Values
My values center around helping Winona thrive. Whether it's childcare or housing or other issues and needs that arise, I will put Winonans first.
More Housing
Winona has a housing crisis. We have some of the worst rent burden in the state, and are short 1400 housing units in the county. Study after study has shown that in order to fix this crisis, we need to build more housing of all types. If elected, I will include in the 2027 bonding bill a provision to build 100 units of affordable housing for seniors because they are the most vulnerable. Further, the “move over effect” will open up units for new home buyers. Finally, I will commit to reducing red tape so that local developers can more easily build homes in Winona.
affordable childcare
There is a shortage of childcare in Winona. I am committed to dedicating funds to open up another children center in Winona public schools. I will also fight to create funding for other childcare and housing solutions such as the Child Care House Model.
Raising Minimum Wage
Our incomes have not kept pace with inflation, and basic necessities are farther and farther out of reach every year. A $15 minimum wage for the entire state of Minnesota is a necessary first step to making sure that every person and family has a chance of the American Dream.
Fraud & Abuse
Fraud has been a big issue in Minnesota and it makes me angry when money is stolen from Minnesotans to line the pockets of criminals. When criminals steal from public programs, it ends up hurting the people those programs serve — seniors, kids, people with disabilities. They deserve better.
I am committed to an effective government that works to prevent fraud and acts swiftly to hold criminals accountable when fraud does happen. The Republican controlled committee on fraud heard only 2 bills this past session. Neither of which passed into law. DFL House and Senate members have already passed over 100 pieces of legislation relating to fraud, but we have more work to do. I am ready to do the work to make certain our public programs are protected from fraud. There is a long way to go for Minnesota to earn back trust from taxpayers, but I'm ready to put in the work to get it done and not just talk about it during an election year.
Affordable Insurance
I will work to make insurance, such as home, auto, and dental, more affordable by making insurance companies be transparent about their profits rather than hiding them. Because the "Big Beautiful Bill" threatens over $1 billion of our state's annual Medicaid funding, our county governments and rural hospitals will be hard hit. I am committed to making sure these costs aren't passed on Winona taxpayers by working to expand our state's public health insurance.
Economic Fairness
The news is full of talk about polarization, with people taking sides and not budging. When I ran for State Senate in 2022, I talked with over 3,000 neighbors, and I found that we truly have more in common than we think. The vast majority of us agree that corporate monopolies make it harder for working families, and that corporate greed has gotten out of hand. From health care to manufacturing, these corporate monopolies drive down competition while increasing prices for consumers. As a farmer, I have experienced this personally. Farms today produce three times as much food, while earning 30% less, than my grandfather's farm did. For the past 60 years both parties have promoted corporate monopolies and the greed that comes with them, dragging down our economy and suffocating families. We need to level the playing field to make it easier for small businesses to thrive.
Very fundamentally, both Democrats and Republicans have both created an economic system that favors the rich and powerful at the expense of working families. We can start to dismantle this broken system by limiting the power of corporations: by getting corporate money out of politics, by limiting their ability to expand, and by giving working families more power and freedoms.
Hyperscale Data Centers
The central question of AI and data centers is who benefits from them. For the past several years, it has been clear that the winners of this extractive industry are not workers whose jobs are being replaced or rural communities who see their electric bills raised. If local communities choose to welcome data centers, we need to make sure that these multi-billion dollar companies pay their way, and use union labor to build them. Also that they pay to expand our clean energy production so as not to not increase our electric bills. Most importantly, that they do all of this in the open without signing non-disclosures with public officials.
Put simply:
No Subsidies
No Secrets
No Spikes in energy bills
My Agriculture Policy Platform
1. Make it easier for farmers to have healthier soil. Soil health is important for our farmers and for our landscape. Minnesota currently ranks the highest in the country for the amount of soil health money we provide, yet we are also first for denials. If elected, I will work to create a centralized portal and application system for soil health grants available in Minnesota
2. Protect rural taxpayers from federal budget cuts. When the federal government cuts funding for Medicaid and other programs, you shouldn’t have to foot the bill. The county governments face tough choices: cut services, raise property taxes, or both. This means that rural landowners are often left to pay for the tax cuts given to billionaires and corporations in order for their community to access the services they need to thrive.I will work to implement a tax on Minnesota's top 0.1% earners to help replace lost federal funding and reduce the pressure on counties and local property taxpayers.
3. Create a pilot program to make farming more profitable and more productive with dual-benefit energy production. Farmers can, and have been, using solar panels in creative ways to increase farm productivity by making sure every part of the solar panel has a dual use.. If elected, I will work to launch a pilot program to assist farmers’ with costs of raising solar panels, mount them on existing buildings, or over feedlots so that cattle can rest under them during heatwaves. . This will allow farmers to farm creatively while also adding another significant revenue stream to farm business.
Climate Change
For too long we have put the duty of fixing climate change on consumers. We did not cause climate change and should not be the ones paying for the solutions. We need to hold the oil and gas companies that lied to us about the effects of burning fossil fuels to be held accountable and pay for the damages they have caused.
The farming practices that keep our ground water clean are also the farming practices that sequester carbon and make our fields more resilient. Our agricultural and energy policies need to recognize that our rural communities are most at risk by the dangers posed by climate change and energy shortages. Therefore, we need to make sure that Greater Minnesota benefits the most from attempts to stabilize our soil, our livelihoods, and our climate.
Automatic License Plate Readers (ALPR aka Flock)
It’s clear that in their current use, AI-assisted surveillance tools have caused more harm than good across the country. These cameras should have robust safeguards to protect our privacy and constitutional freedoms, while also allowing local law enforcement to have valuable tools to help solve serious crimes. Feelings about mass surveillance transcend political ideology. It’s pretty straightforward: we shouldn’t have to trade our privacy for our safety. We can – and we should – demand both. If elected, I will introduce a bill in the Minnesota state legislature requiring the following regulations on automated license plate readers (ALPRs):
ALPR cameras should require approval of local City Councils or County Boards before installation.
ALPR technology must be proven to withstand hacking attempts.
ALPR cameras must be clearly labeled for public notice.
ALPR data must be sealed and may not be used internally nor shared with any other organization, jurisdiction, or agency without a judge-approved warrant.
Personal Liberty
As a Quaker, I believe that the decision about whether or when to start a family is deeply personal, even sacred. As such, it is important that we protect our reproductive freedoms. Likewise, I believe that whom someone chooses to love is an intensely private decision. In short, "The right to be left alone is the most comprehensive of rights and the right most valued." — Justice Louis Brandeis, Olmstead v. United States (1928).
Complete Transparency
As your elected official, I promise to be available to you. I want to hear from you, especially if you disagree with me. In order for our politics to work, a disagreement must be the start of the conversation, not the end. To demonstrate this commitment, I will hold regular town halls across the district every month of the year if I am elected.
Follow the Facts
You may have noticed all of the citations in my platform statement–that's because facts matter. I promise to always follow the facts first, even if they contradict my deeply held beliefs. Some of my proposals may seem ambitious, but given the facts before us, anything less would be insufficient.
If you have made it this far, you have really done your research on me. THANK YOU! I truly appreciate you doing the work to look through my whole website. Just like you, I promise to do my research and always follow the facts first, even if they contradict my deeply held beliefs.
power to
the people
Our campaign is powered by real neighbors from all over Winona County, just like you.