Ben Savage of ‘Boy Meets World’ announces bid for U.S. Congress

Ben Savage, who famously played the titular boy in the 1990s sitcom Boy Meets World, is running for U.S. Congress in California’s 30th district.

The seat for the Los Angeles-area district is currently being held by Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff, but the office is now up for grabs with Schiff running for Senate. Savage announced on Monday that he’s throwing his hat in the ring.

“I’m running for Congress because it’s time to restore faith in government by offering reasonable, innovative and compassionate solutions to our country’s most pressing issues,” Savage, 42, said in an Instagram post announcing his campaign.

“It’s time for new and passionate leaders who can help move our country forward. Leaders who want to see the government operating at maximum capacity, unhindered by political divisions and special interests.”

Savage graduated from Stanford University with a degree in political science.

His campaign website emphasizes his long history of union membership, as a child actor who “learned the value of a hard day’s work by age 5.”

“Ben has been a member of the SAG-AFTRA union since 1987 and the Directors Guild of America since 2014. As a child actor, Ben understood the protections the union offered,” Savage’s website reads.

Savage is most known for playing the role of Cory Matthews on Boy Meets World from 1993 to 2000. He then reprised the same role in the 2014 reboot Girl Meets World.

If elected, Savage said his priorities would be improving public safety, affordable housing and protecting organized labour.

California’s 30th Congressional District is solidly Democratic, with Schiff winning the November 2022 midterm election with 71 per cent of the vote against a fellow Democrat. California has an open primary system in which the top two candidates advance to the general election regardless of party affiliation

This isn’t Savage’s first time campaigning for office. In 2022, he unsuccessfully ran for West Hollywood city council.

— With files from Reuters

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