our Campaign’s top issues

Texas’ public schools need more support from the state, not to be undermined by a voucher program. From better pay and total compensation, to cost of living adjustments for retirees, we need to pay educators what they’re worth, and ensure that good teachers stay in the classroom. Texas has slowly shifted the burden of funding public education from the state to taxpayers (via property taxes) which makes housing more expensive and creates disparities in district funding. It’s time we live our values and support Texas’ public schools.

Healthcare costs are out of control, whether you have health insurance or not. Although we pay into the system via federal taxes, Texas lawmakers have chosen not to expand Medicaid. As a consequence we have the highest uninsured rate in the U.S. and pay $5.5B annually to cover the medical treatment of uninsured people. This makes healthcare more expensive for us all and causes people to delay or defer needed treatment while something can still be done. Caring communities like ours can’t let this continue.

Current laws ignore the fact that sometimes pregnancies develop complications. By intentionally refusing to clarify how to qualify for a legal exception in these cases, Texas has effectively banned abortion for everyone without the resources to leave the state. Not only is this dangerous, unscientific, and cruel, it’s also ineffective. Since Texas implemented its ban in 2021, abortions increased nationwide.

Lawmakers have no place in this personal decision.

Securing the border and immigration reform are federal issues yet we’ve spent nearly $12B of state funds on ‘Operation Lone Star’ (OLS). Despite trying to portray immigrants as criminals, US Nationals are responsible for 86% of OLS arrests for drug offenses, and 90% of OLS weapons offenses according to the DPS. That $12B should have gone to our public schools, infrastructure improvements, and providing healthcare access to millions of Texans.

In the end, militarizing the border doesn’t address why people are fleeing their counties in the first place - to do that we need to address climate change, and increase our support for economic and political stability around the world.

Across the state it’s clear that climate change is affecting our lives. We’ve seen an increase in droughts that cause crop failure, coastal flooding that destroys homes and livelihoods, and stronger and more frequent storms. Instead of refusing to act and politicizing the issue, we could be charting a way forward that considers how decisions affect people, the environment, and economies. With all the growth taking place in Texas we can either maintain the status quo, or learn lessons from the past and focus on sustainable development to decentralize power generation, build more efficient housing, and develop public transit.

Governments are charged with looking out for the health, safety, and well-being of their citizens, not singling out people for exclusion and marginalization. Every Texan has natural rights, regardless of their gender, sexual orientation, race, age, birthplace, or disability. I’m passionate about making a difference for the marginalized people of Texas, because they deserve to know what it feels like to have someone fighting on their behalf.

As the population of Texas continues to grow, protecting our natural resources will be critical. We’ve seen increasing conflicts over how diminishing water resources are allocated. Assuming we’ll always have plentiful clean freshwater for drinking, recreation, farming, and industry is unrealistic, and leaves in place a wasteful status quo. I support conservation measures that proactively protect water, whether by mandating its efficient use, or encouraging alternative strategies like greywater recycling and rainwater harvesting.

Gun violence is so prevalent we’ve allowed ourselves to be convinced there’s nothing we can do about it. A majority of Texans support mandatory safe storage rules, raising the minimum age to purchase an assault rifle, and other common-sense measures, so why haven’t we taken these steps? These changes can be made while respecting the Constitutional right to bear arms.

In honor of all the lives we’ve lost, from Sutherland Springs to El Paso, Allen, and Uvalde, we have to stop acting like we’re powerless to stop gun violence and start making changes to save lives.

As inflation takes its toll on families, Texas passed on $450M that would have provided $120 in EBT benefits per child to ensure kids were fed through the summer. Although it would provide food to 3 million children in Texas, the state claimed it had to pass on the program because it couldn't manage the administration.

Leaders boast about Texas’ $28B rainy day fund while simultaneously claiming there’s not enough money to support programs like this. Food banks are serving record numbers of clients, making it clear the need is there. It’s time we adequately fund social programs that invest in Texans who need help.

Texas is growing faster than the supply of housing can keep pace with, and housing costs have skyrocketed. Older homeowners face soaring valuations and struggle to pay property taxes while young families find themselves priced out. Cities should be empowered to regulate this needed development to grow smartly – adapting codes to increase housing density and build housing that is sustainable, energy efficient, and accessible for people in all stages of life.

Rather than continuing to enforce Texas’ cannabis prohibition, which has disproportionately targeted minorities, we should make the system safer by regulating its sale. In 2024, recreational marijuana will be legal in 24 states, where it’s providing millions in tax revenue and keeping people from the revolving door of our prison system.

Texas’ maternal mortality rate is 28.1 deaths per 100,000 live births. To put that in context, Japan’s maternal mortality rate is 4.3, New Zealand’s is 7, and Canada’s is 11. Texas’ rate puts us between Armenia (27) and Sri Lanka (29). Unfortunately, as with most problems, maternal mortality disproportionately affects people of color. In 2023 state legislators expanded Medicaid coverage from 2 months to a full year after birth. It’s a step in the right direction, but too many mothers continue to die needlessly from race-based mistreatment, avoidable complications, and domestic violence.

When employers fail to respect the value of their workforce, I support employees who organize to collectively bargain for higher wages, better benefits, and workplace safety initiatives. From the 40-hour workweek to child labor laws and PTO, many of the fundamental workplace rights we enjoy today were won by the efforts of labor unions. As a former resident of Flint, Michigan, I saw firsthand how unions can drastically improve quality of life for workers. The UAW’s recent victory proved that strikes are sometimes necessary to reclaim workers’ fair share. These protections dramatically improve the financial situation of working families and are why unions are experiencing a resurgence around the country.

From banning private prisons that incentivize incarceration to changing how we handle mental health/substance abuse and ensuring prisoners are adequately cared for while serving their sentences, our justice system needs to modernize. Although declining, recidivism rates illustrate that the current model isn’t doing enough to set up prisoners for success when they’re released, and far too often they end up behind bars again.