Peru native and Democrat Mike Derrick announced his campaign for 21st Congressional District and will seek his party’s nomination to run against incumbent Republican Elise Stefanik.

“After spending nearly 30 years serving our country in the military, I’m excited to be home again,” said Derrick. “I’m running for Congress to make sure that my hometown of Peru and all of the communities in New York’s 21st District have the opportunity to thrive and grow. Unfortunately, with the paralysis and stagnation in Congress right now, that’s not happening. Politicians are more concerned with their own political interests than the interests of the people they represent. I’m going to change that.”

Derrick says the focus of his campaign will be on issues that directly impact middle class families in the North Country including education, job creation, farming, and income equality.

“The North Country where I grew up was a place where families looked out for each other, kids got a great education, and we all believed that, with hard work, a bright future was possible,” added Derrick. “That’s my vision for our future and that’s what I’ll fight for in Congress.”

Derrick attended Peru Junior High School and Mount Assumption Institute (MAI) in Plattsburgh.

After high school, Derrick received an appointment to West Point and graduated in 1985. He was commissioned as an infantry second lieutenant in the U.S. Army and ultimately served for 28 years in both active and reserve forces, retiring as a colonel in 2013.

Mike began his career leading an infantry platoon at Camp Casey and patrolling the Korean DMZ. He commanded a mechanized infantry company with the 1st Armored Division on the German border and in Desert Storm. He earned two graduate degrees from Indiana University, and then served as an Associate Professor of History at West Point and later taught at the Army’s Command and General Staff College in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. While stationed at Ft. Shafter, Hawaii he led two units supporting Army Reserve forces located across the Pacific. During the war on terror, he commanded two training battalions at Ft. Carson, Colorado that prepared service members for deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan. He finished his time in uniform leading the 22-nation missile defense wargame called “Nimble Titan” for U.S. Strategic Command, Schriever Air Force Base, Colorado. Following retirement he served as an advisor with the Department of State in the area of international missile defense cooperation.

Derrick and his wife Kathy, also a West Point grad and a retired Army lieutenant colonel, have been married for 28 years. They have four children, two of whom are in the service. They enjoy biking, skiing, and hiking in the Adirondacks.