During Progressive Indiana Network’s Portraits and Perspectives event, I sat down with Tabitha Zeigler, candidate for Indiana’s 8th Congressional District. The 8th is one of Indiana’s largest and most diverse districts, stretching from Fountain County in the north all the way down to Vanderburgh County at the southern tip of the state, encompassing cities like Evansville, Terre Haute, Vincennes, and Tell City.
When I asked what inspired her to run for Congress, Tabitha’s answer was direct: “I was tired of it.” She’s watching what she describes as a war on autism—from Trump to RFK Jr. and others who seem to be targeting the autism community. As someone who is autistic herself and the mother of three children with autism, including one who is non-speaking and uses an AAC device, Tabitha believes we need someone with lived experience representing people with disabilities in Congress. Her observation struck me as particularly insightful: disability advocates end up advocating for everybody.
We discussed the broader pattern of how marginalized communities are targeted, and Tabitha immediately brought up the trans community—a cause she’s been a strong advocate for, with friends in that community. She noted how fascists always pick off smaller minorities first, then move up from there. It’s a pattern we’ve seen throughout history, and she recognized it the moment they started targeting trans people.
Our conversation turned to personal struggles, and Tabitha shared what it’s like being a mother of three children with disabilities. She’s the mom constantly filling out paperwork under the stove light, navigating WIC and SNAP, switching jobs, serving as primary caregiver, sometimes as a single mom. Her experience navigating these systems—systems created by lawmakers who often don’t understand what it actually takes to access the benefits they’ve designed—is exactly the kind of perspective Congress needs.
When I asked about fictional characters, Tabitha chose the Lord of the Rings trilogy, specifically identifying with the elves. She sees herself and other advocates as warrior types—not trying to leave anyone behind, driven by a deep vein of social justice. We talked about how the autism community often produces advocates like Greta Thunberg who refuse to sugarcoat things and take on injustice head-on, decorum be damned. As Tabitha put it, “We just need to start telling the truth, and apparently the truth is hard.”
I asked about interpersonal relationships in Washington, and Tabitha made clear she comes from a farming community where you sink or swim together. She expects to align with people who have strong personalities because she doesn’t have time for those who won’t stand up for what’s right. While she’s open to working with Republicans when they’re genuine about shared goals, she won’t shy away from her principles or what she has to say.
When I asked about legacy, Tabitha hopes people will say she always did what she thought was right, always stood with the little guy, and was unapologetically truthful. That word—unapologetically—captures her approach perfectly.
If you want to know who Tabitha Zeigler really is, she encourages you to listen to her podcast, “Staring Down the Storm: Autism Advocacy in America,” where she doesn’t sugarcoat anything and talks about real life stuff affecting Hoosiers and Americans. This is someone who brings authentic lived experience to the fight for disability rights, social justice, and truthful representation in Congress.
Check out Tabitha’s interviews with Derrick Holder and Brianna Newhart, and all of our interviews with other candidates from this event at progressiveindiana.net.
