Tim Myers of OneRepublic poses for a photo at the Romp store opening on April 22, 2008 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic)
Los Angeles, California – Grammy-nominated musician and former OneRepublic bassist Tim Myers is making the leap from the stage to the political arena with a high-profile challenge to long-serving Republican Rep. Ken Calvert in California’s 41st Congressional District. Myers, a Corona native turned music industry entrepreneur, announced his candidacy Thursday in a video posted on Instagram, setting the stage for one of the most closely watched House races in the 2026 election cycle.
“Ken Calvert has been in Washington for 30 years, and all he’s done is make himself millions,” Myers says in the campaign video, filmed in a recording studio. “The status quo isn’t working.”
The 41st District, which stretches from the Los Angeles suburbs to Palm Springs, is among the few remaining battlegrounds in an increasingly polarized national map. With Republicans clinging to a narrow 220-213 House majority, Democrats see Calvert’s seat as a prime opportunity to regain ground and counter President Donald Trump’s policy agenda in a potential second term.
Myers, 40, grew up in Corona and recounts in his video a modest upbringing as a pastor’s son. After a successful five-year stint with pop rock band OneRepublic, he went on to build a thriving solo career, launch his own label (Palladium Records), and write or produce songs for artists like Kesha, Aloe Blacc, and Hailee Steinfeld. Now based in Hidden Hills, Los Angeles County, Myers is branding himself as a reform-minded outsider ready to shake up Washington.
“Our community is being priced out of homeownership, groceries are more expensive every week, and we’re constantly under threat from wildfires and rising crime,” Myers said in a statement. “It’s time for a change.”
But Republicans are already pushing back hard. “Democrat Tim Myers is everything wrong with today’s radical left: a Hollywood liberal trying to fake his way into Riverside County,” said Christian Martinez, a spokesperson for the National Republican Congressional Committee.
Despite the state’s deep blue lean — where Democrats dominate the legislature and hold a 2-to-1 registration advantage — the 41st remains competitive. Calvert, the longest-serving Republican in California’s congressional delegation, narrowly held onto his seat in 2024, winning by just three points as Trump carried the district by six.
With Democrats eyeing a path to reclaim the House, the party’s campaign arm has once again named Calvert a top target. He raised over $1.3 million in the first quarter of 2025, signaling a fierce and high-stakes battle ahead.
For Myers, it’s a debut tour of a different kind — this time, in the halls of Congress.
