Harry Dunn, officer who defended the US Capitol on Jan. 6, is running for Congress in Maryland

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — A former police officer who defended the U.S. Capitol against rioters on Jan. 6 announced Friday he is running for Congress in Maryland.

Harry Dunn wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter, that he will be running in a crowded Democratic primary to replace Rep. John Sarbanes, a Democrat who is not seeking reelection.

Dunn made the announcement a day before the third anniversary of the attack at the Capitol that disrupted the certification of the 2020 election, saying in his campaign announcement that former President Donald Trump was “hell-bent on finishing what he started” three years ago.

“On January 6th, I defended our democracy from insurrectionists as a Capitol Police Officer. After, President Biden honored me with the Presidential Citizens Medal,” Dunn wrote in the announcement of his candidacy. “Today, I’m running for Congress to stop Trump’s MAGA extremists & ensure it never happens again.”

What to know:

• What’s happening: It’s been three years since the Jan. 6, 2021, riot when the nation watched the U.S. Capitol attack unfold on live TV.
• Fast forward: Now, President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump are making the anniversary a political rallying cry during two separate political events Saturday ahead of this year’s election.
• Criminal cases: Authorities are working to identify more than 80 people wanted for acts of violence at the Capitol and to find out who placed pipe bombs outside the Republican and Democratic national committees’ offices.

Dunn is running in Maryland’s 3rd Congressional District, which stretches between Baltimore and the nation’s capital. The race already has drawn five state legislators to run in the heavily Democratic district.

In a video Dunn released on the social