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# First-Time Candidate With Independent Credentials Could Surprise U.S. Senate Race
- URL: https://ivn.us/first-time-candidate-independent-credentials-crash-u-s-senate-party/
- Published: 2018-06-04T21:49:55.000Z
- Updated: 2026-06-22T20:02:55.000Z
- Author: Jeff Powers
- Tags: News

James Bradley freely admits he is a newcomer and an outsider to politics. Hence his low name ID.

So why then is he polling third as a first-time candidate for U.S. Senate?

A University of California, Berkeley [poll](https://escholarship.org/uc/item/4x28272w?ref=ivn.us) released Friday has Bradley right behind Democrats Dianne Feinstein and Kevin De León.

It would be a remarkable achievement for a political novice to finish the U.S. Senate race in the top-two. Perhaps it speaks to California voters' thirst for change.

## **The "Independent Republican"**

[Bradley](http://jbradley2018.com/?ref=ivn.us) is a Coast Guard veteran, has multiple MBA's and is the CFO of a health care startup.

He's a believer in climate change who vehemently opposes California's "sanctuary state" movement. Ironically, the man just ahead of him in the polls, De León, authored [SB 54](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill%5Fid=201720180SB54&ref=ivn.us). Bradley, who referred to himself as a longtime independent, said he registered as a Republican for the first time in March, because he said, the Democratic Party was no longer a viable option.

In the Berkeley poll, the 60-year-old Laguna Niguel resident and first-time candidate fell one point behind state Sen. Kevin de León in the battle for second place and a spot on the November ballot.

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