Mike Flood prepares to take his seat in Congress

LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) - Mike Flood’s name is no longer hanging above office 1206 in the State Capitol. The Congressman-elect, who’s represented District 19 out of Norfolk for years, packed up his office Thursday to go to Washington, D.C. after winning the special election for Congressional District 1 last week.

Flood said he’ll fly to D.C. on Monday and be sworn in as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives at 6:10 p.m. Tuesday.

The Republican congressman-elect said taking office isn’t just a big deal for him, but for Nebraskans in CD1.

“It’s significant because we haven’t had anyone in that seat since April 1. They’ll hand me the keys to the office and I’ll go right to work.”

Flood said once he gets to Washington, D.C., his first task is getting an office staff and phone lines ready for calls from constituents.

“I need to assemble a team of people so Nebraskans have a voice in Washington and people to help them when I’m not available but also just answer questions and figure out solutions to problems.”

Then he said he wants to tackle government spending and inflation, which he says are both too high.

“The Fourth of July cost families 17 percent more this year than last year to celebrate. It’s impacting every inch of the district. Higher prices, gas prices, the fact that we’re not energy independent.”

He’ll do it while also trying to win the general election against Democrat Patty Pansing Brooks in November, so he can stay in his office in Washington.

As soon as he’s sworn in Tuesday, he’ll be able to start voting on legislation.

Flood said he wants to represent everyone in CD1, will listen to all viewpoints and wants to understand where everyone is coming from. He said he will take that same energy into working across the aisle in Congress.