Some students and campaign workers at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee are sporting red, white and blue buttons that have nothing to do with the presidential election.

They are not supporting Democratic presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) or President Bush. They are lobbying for Bryan Kennedy, a professor of Portuguese at UWM, as he campaigns for Wisconsin's 5th U.S. Congressional District.

Kennedy will be challenging incumbent Republican Rep. F. James Sensenbrenner, who has been a member of Congress since 1979.

"I believe we can win," said Jordan Aberman, media liaison for Bryan Kennedy for Congress. National Public Radio and "The Cook Political Report started talking about the race and said we have been more successful in our campaign and raising money than people thought we would."

Kennedy said this is his fourth year of teaching at UWM. After spending time in Maryland, Utah, North Carolina, Portugal and Brazil, he and his wife chose to move to Wisconsin, he said.

"I really, really like Milwaukee," Kennedy said. "It's big enough to have pretty much everything you'd want but still have a small-town feel. It's a great place to raise a family."

Janet Gerber, volunteer coordinator of Bryan Kennedy for Congress, graduated from UWM in May with a bachelor's degree in international relations and a Portuguese minor.

She had Kennedy as a professor for three years.

In class, "he was very enthusiastic and relaxed," Gerber said. "He didn't lecture or talk down to the students."

She said he was her favorite professor throughout her college career.

"I think going into teaching really played to my strengths," Kennedy said. "I feed on the energy of my class."

Kennedy's enthusiasm for working with people is one of the qualities his campaign hopes will bring him victory.

"He's an average, everyday person, not an elitist," Gerber said.

Kennedy has worked for many campaigns prior to running, including the 1998 U.S. Senate campaign for Sen. John Edwards (D-N.C.), recently picked by the Democrats as their vice presidential candidate. In addition to Portuguese, Kennedy said he also speaks Spanish and French.

Through all of his experiences, Aberman said Kennedy is focused on getting things done and finding solutions to real problems.

One issue Kennedy feels strongly about is health care. He created a proposal for universal catastrophic health care in which anyone with a catastrophic illness could obtain coverage.

He said people should choose their own health care provider instead of having employers choosing for them. He said people should know what their prescription drug coverage costs and be able to shop around for health care.

According to Aberman, Kennedy feels as strongly about the people he would represent as the issues themselves.

Kennedy contributes his personable nature to his life experiences.

"I grew up a regular person in a regular family," Kennedy said. "I can relate to pretty much anybody from any walk of life."