'Keyboard warrior' sets sights on legislative seat

Tyler Cappel

ARAPAHOE, Neb. -- Tyler Cappel, 35, was getting tired of the combative nature of politics over the past few years, The self-described “keyboard warrior” found himself on social media frustrated with the fact that his political views and values were not being represented. “Of course, nothing changes when you’re just complaining on Facebook or other social media, so I figured I might as well just get out and try to do something myself.”

So, he decided to run for the 44th District State Senate seat, which will be up for grabs in November 2022 when current State Sen. Dan Hughes leaves office due to term limits. A primary election for the seat will take place in May 2022.

Cappel is a personal trainer and part-owner of Cappel Chiropractic and Personal Training in Cambridge and Arapahoe. He has three children, ages 10, 5, and 2, and he lives in Arapahoe.

He wants to see a smaller government, one “with less power over our lives”. Lower taxes, fewer regulations, and limited government are all key aspects of his platform. Tyler told the Gazette that he is a strong Second Amendment defender and is pro-life.

As a constitutional conservative, Cappel is registered as a libertarian. He considers the party more lined up with his values of small government and personal freedoms.

Cappel said that local, state, and federal governments are taxing citizens beyond a point of sustainability. “The old saying goes ‘you can’t tax yourself to prosperity and I believe that,” Cappel said. He expressed concerns about possible new types of taxes such as a mileage tax being “snuck into” the federal infrastructure bill. “The federal government keeps printing money out of thin air and it devalues our currency. It is just destroying the middle class.”

Cappel said the State can play a role in limiting the federal government by refusing to comply with federal mandates. “The federal government cannot force the state to comply with their programs. The whole reason that we have states is for a separation of power. Nebraska is supposed to be a conservative state and we need to actually start acting like it.”

The Gazette asked Cappel about his views on building a new state prison to address overcrowding. “I think we need to look at a lot of the people that are in there,” Cappel replied, further stating that he is opposed to building a new facility and he believes that non-violent criminals need to be in programs that work toward reforming. “I don’t think we can necessarily fix this with one new law. Our culture needs to be changed as well.”

Sticking with his limited government values, Cappel also told the Gazette that he believes medical marijuana needs to be decided between a doctor and his or her patient. “I don’t think the government should have any sort of say in what doctors decide to prescribe to their patients.”

He is also opposed to vaccine mandates, by government or by businesses, further explaining that he believes the primary purpose of the government is for the protection of citizens’ rights. “That includes the right to not be coerced into a medical procedure that has potentially adverse effects.”

Cappel plans on getting out in the district throughout the fall. He will have a booth in Norris Park at Heritage Days, and he invites anyone to stop by and chat about their concerns and priorities. He said he will begin knocking on doors in the upcoming months to get a better pulse on the community and entire district. “It doesn’t really matter what I think, it matters what other people think.”

His website is tylercappelforlegislature.com and his email is tylercappelforlegislature@gmail.com.