WASHINGTON — A 61-year-old postal worker from Florida delivering a protest message to Congress about campaign finance laws landed a lightweight gyrocopter on the West Lawn of the Capitol Wednesday afternoon, upending what was shaping up to be another day of legislative stalemate in the Senate.

The man was taken into custody, according to the Capitol Police, with possible charges pending. A bomb squad investigated the aircraft but found nothing hazardous. The Capitol Police temporarily closed streets in the immediate area.

The pilot — according to The Tampa Bay Times, which was aware of his plans before takeoff — was Doug Hughes, a postal worker from Ruskin, Fla. He guided his aircraft at low speed (roughly 45 miles an hour) through protected airspace and landed it on Congress’s front lawn to raise awareness about the amount of money spent on elections.

Image A member of the Capitol Police bomb squad checking a gyrocopter that a Florida man landed on the Capitol lawn. Credit... Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images North America

On a website, Mr. Hughes said he had “no violent inclinations or intent.” But he acknowledged, “This isn’t my regular route.” He began the flight at an undisclosed spot near the city, where he had moved the gyrocopter by truck, according to the Tampa newspaper.