![The U.S. Capitol Building, home of Congress. [Image via James DeMers - Pixabay]](https://staticr1.blastingcdn.com/media/photogallery/2018/8/22/660x290/b_502x220x82/the-us-capitol-building-home-of-congress-image-via-james-demers-pixabay_2079725.jpg "The U.S. Capitol Building, home of Congress. [Image via James DeMers - Pixabay]")
Despite their unpopularity, there are a lot of interesting stories about a politician's lives. The how and why they decided to run for office can be fascinating. Sometimes, it can also be ill-advised. This election cycle, a mother and son pair have decided to test voters truly. Voters they are very unfamiliar with.
Declared candidacies for Congress in states they've never visited
This year, Eric Hafner was a candidate in the Democratic primary for the U.S. House of Representatives. The seat he was hoping to capture was from the 3rd District of Oregon.
Hafner was taking on the long-time incumbent Earl Blumenauer, who has held the seat for than 20 years. Previously, Hafner had sought the Republican nomination for Hawaii's 2nd District in 2016.
Running for Congress in two different states with two different parties might be strange, but there's more. Hafner has never actually lived in either state. It's difficult to tell if he's ever visited either state. This is because he has been on the run from the law since he was 16 years old. Not surprisingly, The Asbury Park Press reports that he did not win on either occasion.
Perhaps not to be outdone, according to Yahoo, Eric's mother Carol also has political aspirations. She has been seeking the Democratic nomination for Alaska's At-Large District.
A resident of New Jersey, she has never lived in, or even been to, Alaska.
The U.S. Constitution allows them to do so
There are certain conditions one has to meet to run for Congress. But living in the constituency a candidate is running in isn't one of them. Residency in the state or district isn't required until they're actually a member of Congress.
This loophole has not gone unnoticed by others.
A lawyer named William Bryk first ran for Congress in his native New York in 1980. He has since sought the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate in Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, and Wyoming. Bryk has also run for the House in Indiana. He did not live in any of these states at the time.
Bryk also did not succeed in any of these instances. Eventually, Bryk moved to New Hampshire. There, he has twice contested and won elections for local offices.
In 2014, Arizona author Richard Grayson won the Democratic nomination for Wyoming's At-Large District. He was defeated in the general election by Republican incumbent Cynthia Lummis. Grayson briefly tried again for 2016 but would withdraw from the race.
