Jack Bergman

Elections

Bergman won the Republican primary in Michigan's 1st congressional district in August 2016. The district covered all of Michigan's Upper Peninsula and the northern part of the Lower Peninsula. He defeated Democratic nominee Lon Johnson and Libertarian nominee Diane Bostow in the November general election.^[2] Bergman, who was elected to succeed retiring Republican Representative Dan Benishek, won 55% of the vote to Johnson's 40% and Bostow's 4%.^[10][11]

Bergman ran uncontested in the Republican primary in 2018, and was reelected in the November general election defeating Democratic candidate Matthew Morgan with 56% of the vote.^[12] He again ran uncontested for the Republican nomination in the 2020 primary, and defeated Democratic candidate Dana Ferguson in 2020 with 62% of the vote.^[13]

The 1st congressional district shifted slightly in the 2020 United States redistricting cycle following the 2020 census, losing Manistee County and part of Mason County, while gaining Missaukee County, Roscommon County, Ogemaw County, Iosco County, Arenac County, and part of Wexford County. This shift did not have a significant impact on the district's political leanings, remaining strongly Republican.^[14] In the 2022 election for the new district, Bergman faced only write-in opposition in the Republican primary,^[15] and was reelected easily against Democratic candidate Bob Lorinser, winning 60% of the vote.^[16]

In 2024, Bergman faced Josh Saul in the Republican primary, winning renomination with 79% of the vote.^[17] He defeated Democratic candidate Callie Barr in the general election with 59% of the vote.^[18]

In the 2023-2024 election cycle, Bergman received $46,200 from members of the DeVos family, who also contributed substantially to Republican-aligned super PACs.^[19] Overall, 36.6% of Bergman's campaign funding was from PACs, 22% from large donors, and 11% from individual contributions under $200.^[20]

Representative Jack Bergman announced his candidacy for re-election to the U.S. House of Representatives in the 2026 election. According to Federal Election Commission (FEC) data, his campaign reported record-breaking first quarter fundraising totals for the cycle.^{[citation needed]}

Tenure

Bergman assumed office on January 3, 2017. He is a member of the Republican Study Committee, the Climate Solutions Caucus^[21] and the U.S.–Japan Caucus.^[22]

Bergman serves on the House Budget Committee, the House Armed Services Committee, and the House Committee on Veterans Affairs.^[23]

In June 2017, Bergman was one of the Republican congressmen who were practicing on an Alexandria, Virginia, baseball field for the annual Congressional Baseball Game when James Hodgkinson began shooting at them, harming four people, including Representative Steve Scalise.^[24] Afterward, Bergman blamed the incident on anti-GOP rhetoric and the media.^[25]

Bergman voted with President Joe Biden's stated position roughly 6% of the time.^[26]

In October 2023, Bergman unsuccessfully ran for Speaker of the House.^[27]

In February 2026, Bergman co-led the bipartisan Michigan congressional delegation that secured the designation of Camp Grayling's National All-Domain Warfighting Center as a national range for uncrewed aerial systems testing by the Department of Defense.^[28]

Constituent Relations

Jack Bergman has not held a town hall in his district since 2017.^[29] In early 2025, Bergman was criticized for failing to attend "empty seat" town halls hosted by constituents in Escanaba,^[30] Houghton,^[31] and Traverse City.^[32]

Committee assignments

• Committee on Armed Services
  • Subcommittee on Intelligence and Special Operations
  • Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces
  • Subcommittee on Military Personnel
• Committee on the Budget
• Committee on Veterans' Affairs
  • Subcommittee on Health
  • Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations
• Source:^[33]

Caucus memberships

• Republican Study Committee^[34]
• Climate Solutions Caucus
• Congressional Caucus on Turkey and Turkish Americans^[35]
• U.S.–Japan Caucus.^[22]
• Congressional Taiwan Caucus^[36]
• Psychedelics Advancing Therapies Caucus^[37]

Spending and budget

In March 2016, Bergman said that cutting spending would be his top priority in Congress.^[38]

In a July 2016 television interview, Bergman said his three top priorities were to "get Congress working together" instead of being preoccupied with partisan division, to "utilize the Constitution", and to pass a balanced budget amendment.^[39]

In March 2021, all House Republicans including Bergman voted against the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, an economic stimulus bill aimed at speeding up the United States' recovery from the economic and health effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing recession.^[40]

Healthcare

Bergman opposes the Affordable Care Act and voted to repeal it in May 2017.^[41]

Environment

In September 2017, Bergman became the 29th Republican to join the Climate Solutions Caucus.^[42] However, the League of Conservation Voters (LCV) and the Vote Climate U.S. PAC both give him poor scores for environmental and climate votes.^[43][44] In 2024 Bergman voted against funding to implement the Paris Climate Agreement, though the bill was never taken up by the Senate.^[45]

Bergman voted in favor of the Tribal Coastal Resiliency Act, which would allow the Department of Commerce to award grants to Native American tribes for historical preservation, environmental protection, and climate change mitigation in the Great Lakes.^[46][47]

In 2025, Bergman voted to nullify the EPA rule on "National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants: Rubber Tire Manufacturing"^[48] and the EPA rule on "Waste Emissions Charge for Petroleum and Natural Gas Systems", which would have helped decrease methane emissions, with a net benefits of $180 million.^[49][50]

Marriage

Bergman voted against the "Respect for Marriage Act" codifying Loving v. Virginia and Obergefell v. Hodges, recognizing marriages across state lines regardless of "sex, race, ethnicity, or national origin of those individuals."^[51]

Military

In August 2017, Bergman sided with then-President Donald Trump on barring transgender individuals from the military.^[52]

2020 presidential election

After Joe Biden won the 2020 presidential election^[53] and Trump refused to concede, Bergman announced he would oppose the confirmation of the Electoral College's vote in Congress.^[54]

In January 2021, Bergman announced his intention to object to the certification of the Electoral College results.^[54][55]

Israel

Bergman has been a vocal supporter of Israel's right to defend itself and voted to provide Israel with support following the 2023 Hamas attack on Israel.^[56][57]

Voter identification and the SAVE Act

Jack Bergman has expressed support for the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act^[58][59], proposed federal legislation that would require individuals to provide documentary proof of U.S. citizenship in order to register to vote or cast a ballot in federal elections. Supporters argue that the bill would strengthen election integrity by preventing non-citizens from voting. In April of 2025, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the SAVE Act with 220-208.^[60] This followed an earlier attempt in 2024 in which a version of the bill passed the House but did not advance in the Senate.^[61]

Voting rights scholars and civil rights organizations have criticized the SAVE Act, noting that federal law already prohibits non-citizens from voting in federal elections and that documented instances of non-citizen voting are rare.^[62] Critics argue that requiring proof of citizenship—such as a passport or certified birth certificate—would disproportionately burden eligible U.S. citizens who lack ready access to such documents, particularly low-income voters, elderly citizens, racial minorities, rural residents, women whose names have changed, and naturalized citizens.^[63][64]

“I’m proud to have cosponsored this commonsense legislation that passed the House with bipartisan support, albeit slim. Rooted in constitutional reality, the SAVE Act reaffirms what we already know – that only American citizens should be able to vote in American elections. With the worst, most porous borders our country has ever seen, this bill is absolutely necessary to ensure our elections remain free and fair,” Rep. Jack Bergman stated.^[65]

Legal scholars and voting-rights advocates have further argued that the costs, delays, and administrative hurdles associated with obtaining citizenship documents may function as a de facto poll tax, which is prohibited under the Twenty-Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.^[66] This is disputed by the GOP.^[67]

Medals and ribbons