David Riley

@rilzd

As a 26-year-old medical student with no political experience, Brandon Kirshner isn't a typical candidate for Congress.

He said that's partly why he decided to run. Kirshner kicked off a campaign Sunday for the 25th Congressional District seat held by 15-term U.S. Rep. Louise Slaughter, D-Fairport, who faces another challenge next year from Republican Gates Supervisor Mark Assini.

Kirshner said he wants to run an independent campaign that focuses on hard issues the major parties might prefer to avoid. His platform includes term limits for Congress, reforming how electoral districts are drawn, and gradually raising the eligibility age for programs like Medicare for younger generations in hopes of helping to cut the national debt.

He faces an uphill battle against two well-known candidates with considerably greater experience and Slaughter's $747,600 campaign war chest. He also has to gather enough signatures next year to get on the ballot.

Kirshner said Monday that he's realistic about his chances.

"If anything that I hope to accomplish from this election, it's to get the other two competitors to really focus on the issues, rather than just play to the party lines," he said.

Kirshner is a Brighton native and resident. He said he graduated from the Rochester Institute of Technology in 2012. He's training to be a physician through the University of Medicine and Health Sciences in the Caribbean, with plans to graduate next year. He's been wrapping up his final two years of study in the U.S.

In pursuing medicine, Kirshner is following in the footsteps of his father, Dr. Ronald Kirshner, chief of cardiac services and cardiothoracic surgery for Rochester Regional Health.

Brandon Kirshner said his work in medicine got him interested in the Affordable Care Act, known colloquially as Obamacare. It's done a lot of good in getting people covered, but it's also created headaches for health providers, and more has to be done to rein in medical costs, he said.

That led to a broader interest in federal policy and national office, Kirshner said.

"I think that being a political outsider here has its benefits," he said. "I see the political world differently than they do."

Kirshner previously was involved in a push to get millennials more involved in fighting Rochester poverty and an attempt to clean up Squaw Island in Canandaigua.

The 25th Congressional District includes most of Monroe County.

DRILEY@Gannett.com

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