REAL LIFE DRAMA

Bravo Reality Star Announces Run for Congress

The “Summer House” star is running as a Democrat in hopes of unseating incumbent congressman Pete Stauber.

Luke Gulbranson, the reality TV star from Summer House on Bravo and Selling the OC on Netflix, is running for Congress in Minnesota. The 42-year-old made the announcement on Wednesday in a video released on YouTube. “Yeah, I’ve been on reality TV,” he said. “But that’s drama for show. What’s happening in D.C. is real drama with real consequences and the stakes couldn’t be higher.” Gulbranson’s campaign launch highlighted his rough upbringing and his opposition to moves by the Trump administration, including ICE’s aggressive immigration crackdown and spending on the war with Iran. “I see what’s happening to our country and I care way too much to look away,” he said. Gulbranson is running on the Democrat-Farmer-Labor ticket, which is Minnesota’s affiliate of the Democratic Party. He is seeking to unseat incumbent Republican Rep. Pete Stauber in a district that spreads north from just outside the Minneapolis metro area to a vast area near the shores of Lake Superior known as the Iron Range. Stauber has held his seat since 2019. If successful, Gulbranson would not be the first reality TV star from the Upper Midwest to serve in Congress. Current Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy starred in MTV’s The Real World: Boston before going on to represent Wisconsin’s 7th district as a Republican.