Friend,

My name is John Padora. I’m a husband, a father, and a manufacturing engineer — in that order. I’ve spent the last 20 years turning wrenches, programming CNC machines, and pouring sweat in un-airconditioned shops to solve problems and keep production moving.

I’m not a politician. I’m a working man who’s fed up with the lies, the corruption, and how our “leaders” look down on families like mine.

That’s why I’m running for Congress — to fight for a future that working families can believe in again. Will you join me by pitching in $5, $10, or more to help start my campaign off strong?

I grew up in Southeastern Pennsylvania — coal country, farm country — a place where everyone worked with their hands. My dad was a carpenter. My mom was a nurse. We didn’t have a lot, but we had everything that mattered: love, grit, and dignity.

When I was six years old, my dad was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. By the time I was ten, I was one of his sole caregivers.

We relied on Medicaid and food stamps just to survive. I’ll never forget the look on my dad’s face in the checkout line — the shame he carried, as if asking for help meant he failed. But he didn’t fail. This system did.

We were the working poor — and we held on because of our family, our church, and our community.

Today, politicians like Lauren Boebert — backed by the billionaire class and the far-right — are trying to strip away what little safety net we have left. They mock families like mine. They vote to cut SNAP, to destroy Medicaid, to make it even harder for struggling Americans to get by.

They say "pull yourself up by your bootstraps" — but how do you do that when you’re working two jobs and still can’t afford health insurance or child care?

I’ve had enough. And I know I'm not alone.

This campaign is about building an America that respects work again. That doesn’t punish people for getting sick. That doesn’t shame parents for needing help. That stands up for the folks who make this country run.

But I need your help to do it. Will you help build the grassroots power this campaign needs to win and throw Lauren Boebert out of office by pitching in a donation of any size today?

This campaign is powered by real people, with real stories, just like mine. I hope you'll join us.

In solidarity,
John Padora
Candidate for Congress, CO-4

Paid for by Padora for Colorado