"There is too much spending and too much politics. Barbara Mikulski has watched it all happen for years and I want her to go home," said Walt Bruehs of Annapolis. "Mikulski votes to spend because she thinks it will get her re-elected. Wargotz will give us less spending and less politics."

Wargotz will need to focus on larger counties where Democratic voters outnumber Republicans, such as Montgomery and Prince George's. With a largely Democratic base in Prince George's, that county may be his toughest battle, but Wargotz, who has been on staff at the non-profit Doctors Hospital in Prince George's County since 1989, says he is not ruling out any county at this point.

"I've served the hardworking people of Prince George's County for 22 years," said Wargotz. "I know we have support there and I'll continue to work hard there."

Wargotz has spent the bulk of his career in medicine and has been rated one of America's Top Physicians by the Consumer Research Council every year since 2004. He said he's always been an activist, including work on the Reagan presidential campaign while in college, but his first public office was Queen Anne's County Commissioner, elected in 2006.

Charles and Neva Mattheiss of Baltimore County said it is the doctor and activist combination that compelled them to volunteer for the Wargotz campaign, their first political campaign ever. The Mattheisses say they support Wargotz because he is not a professional politician but rather a medical doctor and they are looking for him to resolve issues with the health bill.

"He's a medical doctor and knows the medical field and the problems in it," said Neva Mattheiss. "We need that, especially right now."

Wargotz says the health care law, passed six months ago, "without regard for the will of the people and against the express wishes of the majority of Americans," will have a negative impact on the small businesses and middle class workers it was allegedly designed to help. "That's exactly what was bound to happen with a law written by lobbyists, career bureaucrats and Washington insiders like Barbara Mikulski. Instead of working in a bipartisan manner to pass real health care reform that benefits everyone, the bill became Christmas Morning for every special interest with pockets deep enough to influence its outcome."

Rocky Sackville is a state department employee living in Frederick County who helped assemble hundreds of signs on Sunday and said he will distribute as many as he can in his county.

"He's constitutionally and fiscally responsible," said Sackville. "He's trying to ensure that our grandkids will have pizza one day," he added, referring to the pizza provided for the campaign workers.

Wargotz told campaign workers that his campaign has repeatedly requested to debate Mikulski but she is resisting. He said he is considering a "virtual debate" like the virtual swim meet his children attended on Saturday at the YMCA.

"We'd have to figure out how that would work," said Wargotz. "Voters want to hear us debate and I'm hoping she'll do the right thing so we don't have to resort to something like that."

Wargotz will be at the ARC of Montgomery County candidate forum at the Hillandale Center in Silver Spring at 7 o'clock tonight. For more dates and information, go to wargotzforussenate.org.