Republican · Michigan's 13th District · 2026
T. P. Nykoriak
Taras “T.P.” Nykoriak began attending Hamtramck council meetings as a child, telling people he would someday be mayor.
Biography
A local newspaper recalled T.P. Nykoriak attending Hamtramck council meetings as a boy, wearing a trench coat and announcing that he would become mayor.1 His current campaign identifies him as Detroit born.2
Also known as Taras Nykoriak, he is the Republican nominee in Michigan's 13th District.3 His earlier campaigns included bids for Wayne County sheriff and Detroit's Board of Police Commissioners.3 His campaign says he traveled to Ukraine in 2022 and 2023.2 He now advocates stronger audits, independent inspectors general and public reporting on how American foreign assistance is used.2
Nykoriak supports federal marijuana decriminalization and a process to review certain convictions involving nonviolent, low level possession.2 He also proposes changing qualified immunity protections for federal law enforcement officers who knowingly violate constitutional rights.2 His published agenda specifically includes Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol officers in that proposed reform.2
On healthcare, he calls for protecting Medicare and Medicaid, reducing administrative delays and lowering prescription costs through competition.2 In his 2026 BridgeDetroit interview, he also called for reforming healthcare to eliminate private insurance.4 His veterans' proposals emphasize quicker claims processing, access to mental healthcare and addressing homelessness.2 He also backs greater domestic energy production and parental authority over children's education, alongside greater transparency and accountability in schools.2
Record and controversies
2016 federal conviction
BridgeDetroit's 2026 review of court records reported that Nykoriak received a sixteen month federal prison sentence in 2016 for cashing U.S. savings bonds issued to a church.4 A separate federal opinion from 2016 records that sentence in the government property theft case.5 Nykoriak declined to comment on the conviction when interviewed for BridgeDetroit's 2026 primary guide.4 Later postconviction relief was not verified in this review.