In January of 2026, Savannah resident Pat Wilver went viral on social media for a video where he confronted a candidate for Georgia’s First Congressional District, Pat Farrell, regarding his stance on Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). A few weeks later, Wilver uploaded a video calling out Georgia Power’s decision to remove a 300-year-old live oak tree from private property, which received over eight-hundred-thousand views. 

This newfound popularity inspired Wilver to run in Georgia’s First Congressional District. Even before his decision to run for congress, Wilver gained a platform based on the sentiment that citizens are being under-represented by those in power — a notion that resonates with a lot of folks in Coastal Georgia.

“It seems like in a lot of ways, we’ve prioritized business and our economic growth over the quality of life for people who actually live here,” said Wilver. “Of course we need an economy, but the scales have tipped way too far.”

Wilver’s Background & Venture into The Pacific Crest Trail

Originally from New Castle, Pennsylvania, Wilver grew up listening to conservative influences such as Fox News, Bill O’Reilly, and Toby Keith. At the age of ten, Wilver recalls feeling heavily inspired to serve the people of the United States by joining the military following the 9/11 attacks in 2001. He graduated from West Point and served as an infantry officer in Fort Stewart, Georgia. 

After leaving the army, Wilver moved to Savannah in 2019. He fell in love with the green spaces and marshes of coastal Georgia, the walkability of downtown Savannah, the international airport and the diverse and youthful population of the city. Today, he studies philosophy at Georgia Southern Armstrong and enjoys the philosophical discussions and diverse perspectives that the classes bring.

Wilver says he’s always been a student of history and politics. He occasionally participated in campaign work such as “ballot cure” following the presidential election in 2020. 

What really drove Wilver to pursue politics, however, was his experience hiking the Pacific Crest Trail in 2024. His journey had a fundamental impact on how he views the lifestyle of average Americans, including a lack of community due to suburbia and car-centered infrastructure. 

According to a 2025 study from the American Psychological Association, a majority of Americans reported societal division as a source of stress in their lives, with more than half (54%) reported feeling isolated.

“I think a lot of politics in America is just so focused on the short term, these small little goals,” said Wilver. “I think we need to reimagine how we relate to each other, how our entire society is because it’s measurably making people miserable”.

Wilver’s hike inspired him to advocate for environmental protection. He believes that nature is something that should be preserved for future generations rather than an entity to be conquered. He emphasizes the significant impacts of building on top of vital ecosystems and calls for a rethinking of how infrastructure is designed in coastal Georgia.

“I worry about the overdevelopment,” said Wilver “especially as it relates to our wetlands and our marshes, which is what controls flooding. We’re destroying this natural flood control and we wonder why flooding gets worse.”

The Georgia Department of Natural Resources indicates that Georgia’s coast will be amongst the first to see the immediate impacts of climate change, with an increase in sea level rise of 3mm per year over the past 70 years. Increasing development in marshes subjects people and property to severe flooding.

“We are living so unsustainable, and it’s going to require a total reimagination. It’s not just changing some policy. We need to change the way we look at the world,” said Wilver.

Starting a Grassroots Initiative & Campaign Priorities

Wilver is running with the democratic party for the election to the U.S. House. Despite his apprehension for the two-party system, he says it is the major party that most aligns with his values.

“It’s pretty impossible in Georgia to run as an independent,” said Wilver “I wanted to but you have to get 28,000 signatures to get on the ballot, whereas to run with either major party you just need to raise $5,000.”

Wilver’s campaign is fully grassroots and receives no corporate funds. The initiative is led by small donors, volunteers, and public town halls – many of which Wilver has held in spaces such as Forsyth Park. 

“My campaign is all run by volunteers. It’s basically me and my friends but we’ve got over 90 other volunteers.” said Wilver. 

A top priority in Wilver’s campaign includes getting corporate money out of politics and overturning Citizens United, a 2010 Supreme Court ruling that enables corporations and outside groups to spend unlimited money on candidates running for election.

“Once you do that, then people can be elected who aren’t paid for by basically this small ruling class of elites who don’t value anything other than getting more money,” said Wilver.

According to the Harvard Political Review, political polarization is on the rise particularly amongst young people, partially due to a lack of trust in political institutions and traditional media outlets. 

Alongside getting corporate interests out of politics, Wilver believes citizens can be better represented by enforcing structural reforms within state and local government. He advocates for the ending of gerrymandering, third parties candidates to be viable in elections and enforcing term limits for those in office. 

“When’s the last time you voted for a candidate you were genuinely inspired by? Usually I’m just voting against the person I hate less. That’s not how democracy is supposed to be.” said Wilver.

Wilver expressed wanting to meet with students who are interested in getting involved with his campaign or simply having a conversation.

“I would love to work with students, I would love to have students volunteer with my campaign,” said Wilver. “By getting into classes one of the great things was learning how gen z thinks and so I want to learn more. I don’t want to come just to talk at students, I want students to talk to me and share what their experience has been and what you guys think about the future.”

Inspired by his experience hiking across the Pacific Crest, Wilver announced on April 8 that he will be spending the next two weeks walking and kayaking across the first district of Georgia, holding town halls in each city and speaking to voters. In order to avoid using campaign funds for his travels, Wilver asks for the generosity of locals in order to find lodging along the way. 

To learn more about Pat Wilver and stay updated with his current adventure, you can follow him on Instagram @pat_wilver.