Gen Z Rep Maxwell Frost Talks Breaking Barriers in Congress

Maxwell Alejandro Frost was just 24 when he declared his candidacy for the U.S. House of Representatives, pouring all his energy into campaigning – and in turn, risking his livelihood – with the certainty that by the time the Democratic primary would take place a year later, voters would know his name and believe in his mission.

“I didn’t want to run and lose,” he tells PEOPLE, acutely aware of the financial strains and daunting time commitment that would come into his life for a campaign. “I wasn’t about to run just to make a point.”

At the time – this is 2021 – Frost was working as a national organizer at March for our livesa youth-led organization founded following the Parkland School Shooting which aims to end gun violence. A Florida native and himself a survivor of gun violence, he was connected to the mission (in fact, he first engaged with the issue much earlier, when his 15-year-old self was shaken by the news from Shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School and convinced to be part of the solution).

Organizing both in her local Orlando community and across the country, Frost caught the attention of her fellow activists. When it became apparent that his district’s representative, the prominent Democrat Val Demingswould not seek re-election, calls grew for Frost to contest his seat.

“There were organizers who casually mentioned [running for a House seat] at the beginning of the year and I said, ‘No,’ and I continued,” Frost recalled. “There were times when I said, ‘Yeah. I may run for office one day. But I had never really identified Congress specifically.”

But the idea of ​​running away stayed with him and talking to trusted confidants, he decided to consider the proposal more seriously. “I checked all the s—,” he said. “And part of that was carefully assessing, ‘Can I win?'” When victory seemed plausible, he decided to go for it. “I didn’t have a lot of support at first, but I had enough.”

The process of getting elected is expensive, especially when you’re a working man in your twenties who doesn’t have a savings account and isn’t backed by generational wealth. Forced to quit his full-time job and focus on the election, Frost racked up significant debt – even as he tried to supplement his income by driving for Uber between campaign events.

Meanwhile, Frost was kicked out of the Orlando duplex he was renting with his girlfriend and younger sister. He used what little money he had left to rent an Airbnb for a month while he looked for a new place to live; by the end of the month, he still had no accommodations scheduled, so he resorted to couch surfing, at one point crashing with his sister’s ex-boyfriend.

“During this whole thing, I was like, ‘Well, at least if I win, in a year I won’t have to worry about it,'” he recalled.

Frost was 25 when he defeated nine older challengers, including two former U.S. Representatives, in the Democratic primary; defeated a retired army colonel in the general election; and was sworn in, becoming the first Gen Z member of Congress.

He was the same age when he learned that even after becoming Congressman Frost, the financial strain was not over. He was denied an apartment in Washington, D.C. due to his damaged credit rating, again forced to crash with a friend until he could find a more permanent situation.

“I think back to the Max who said, ‘Oh, you don’t have to worry about that. I’m still worried about that,” he says. He is grateful to know this, because his campaign has been successful, he will soon find relief in the form of government paychecks – and he recognizes that he is privileged to have a light at the end of the tunnel, unlike so many Americans. “But I also bring it up because the entry point to a position of power is really important…It determines who gets there. It acts as a filter.”

Freshly 26, Frost is now getting down to business on Capitol Hill awaiting his committee assignments (he hopes to serve on the House Judiciary Committee or the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, but will gladly take whatever is assigned to him) .

He sees his purpose in Congress as primarily representing his constituents on the Hill, but also ensuring he uses his life experiences to spark more dynamic conversations in Washington. He is wary of being portrayed as the voice of Generation Z in Washington, seeing his age as part of the perspective he brings to the halls of power.

“It’s important to have people with different perspectives in Congress – working class people, young people, etc. – because when we sit down at a table and discuss these issues…you want this table is representative of all the different struggles, struggles, experiences, cultures, loves and fears that our country has,” he said.

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New to legislation, Frost still managed to enter Congress as a celebrity, thanks in large part to his refreshing and pleasant energy.

On social media, he dances with his constituents and incorporates youth slang into political debates. As a jazz drummer and concert enthusiast, he is enmeshed in many musical fandoms, including that of The 1975, who dedicated a song to her at a recent DC performance. And Frost’s brazen belief that the meme-worthy horror-comedy movie M3GAN deserves the award for best film Oscars hints at his willingness to take a bold stance no matter what the issue.

“Spreading joy is my mission,” he says. “I think people should find joy in this work, and I think people should have the resources they need to find joy in their lives.”