Democrat · Michigan's 1st District · 2026
Callie Barr
Barr and her high school sweetheart, Matt, moved five times while raising two daughters during his Marine Corps service.
Biography
Callie Barr grew up in Traverse City and Cheboygan and married her high school sweetheart, Matt.1 Her family connections to Michigan span five generations.1 After September 11, he joined the Marine Corps and served in Iraq and Afghanistan.1 Over fifteen years, their family moved five times while raising two daughters.1
Barr earned a degree in secondary education at Central Michigan University and taught high school English.1 She later attended the University of Michigan Law School and became a business attorney.1 Her work also included connecting veterans with free legal services.1
She became her husband's primary caregiver after he returned with combat injuries.1 She describes that experience as shaping her advocacy for veterans, military families and caregivers.1 After challenging Republican Jack Bergman in 2024, she is again the Democratic nominee in Michigan's 1st District in 2026.2
Her platform calls for federal support for affordable homebuilding, zoning reform and balancing vacation rentals with housing for permanent residents.3 She also supports expanded broadband, childcare investment and union organizing protections through the PRO Act.3 In healthcare, she favors protecting Medicaid and rural hospitals, extending Affordable Care Act subsidies and offering a public health insurance option.3 She also supports mobile food markets, local food supply programs and food banks, and reversing SNAP cuts.3