision under what it calls a “New American Century,” arguing that the United States must renew the American Dream by expanding opportunity, addressing the cost of living, and strengthening families and communities.
Pyati's campaign frames economic growth as central to education, family support, research, and sustaining U.S. global leadership. It also calls for safeguarding democratic institutions, advancing civil and human rights, and defending democratic values internationally.
In the final months of his campaign, Pyati hopes to highlight the importance of Illinois' ninth district in shaping national discourse. "Its communities are extraordinary in their civic engagement, and it’s a progressive district in the American heartland. We should be leading the national conversation, not following it. Our representative should be setting the agenda for what Democrats can be, not just reliably voting the party line,” he said in message to residents of the district.
The Democratic primary for Illinois’ 9th Congressional District is scheduled for March 17.
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