A crowded congressional primary just got more competitive, as Democrat Jonathan Treble, an entrepreneur, looks to break into politics with the market-friendly message that "profits and people can coexist."

Launching his candidacy to represent the Scottsdale area, Treble, 36, is emphasizing his business bona fides as he aims to challenge veteran incumbent Rep. David Schweikert, a conservative whose dogged focus on the country's economic and fiscal "math" has for years helped him swat down partisan attacks.

Treble, a Scottsdale resident, is introducing himself to voters as an entrepreneur whose teenage side hustles helped make him the first in his family to graduate from college, and who, at the age of 25, founded a small business that now has more than 100 employees.

In an interview with The Arizona Republic he described his upbringing as "middle class."

"My parents came, themselves, from very humble roots, working nights and weekends to make a better life for me and my younger sister," he said. "I've been trying to pay it back to the types of middle-class families that I grew up in."

He's calling to make the country's tax code "more fair," starting with reversing the GOP-led package of tax cuts, a signature achievement of Trump's first term.

"83% of those dollars went toward the wealthiest one percent of earners. It's staggering," he said. "That was essentially a theft from the middle class."

Treble has long wanted to run for office but, unlike some of his opponents , doesn't have formal experience in politics. It was a health scare a year ago that made him realize "life is short" and ultimately decide to throw his hat in the ring.

"Our Congress is not helping everyday Arizonans out. They are not going to bat for us. They're lowering taxes only for the wealthiest," he said.

"They are cutting services across the board, to organizations that help disabled people, help veterans, entitlements that help our most vulnerable."

He argued what he lacks in formal political experience he makes up for in electability, a concern that has been top of mind for primary voters in the district, where Democrats have spent millions of dollars over the last few election cycles trying, and failing , to unseat Schweikert.

Treble said in an interview he's the only "lifelong Democrat" in the race — a jab at rival candidates Marlene Galán-Woods, a former journalist who was a registered Republican until 2018 , and former state Rep. Amish Shah, an emergency room doctor who told local media he briefly registered as a Republican in 2016 as a "strategic" decision to help Democrats.

The race in Arizona's 1st Congressional District is getting up off the ground less than three months into the new congressional term, with more than a year to go before next year's primary.

The district is one of the most competitive in the country, favoring Republicans by only two points, according to the non-partisan analysis group Cook Political Report .

It covers parts of north Phoenix, Scottsdale, Paradise Valley, Cave Creek and Fountain Hills in Maricopa County, along with Salt River and Fort McDowell Yavapai National tribal reservations. It’s Arizona’s most affluent congressional district.