Todd Schaefer, a retired Navy veteran running with no party affiliation, is seeking Florida's 4th Congressional District seat in the Nov. 3 general election.

Asked why he is seeking office, Schaefer said in our candidate questionnaire, "I'm running to give voters a voice. Both parties have shown that if you don't fall in line, they will primary you out of office. Unfortunately, falling in line rarely works to the benefit of regular Americans."

Other candidates in the race are Aaron Bean and LaShonda Holloway, both Democrats, and Mike Sell of the Florida Forward Party.

Candidate information

Party affiliation: Schaefer said in our questionnaire, "No Party Affiliation."

Education: Schaefer said, "High school and the training and education I received in the Navy. I retired as a Senior Chief Nuclear Electronics Technician."

Family: Schaefer said, "I have one son who is currently in Navy Nuclear Training in South Carolina."

Previous elected or appointed offices: None, according to the candidate.

Experience and public service

Schaefer said he is "retired US Navy" and that he "joined in 1998 right out of high school" and "retired in 2018." According to BallotReady profile data, his work history includes realtor positions at Florida Homes Realty and Mortgage (2017–2023), Weichert (2019–2020) and Military Realty of Kingsbay (2020–present).

On the issues

What sets him apart from other candidates: Schaefer said, "I'm applying to the people for the job of Representative. I did not apply to a party first, because I don't plan to work for them. The party divisions in DC have stopped proper debate on legislation. Bills are being written by lobbies, not legislators."

Top priority: Asked about his single most important issue, Schaefer said, "We need true transparency in government … we need to be told the truth about what it is costing us, both now and in the future, and how it is meant to benefit us."

Banking reform: Schaefer's top policy proposal is what he calls the American Prosperity Card Act. He said in our questionnaire, "Your deposit is a liability on their balance sheet, like you giving them a loan not a deposit … My bill backs your account directly in T-bills so that you earn that interest on your risk. It is that simple."

Federal spending and debt: Schaefer said, "A full budget was last passed in 1997. Until we go through the full 12 appropriation bills one by one, we will not know where all of our money is going. We are $40T in debt and currently burning about $500B per quarter."

Health care: Schaefer said, "We are long overdue for Universal Healthcare … Until we remove the for-profit middleman that exists between you and your doctor, we will continue to do the same no matter what label is put on it."

Housing affordability: Asked about cost of living, Schaefer said, "Housing has been tax advantaged as an asset class. Landlords are allowed to depreciate a home's value over 28 years as a deduction on their taxes … Once the tax benefit is gone, Wall St won't be so interested in buying everything up."

National security: Schaefer said, "The current conflict with Iran is beyond what the President is authorized to do under the law. Congress holds the sole power of war declaration."

The candidate's full platform is on his campaign website.