Patriot,

This is Sheriff Mike Bouchard — but today, I’m writing to you simply as a father.

I’ve spent decades serving our community in law enforcement. I’ve seen crisis, loss, sacrifice.

I’ve watched families get that knock on the door no parent ever wants.

And when my son Mike chose to serve this country, I knew exactly what that decision meant.

I knew he would be putting his life on the line.

I knew our family would live with the quiet fear only military families truly understand.

And I knew there was a chance he might not come home.

But like every patriotic soldier, he didn’t hesitate.

That’s who Mike has always been — even as a kid.

He ran toward responsibility, toward challenges, toward the hard things that build a man’s character.

And over the last decade, I watched him serve in ways that made me both proud and humbled as his father:

I watched him jump out of planes as a paratrooper.
I watched him deploy to Iraq and live under constant threat — rockets, drones, militias.
I watched him lead missions that protected thousands of American troops.
I watched him volunteer to go back with only 20 days’ notice.

And when he walked off that plane after nine months in a combat zone… he didn’t talk about what he endured.

He talked about what our country needed.

That’s when I knew his mission wasn’t finished.

Mike stepped into this race for Congress because he sees the same danger here at home that he saw overseas: weakness, division, and leaders who have forgotten what service means.

But he’s stepping in late — because he was serving his country.

And that means he is now facing the toughest moment of any campaign: his first-ever year-end deadline — the one that determines whether this mission survives.

As someone who has spent his life in public service, I can tell you: early numbers matter. They tell the political world whether a candidate has real support… or whether they can be dismissed before the fight even begins.

From one father, one patriot, to another — I am asking you to support my son tonight.