By Ned Zimmer, Candidate for State Representative – Michigan House District 66
If you’re feeling overwhelmed, disheartened, or just plain exhausted by politics.. Let me say this loud and clear:
You are not alone. And you are not wrong for feeling that way.
Political burnout is real. It’s not laziness. It’s not apathy. It’s a human response to a political environment that too often feels chaotic, divisive, and disconnected from real life. Between the constant outrage on cable news, the flood of social media misinformation, and the dysfunction in Lansing and D.C., it’s completely understandable to want to tune it all out.
And if that’s where you’re at, I see you. I get it.
But here’s the hard truth:
That burnout? That disengagement? That’s exactly what the people in power are counting on.
The current State Representative for District 66 Josh Schriver relies on you being tired. He benefits when you feel hopeless. He wins when you either don’t vote at all or vote straight-ticket without knowing what he actually stands for.
He wants you too burned out to notice when he pushes extreme conspiracy theories.
Too busy to question legislation that redefines abortion as homicide.
Too frustrated to challenge rhetoric rooted in fear, hate, and division.
Too checked out to realize that while families in our district are struggling, he’s playing political games with our future.
So What Do We Do About It?
I’m not here to guilt you or lecture you. I’m here to offer a way forward that feels manageable and meaningful a place to channel your energy where it still matters:
Start local. Start small. Start here.
Instead of trying to fix everything at once, ask yourself:
- Who represents me in Lansing?
- Do their values reflect mine?
- Do they listen, show up, and serve? Or just perform and divide?
If you don’t like the answers, that’s not a reason to give up. That’s your starting point.
Because what happens here on our school boards, city councils, and in our state legislature directly impacts your daily life:
Your taxes. Your roads. Your schools. Your rights. Your water. Your voice.
We Can’t Afford to Check Out
I know it’s tempting to give up on the whole thing. But when we do, the only people left making decisions are the ones who’ve already decided that our voices don’t matter.
I’m running to represent District 66 because I believe in this community. I believe in public servants—not political performers. In neighbors, not party insiders. In facts, not fear.
I don’t want you to become a political junkie. I just want you to be heard.
That starts with being informed and making your voice count, right here at home.
You don’t have to fix the whole system. You just have to care enough to not sit this one out.
Because the more people who re-engage at the local level; who take their power back district by district, block by block, the less room there is for extremist agendas, broken politics, and leaders who don’t deserve our trust.
Let’s show them that their strategy of burnout won’t work here.
Let’s prove that this district is wide awake.
In community,
Ned Zimmer
Candidate for State Representative – Michigan House District 66