www.eagletimes.com
www.eagletimes.com
Question for and answers from candidates: Vermont state Senate, Windsor district By GLYNIS HART reporter@eagletimes.com Aug 11, 2018 0 State of Vermont seal COURTESY WINDSOR, Vt. – An open primary for the Windsor district of the Vermont state senate will take place Tuesday, Aug. 14, with the three Democratic incumbents facing three Republican challengers and an independent. Democrats Alison Clarkson, Richard McCormack, and Alice Nitka are the current office-holders. Republican challengers Randy Gray, Jack Williams, and Wayne Townsend also ran in the previous election and were defeated by the Democratic incumbents. The Eagle Times asked all six candidates five similar questions. Clarkson, Gray and independent candidate Mason Wade answered via email: ALISON CLARKSON Alison Clarkson has lived in Woodstock since 1991, where she and her husband raised their two sons. Eagle Times: How has the majority status of your party in Vermont affected your campaign strategy? Alison Clarkson: It hasn’t. I run my own campaign, focused on this Windsor County district. ET: How long have you served in office, and what are you most proud of achieving while in office? AC: I served as the state representative for Plymouth, Reading and Woodstock from 2005 -2016. I was honored to be elected to serve as state senator for Windsor County for 2017-18. In the senate, I serve as vice-chair of of the Senate Sexual Harassment Panel, and am a member of the Legislative Climate Caucus and of the Women’s Caucus and on the State-Wide Workforce Development Board. There are many things I am proud of: serving my constituents to the best of my ability, helping pass marriage equity, a balanced budget every year, increasing the minimum wage, improving health care coverage for Vermonters and pay equity for women, passing common sense gun safety measures, passing innovative economic development measures, investing in our downtowns by expanding our TIF program and increasing downtown development tax credits, and improving the Current Use program. ET: What challenges face the senate in the upcoming term? AC: Because the Vermont Legislature meets only 4 and a half months a year, there is always unfinished business. My guess is that it will return to address: paid family leave, raising the minimum wage, creating a regulated marijuana market, the next steps with Act 46, creating a funding mechanism for cleaning up the waters of VT, more affordable childcare, and reducing health care costs. ET: What particular issues affecting the Windsor senate district would you like to get state action on? AC: We need to continue our work spreading economic development more evenly throughout the state — especially to Windsor County where we have the internet and architectural infrastructure to accommodate growth. In addition, we need to strengthen our opiate prevention and treatment programs, continue to improve our Workforce Development programs and opportunities, and to build better programming in corrections so that people return to our communities better educated and trained — ready to work productively. RANDY GRAY Born and raised in Springfield, Randy Gray has lived in the Windsor Senate District most of his life, except for an 8-year period of living in New Hampshire in the 1990s. ET: How has the minority status of your party in Vermont affected your campaign strategy? RG: I have always felt it is best to vote for the best candidate and not a party. I reach across party lines. A legislator is suppose to represent all of the constituents, not just those in their party. ET: What special skills or experience do you have that make you the best candidate for the office? RG: I have worked many years in sales and as a sales administrator, dealing mainly with Vermont small businesses. I serve as vice chair on one of Springfield’s municipal committees. I am the chair of the Springfield Republican Committee and serve as secretary to a local recreational club. ET: Do you have a particular issue you are focused on? What would you like to achieve in office? RG: There are many issues that I feel need attention in Vermont. Our economic growth is my top priority. I feel if we improve our economy many of the other problems will fade, such as the drug issue. I have a multi-step plan to reduce drug abuse. I have a goal to lower the business tax rate and work toward reducing or eliminating the sales tax. I will fight hard for clean water, mandating municipalities to improve their waste water infrastructure preventing raw sewage spills. I will refuse to vote for any bill that threatens our constitutional rights. ET: What particular issues affecting the Windsor senate district would you like to get state action on? RG: The sales tax is devastating to retail business along the Connecticut River Valley, I will work to reduce or eliminate the sales tax. I will work to bring a secondary vocational school to Windsor County, providing employers with skilled workers and providing skills for employees. I will push to rein in Act 250, making river buffer zone rules specific to site locations, by example, Springfield is protected by a flood control dam, so the buffer zone rules should take that into consideration. I want to eliminate Act 250 regulation from all single-family residential homes. I would promote hydro power generation using diversion dams or current generators. Providing treatment for addicts and much stiffer penalties for drug dealers is a must, along with early prevention programs in our public schools. A repeal is being drafted for Act 46, I will support it. School choice is the reason many young families move to Vermont. I encourage educators to speak with me about a solution to high education costs without effecting the quality of education. MASON WADE Mason “Cloud” Wade, running as an independent candidate, lives on a homestead in the Rochester area, three miles from a power pole and lacking cell service. He has lived in the Rochester area for over 30 years. ET: What is your campaign strategy? Mason Wade: My first campaign strategy is to see as many 802 Windsor folks run for an office. Here in Windsor County we’re pushing 18 house seats and many need candidates to create debate. Since Aug. 9 has past as deadline for independent candidates filing, the next step is to see folks understand that it’s time to create independent write-in campaigns. Why? The party system is failing Vermonters — those independents going to Montpelier will be for the voters, not the party! ET: What special skills or experience do you have that make you the best candidate for the office? MW: All of us can run. I bring my homesteading skills, my entrepreneur skills, my 50 some years of experience of the parties failing just dividing the state and the nation, three years on a school board and doing an Alaskan expedition 1976 which has not been repeated. ET: Do you have a particular issue you are focused on? What would you like to achieve in office? MW: Number one issue is our democracy as is number two and three. Particular issues are for Windsor folks to share with me as their senator. Not losing our democracy will be a big achievement while in office. Sorry, but wake up, we are in trouble. ET: What particular issues affecting the Windsor senate district would you like to get state action on? MW: One state action may well be having Windsor become two counties to have better representation to the region. Also it may well be time to amend the state constitution so the voters have the right to hold state referendums. The friends of Ludlow Auditorium will be sharing democracy with us on Oct. 25 at 7 p.m., a forum of candidates for Windsor Senate and house seat Windsor 2. At this time I am the only independent senate candidate, and we are lucky that an independent candidate is running for house seat Windsor 2, Peter Berger. Go Peter! If you are thinking about a write-in campaign, let me know!
No comments :
Post a Comment
Please keep your comments polite and on-topic. No profanity