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DC Primary Election June 19, 2018 7 am until 8 pm Prince George’s Primary Election June 26, 2018 7 am until 8 pm

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D.C. candidates / 2018 Mayor Muriel Bowser

Office: Mayor / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 45 / Profession: Mayor / Ward of Residence: 4 Campaign Website: murielbowser.com

Why are you running for office? I am so proud of what we have accomplished together so far and there is so much more to do. Together we will continue to take on our toughest challenges – working together to build a better DC for us all. I have been so proud to serve as your mayor for the past four years and would be honored to have your vote to serve for another four. What would be one of the first pieces of legislation you would pursue if elected? As your mayor, I’ve set out an agenda that is defined by a broad approach. From creating affordable housing to making our streets safer, from ending homelessness to creating an inclusive environment that supports residents in all eight wards, I’ve learned a great deal about the tools available to the Executive to solve these tough problems. Legislation is just one of many. If given the opportunity to serve for another four years, I know we can accomplish even more through legislation, but most importantly, by working together. What are your plans to help the school system do a better job at preparing students for college? Submitted by Makeda, Ward 7 Youth Government Representative I am focused on ensuring our young people have the tools and knowledge they need not only in college, but in life. That means we must start in elementary and middle school by offering a wide range of course and opportunities that allow students to find and pursue their passions. And as they get older, it means we keep students engaged and focused on reaching their goals. I’ve made unprecedented investments in our students, our teachers, extended year schools and out of school time activities to ensure around the clock learning. Together we must be all in for our kids, and I know together we can do more to help prepare the next generation. How will you hold developers, subsidized by the city, accountable for creating affordable housing? Upon taking office, I immediately asked for all government-funded development projects to be reassessed and include maximum affordability. I take my role as a public servant very seriously and, if reelected, will continue to push to hold accountable all those who receive or are entrusted with city funds. How will you work to create more affordable housing units for the District’s lowest income residents and families? Under my leadership, we have undertaken a multi-pronged approach to housing production and preservation, homeownership, and vacant property development - the approach is winning national recognition. In four years, we have produced 5,000 units of affordable housing. And by using all of the tools we have set up over the past four years - including implementing our new preservation fund, making historic investments in the Housing Production Trust Fund and getting that financing out the door, and making unprecedented progress on new communities - we are on track to deliver 10,000

James Butler

over the next four years, if reelected. What legislation will you create or support to establish a greener, more sustainable D.C.? It is in the best interest of our country’s safety, economy, and future to take climate change seriously, and, if re-elected, I will not let federal inaction hinder our progress. I have launched Climate Ready DC; proposed the DC Green Bank which will help create jobs, expand solar power, lower energy costs, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions; finalized the largest municipal wind power purchase agreement deal of its kind in the US; and launched the largest onsite municipal solar generation. If re-elected, I look forward to continuing to take unprecedented steps towards a greener future for DC. How will you support or encourage the construction and renovation of housing, expanding funding and improving the application process for the Safe-at-Home program, expanding access to affordable senior rentals, and/or senior property tax relief? Submitted by AARP Throughout my career as a public servant, I’ve been laser focused on making DC the best city in the world to age and live well in. Through property tax relief, investments in transportation, in-home supports, and wellness programs, I have spent the past four years as mayor ensuring that seniors are able to stay and live in the communities they know and love. As I’ve showed in my recently proposed budget by including a proposal to ensure that more DC seniors can age in place by cutting in half how much their property taxes can go up each year - I would be honored, if reelected, to continue to find ways to invest in our oldest residents. What is your commitment to closing the education and employment gaps for Black and Latino residents in the District? While there is more work to do, I am proud of the substantial progress towards beginning to address those gaps - our hardest to employ residents remain my top priority. In 2014, DC had the worst workforce system in the nation. Today, there is a new narrative. Unemployment is now 5.8% and has reached the lowest recorded levels in wards 7 and 8 ever recorded. This could not have been accomplished without significantly improving our workforce system, creating targeted training programs, leveraging the DC Government as an employer, and partnering with business to ensure that training offerings and the needs of business were aligned. As the city continues to gentrify what will you do to make living in D.C. more equitable regardless of a resident’s ward or zip code? We have unprecedented population and economic growth in DC today. As a fifth generation Washingtonian, like you, I continue to assess how this growth is impacting our communities - both old and new. I am proud of our history, of where we’ve been, and, if given the opportunity to serve as mayor of my hometown for another four years, will continue to be hawkish about ensuring that our policies work to share that prosperity and ensure that DC remains the diverse and inclusive community I was raised in.

Office: Mayor / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 42 / Profession: ANC Commissioner and Former Attorney Ward of Residence: 5 / Campaign Website: www.butlerformayor.com

Why are you running for office? I am running because of the urgency that is required. I believe four more years of this current administration will exclude a lot of the underrepresented and underserved populations here in Washington, DC. We need a Peoples Mayor. A mayor who will put People First. What would be one of the first pieces of legislation you would pursue if elected? True Rent Control which consists of a cap on for profit developers.This will immediately impact those properties built after 1975, as the current form of rent control is not applicable to any dwelling place built after 1975. What are your plans to help the school system do a better job at preparing students for college? Submitted by Makeda, Ward 7 Youth Government Representative One of my first priorities as Mayor is to implement educational systems that will empower parents to guide their children on the path of higher education, vocational awareness and excellence. I will challenge the City’s colleges and universities to contribute to creating a system of educational supports that are enlightening and without cost to District residents. I will implement an optional after-work hours program that is for parents only. The class will focus on important things such as ACT and SAT test dates, testing resources, Scholarship opportunities, FAFSA form completion, and other important matters to ensure your child’s success. How will you hold developers, subsidized by the city, accountable for creating affordable housing? I know that the District is an attractive place for developers. I also realize that while most developers talk about affordable housing, and make such units available under the law, affordable housing has become a misnomer. As Mayor, I will strongly advocate that these rules be more inclusive so that living in the city can be a reality for millennials, seniors, and all. In exchange for any tax break to for profit developers, my administration will require a substantial percentage of “income-based” housing to be built.

families? I know that the District is an attractive place for developers. I also realize that while most developers talk about affordable housing, and make such units available under the law, affordable housing has become a misnomer. As Mayor, I will strongly advocate that these rules be more inclusive so that living in the city can be a reality for millennials, seniors, and all. In exchange for any tax break to for profit developers, my administration will require a substantial percentage of “income-based” housing to be built. What legislation will you create or support to establish a greener, more sustainable D.C.? I would craft new legislation that would improve both “Sustainable Purchasing” and “Environmentally Preferable Purchasing” capabilities here in the District of Columbia. However, when using these terms in a technical context, environmentally preferable purchasing is an activity that focuses primarily on environmental impacts, whereas sustainable purchasing encompasses how purchases impact the environment, economy, and people today and in future generations. All environmental issues fit within the rubric of sustainability. By implementing sustainability in our procurement process this will prevent a lot of waste down the road. How will you support or encourage the construction and renovation of housing, expanding funding and improving the application process for the Safe-at-Home program, expanding access to affordable senior rentals, and/or senior property tax relief? Submitted by AARP My administration will partner with organizations such as AARP and the DC Office of Aging to ensure current policies are being complied with. Additionally my administration will look at ways of expanding the funds (currently $10,000) and to decrease the installation time from 30 days to 21 days. What is your commitment to closing the education and employment gaps for Black and Latino residents in the District? Where are schools are deficient we will increase resources. Where these resources are applied we will provide rigorous regulatory oversight. As the city continues to gentrify what will you do to make living in D.C. more equitable regardless of a resident’s ward or zip code? Rent control and more “income-based” housing.

How will you work to create more affordable housing units for the District’s lowest income residents and

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Ernest E. Johnson

Office: Mayor / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 58 / Profession: Real Estate Consultant / Ward of Residence: 4 Campaign Website: ErnestJohnsonforMayor.com

Why are you running for office? I am running because of the urgency that is required. I believe four more years of this current administration will exclude a lot of the underrepresented and underserved populations here in Washington, DC. We need a Peoples Mayor. A mayor who will put People First. What would be one of the first pieces of legislation you would pursue if elected? True Rent Control which consists of a cap on for profit developers.This will immediately impact those properties built after 1975, as the current form of rent control is not applicable to any dwelling place built after 1975. What are your plans to help the school system do a better job at preparing students for college? Submitted by Makeda, Ward 7 Youth Government Representative One of my first priorities as Mayor is to implement educational systems that will empower parents to guide their children on the path of higher education, vocational awareness and excellence. I will challenge the City’s colleges and universities to contribute to creating a system of educational supports that are enlightening and without cost to District residents. I will implement an optional after-work hours program that is for parents only.The class will focus on important things such as ACT and SAT test dates, testing resources, Scholarship opportunities, FAFSA form completion, and other important matters to ensure your child’s success. How will you hold developers, subsidized by the city, accountable for creating affordable housing? I know that the District is an attractive place for developers. I also realize that while most developers talk about affordable housing, and make such units available under the law, affordable housing has become a misnomer. As Mayor, I will strongly advocate that these rules be more inclusive so that living in the city can be a reality for millennials, seniors, and all. In exchange for any tax break to for profit developers, my administration will require a substantial percentage of “income-based” housing to be built. How will you work to create more affordable housing units for the District’s lowest income residents and

Ann Wilcox

What would be one of the first pieces of legislation you would pursue if elected? Expand rent control to preserve affordable housing. Full implementation of the NEAR Act, which involves the community in public safety. What are your plans to help the school system do a better job at preparing students for college? Submitted by Makeda, Ward 7 Youth Government Representative Support students in readiness for school (health, safe passage to & from school, attendance); tutoring and academic support. How will you hold developers, subsidized by the city, accountable for creating affordable housing? No public subsidies for development projects; enforce inclusionary zoning agreements and preserve affordable housing before it is lost. How will you work to create more affordable housing units for the District’s lowest income residents and families? Broader coverage of rent control, cover more units and all new construction. Use public funds to reha-

bilitate affordable housing before it is lost, and communities are scattered. Use 30% of AMI to expand very low-income housing. What legislation will you create or support to establish a greener, more sustainable D.C.? Support a carbon tax; support public transportation options including Metro. Expand recycling and sustainable lifestyle policies. How will you support or encourage the construction and renovation of housing, expanding funding and improving the application process for the Safe-at-Home program, expanding access to affordable senior rentals, and/or senior property tax relief? Submitted by AARP Fully support Safe at Home, senior villages, senior wellness centers; make more housing vouchers available to seniors and rehabilitate senior residential buildings. Support senior property tax relief. Support non-profits such as Iona. What is your commitment to closing the education and employment gaps for Black and Latino residents in the District? Students at risk need greater support in their home lives; school readiness (health care, safe passage to & from school). Support literacy and tutoring programs. As the city continues to gentrify what will you do to make living in D.C. more equitable regardless of a resident’s ward or zip code? Affordable housing in all areas of the city; food options and healthy grocery options in Wards 7 and 8. Support retail and other amenities in East End.

Office: Mayor / Party Affiliation: Libertarian / Age: 52 / Profession: Consultant / Ward of Residence: 6 Campaign Website: https://twitter.com/LiberateDC2018

Why are you running for office? To #LiberateDC from the corrupt/dishonest practices of the corporatist puppet DC Democrats so that DC parents and families can be empowered by #schoolchoice so their children can succeed educationally, compete for productive gainful employment and afford housing; so former offenders can gain productive employment—after having all non-violent drug and prostitution related offenses expunged—and keep families together; to allow entrepreneurs to build strong companies—that employ more workers—without job killing regulations; to cut taxes for everyone; to #LiberateDC—through #DCStatehood—from destructive and deadly Federal government tyranny. What would be one of the first pieces of legislation you would pursue if elected? Empowering parents to send their children to any school which they believe will help their child succeed (and avoid the DC Democrats’ school to prison pipeline)—whether that be a government run public school, a privately managed public charter school, a private school, parochial school for those who will benefit from a religious (Jewish, Muslim, Sikh, Christian, Buddhist etc) education, military academy, year-round school, boarding school, and/or schools with extended (8am to 5pm) school day to better sync with some parents’ work schedules. This will bring an end to current myriad school scandals. What are your plans to help the school system do a better job at preparing students for college? Submitted by Makeda, Ward 7 Youth Government Representative See answer to previous question. Parents know better than any self-centered elected official or bureaucrat working from a cubicle how best to educate their children. To think otherwise is insulting to parents. Waiting lists for good schools and the mass exodus from many mismanaged, dishonest, corrupted govt run DC Public Schools are a sign that parents are demanding greater #schoolchoice and parents, who represent the true free market in education, should be given the options they deserve to ensure success for their children.

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What legislation will you create or support to establish a greener, more sustainable D.C.? I would craft new legislation that would improve both “Sustainable Purchasing” and “Environmentally Preferable Purchasing” capabilities here in the District of Columbia. However, when using these terms in a technical context, environmentally preferable purchasing is an activity that focuses primarily on environmental impacts, whereas sustainable purchasing encompasses how purchases impact the environment, economy, and people today and in future generations. All environmental issues fit within the rubric of sustainability. By implementing sustainability in our procurement process this will prevent a lot of waste down the road.

Office: Mayor / Party Affiliation: DC Statehood Green / Age: 61 / Profession: Lawyer / Ward of Residence: 4 Campaign Website: AnnWilcoxforDC.wordpress.com

Why are you running for office? To present an alternative to policies which favor developers over affordable housing; to preserve affordable housing and communities. Progressive policies for children, youth, seniors. Public safety favoring the NEAR Act. Green, carbon-free policies.

Martin Moulton

How will you hold developers, subsidized by the city, accountable for creating affordable housing? As with the notorious Adams Morgan TheLine Hotel scandal and odious sport stadium deals (handouts for millionaire owners and players), toothless DC Democrats phony and cosmetic corporate welfare schemes that dupe voters and disadvantage DC workers are not the answer. Corporate welfare forced on the backs of District taxpayers will begin to quickly come to end the day I enter office. Sports team owners and players and their fans can pay for stadiums and their rent for using District owned land. Affordable housing will be created by developers that must cater to our current community and market. How will you work to create more affordable housing units for the District’s lowest income residents and families? Many District families have been destroyed and crippled by DC Democrats’ schemes that have resulted in thousands of illiterate unemployable students who can’t compete in our job market, find stable incomes, and afford housing. DC Democrats drug and prostitution laws destroy families. US Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn) admits that her father was a violent drug addict, had he been incarcerated, removed from his job, home and family, Sen Klobuchar might never have had the family support to become a leader in the US Senate; DC Democrats elitist/racist drug laws have destroyed thousands of families and their ability to succeed and afford housing. What legislation will you create or support to establish a greener, more sustainable D.C.? Resources saved from abolishing drug and prostitution laws, and putting violent criminals in these out of business, can be used to put more District residents to work planting and maintaining (watering, mulching) trees (including community-sustaining fruit and nut trees) and planting sustainable perennial shrubs (including berry vines), collecting and recycling compostable waste (from mulched tree leaves to nutrient-rich coffee grounds from thousands of District coffee shops). Creating a more healthy ecosystem for people and beneficial wild life is not only easy to accomplish but economical in the short and long term.

2018 WASHINGTON INFORMER VOTER’S GUIDE / www.washingtoninformer.com

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MOULTON FROM PAGE V-3 How will you support or encourage the construction and renovation of housing, expanding funding and improving the application process for the Safe-at-Home program, expanding access to affordable senior rentals, and/or senior property tax relief? Submitted by AARP When DC Democrats are exposed at the highest level for their corrupt corporate welfare to wealthy developers, and developers must depend on serving the local market, more affordable housing will be available for all—seniors, students, the disabled, and those in various communties—like the LGBTQX community—who may lack family support. DC Libertarians will quickly lower taxes, in part by reducing bogus and top-heavy govt agencies and services; this will be a benefit to seniors and other citizens. Govt takes 60% off the top of all purported programmes it offers—it’s a shell game that has duped tax payers and hurt deserving under-served folks. What is your commitment to closing the education and employment gaps for Black and Latino residents in the District? See answers to questions #2, #3. When all students are able to gain the skills and build the self-esteem

they need to succeed (and not be lured into the illusory drug trade or school to prison pipeline), they will naturally close achievement gaps. I tutored many DC public school students for years; when they were given the attention/support they needed, they made inspiring leaps in achievement. My father, his brother, and 3 of his sisters, who immigrated to the United States from Costa Rica, were all fluent in English and Spanish after finishing high school; there is no reason why DC students cannot be fluent in English and other languages. As the city continues to gentrify what will you do to make living in D.C. more equitable regardless of a resident’s ward or zip code? Safer communities will result from regulating all drugs—as deadly and more dangerous tobacco and alcohol have been regulated for more than a century— and taking prostitution off our streets and regulating it as we do with other businesses with regard to safety and sanitary conditions. This will cut gun crime and other drug-related violence and sex abuse by at least 40%. The “gentrification” crisis so many speak of obtusely was created by DC Democrats failure to provide proper #schoolchoice to parents, legislators’ immoral dehumanizing drug laws, and crony corporate welfare to millionaire/billionaires. I will end these destructive policies.

DC COUNCIL CHAIRMAN Ed Lazere

Office: DC Council Chair / Party Affiliation: Democratic / Age: 53 / Profession: Executive Director, DC Fiscal Policy Institute (on leave during campaign) / Ward of Residence: 4 Campaign Website: www.EdforDC.com

Why are you running for office? I’m running for DC Council Chair because our leaders simply aren’t doing enough to address the impacts of gentrification. In the midst of tremendous prosperity, life is getting harder for many residents, particularly Black and Latino families who have shaped DC’s economy, history, and culture. Too many residents have only a tent for a home, as DC has lost half of its lower-cost housing. School reform is 10 years old, yet the achievement gap has widened. DC can and must do better. I want to be a bold leader tackling DC’s biggest challenges, like ending homelessness and improving schools from Ballou to Wilson. What would be one of the first pieces of legislation you would pursue if elected? I’m eager to pursue legislation to improve DC schools, preserve affordable housing, and help residents earn enough to support their families. I will work to strengthen rent control by moving legislation currently stalled in the Council, to limit rent increases and close loopholes that allow landlords to get around rent control. I will move legislation to require restaurants and retail stores to give workers their schedules at least two weeks in advance and give part-time workers opportunities for more hours. I will move legislation to hold schools accountable by creating a new education and research oversight body in the DC Council. What are your plans to help the school system do a better job at preparing students for college? Submitted by Makeda, Ward 7 Youth Government Representative We need to address the challenges our children face, starting well before high school. I will invest in high-quality child care and make sure all students have access to afterschool and summer enrichment opportunities. I will fight for adequate funding for all schools and will work to protect “at-risk” funds intended for high-poverty schools, to support services to address the challenges many students face. I will work to make sure every DC school has a mental health professional whose only job is to support children. I will review the lottery process to support stable schools that are economically and racially diverse. How will you hold developers, subsidized by the city, accountable for creating affordable housing? Too often, the District adopts policies that look good on paper but end up doing little, because DC fails to enforce them. That includes the First Source hiring program requiring businesses with DC contracts to hire DC residents, and programs that subsidize developers to create affordable housing. I commit to strengthening the enforcement staffing at DC government agencies. I also will create a centralized DC Council research and oversight shop. While most state legislatures have such a body, the DC Council does not. This will strengthen the Council’s oversight functions and help ensure that DC laws are enforced. How will you work to create more affordable housing units for the District’s lowest income residents and families? The loss of affordable housing has contributed to displacement of Black and Brown residents and has put extreme stress on thousands of DC households. It is the single largest challenge to DC’s future and to addressing economic and racial inequities. As Council Chair, I will double the investment in DC’s housing programs to create and preserve afford-

Phil Mendelson

able housing and build affordable housing in every ward. I will move legislation to strengthen rent control that is currently stalled in the Council. I will support at least $25 million annually for repair and maintenance of public housing that has been neglected by the federal government. What legislation will you create or support to establish a greener, more sustainable D.C.? A good quality of life in DC depends on clean water and air, homes free of pesticides and lead poisoning, and neighborhoods that are green and livable. I will support efforts to move toward 50% clean energy by 2050, including implementing a carbon fee and rebate program and innovative ways to expand solar energy. I will work to make the District a zero-waste city by supporting strategies that reduce, reuse and recycle the materials we use to live our lives. I will work to make our rivers and creeks fishable and swimmable. And I will support a greener and more sustainable city by helping residents grow food in their neighborhoods. How will you support or encourage the construction and renovation of housing, expanding funding and improving the application process for the Safe-at-Home program, expanding access to affordable senior rentals, and/or senior property tax relief? Submitted by AARP Helping older residents live independently in affordable and safe housing is a top priority. I’m committed to strengthening rent control to limit rent increases residents face. I will double funding for DC’s major housing programs and devote a portion to senior housing. I will promote shared housing by connecting older adults with extra rooms in their homes with others needing affordable housing. I will expand and simplify the Safe-at-Home program to help older residents adapt their homes. I’m proud to have championed property tax relief that is helping older residents stay in their homes and will work to make the application process simpler. What is your commitment to closing the education and employment gaps for Black and Latino residents in the District? DC’s economic recovery has been uneven across racial groups. The black-white unemployment gap is widening, and Latino residents face unemployment twice as high as white residents. I will push for better accountability in DC’s job training programs to ensure they actually lead to a job. I will require developers of DC-funded or DC-subsidized development projects to train and hire DC residents with good wages and benefits. I will give residents preference for DC government jobs and work with businesses to hire and mentor DC residents. I will work to educate working people of their job rights and support strong enforcement of labor laws. As the city continues to gentrify what will you do to make living in D.C. more equitable regardless of a resident’s ward or zip code? My policy platform calls for a racial equity impact analysis of all major policy proposals, to shape the best policies to reduce DC’s wide racial and ethnic inequities. I will preserve affordable housing in developing neighborhoods before it turns into luxury housing. I will invest in neighborhood DC public schools so that access to a good education is not left to zip code or winning the school lottery. I will put economic development dollars where they are needed, like bringing grocery stores to Ward 7 and 8, rather than subsidizing gentrifying areas (like last year’s Council vote to give $80 million to Union Market developers).

Office: Chairman Council of the District of Columbia / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Profession: Chairman Council of the District of Columbia / Ward of Residence: 6 / Campaign Website: www.philmendelson.com

Why are you running for office? I am running for re-election to continue to serve the people of the District of Columbia and to make a better government. We have pressing challenges – affordable housing and quality public education are the greatest – and I want to resolve both in my next term because I believe we can make progress and that these challenges can be conquered. I am a quality legislator, and I have proven to be an effective leader of the legislative branch; I want to continue this work and hope voters agree. What would be one of the first pieces of legislation you would pursue if elected? As an At-Large Councilmember and now Chairman, I have already authored hundreds of pieces of legislation, many of which are now law. I will continue to do so to address important issues. Recently I introduced a bill to break up DCRA and establish a new Department of Buildings to improve focus on housing inspections and new construction. Past bills I authored include Universal Paid Leave, budget autonomy, elected Attorney General, a re-write of our gun laws following Heller, and establishment of the Department of Forensic Science (crime lab). I’m considering bills to facilitate union organizing and reduce carbon emissions. What are your plans to help the school system do a better job at preparing students for college? Submitted by Makeda, Ward 7 Youth Government Representative I have been an outspoken advocate for addressing

the issue of truancy in our schools. Increasing in-seat attendance is one of the best ways to keep students on track academically, ultimately opening up opportunities in higher education. I will push aggressive oversight regarding teacher and principal turnover. I have directly overseen resurgence of the University of the District of Columbia, and support partnership between our public schools and UDC. Post-secondary education – be it workforce training, community college, or a traditional four-year track – is one of the best ways to find good jobs and economic security. How will you hold developers, subsidized by the city, accountable for creating affordable housing? I believe Council oversight is the first tool to ensure accountability. When I oversaw the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development, I regularly commissioned independent appraisals of land dispositions to ensure that our government was getting the best deal for its residents. Kathy Patterson, whom I appointed, is the first DC Auditor to actually audit our affordable housing programs and bring sunshine. Her reports will enable better oversight by the Council. However, the Council needs to be willing to act when a proposed deal is bad. This means pushing back and requiring DMPED to negotiate better terms. How will you work to create more affordable housing units for the District’s lowest income residents and families? We need to pursue multiple strategies. Budget at least $100 million annually to the Housing Production Trust Fund, with about 40% of that used to leverage private sector development of extremely low-income units. Expand the voucher program to enable homeless families and singles to exit shelters (I’ve added about $15 million to next year’s budget).

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MENDELSON FROM PAGE V-4 Promote inclusionary zoning, which enables subsidized housing across the District. Protect rent control. Use the DC Auditor, coupled with Council oversight, to ensure better management and resource utilization in our housing programs. Promote TOPA for tenants in multi-family buildings. What legislation will you create or support to establish a greener, more sustainable D.C.? I have demonstrated my long-term commitment to establishing a greener, more sustainable DC by creating the District’s first Renewable Portfolio Standard and recently introducing a more aggressive RPS bill to get us to carbon-free by 2050 (if not sooner). I also introduced a bill to break up DCRA and create a Building Department that can better focus on construction – including implementing our Green Buildings Act. I’ve legislated more money for Metro because public transit is greener than cars. Over the past year, I have worked with advocacy groups on a proposal to enact a carbon fee to financially dis-incentivize carbon-based emissions. How will you support or encourage the construction and renovation of housing, expanding funding and improving the application process for the Safe-at-Home program, expanding access to affordable senior rentals, and/or senior property tax relief? Submitted by AARP See above regarding the production of housing. The Safe-at-Home program must be easily accessible to seniors; the Council’s housing committee must press this. I have supported senior property tax relief in many ways. I established the free deferral of tax for seniors who have been long-time

DC homeowners. Recently I introduced the “Housing Assistance Program for Unsubsidized Seniors” -- which I then funded in next year’s budget – to help fixed income seniors meet escalating rents. Finally, I have asked the CFO and Council staff to ascertain the true tax burden on seniors so that we can better target tax relief in the future. What is your commitment to closing the education and employment gaps for Black and Latino residents in the District? I am committed to closing these gaps, which are an embarrassment to the District. In the short term, the District must do better to connect residents with quality jobs.The long-term solution is through quality education.Education is the best job training.While public education has improved over the past decade,it’s far short of the promise.I am committed to pushing hard to ensure that all kids attend school and are grade-ready when promoted,and in this way we will soon have high schoolers who don’t drop out and truly earn their diplomas.That will reduce both the education and employment gaps for people of color. As the city continues to gentrify what will you do to make living in D.C. more equitable regardless of a resident’s ward or zip code? I celebrate the economic and racial diversity that enriches our community. I have worked for years to make the District an equitable place for all residents, regardless of income, location, or background. I pushed through an increase in the minimum wage in coordination with Montgomery and Prince Georges counties. I have supported increased funding for our schools and am fighting to increase attendance. I pushed through comprehensive tax reform that cut income taxes for a majority of residents, doubled the Earned Income Tax Credit for lower income workers, and reduced property taxes for low income homeowners and seniors.

Councilmember to DC COUNCIL AT-LARGE Marcus Goodwin

Office: DC Council At-Large / Party Affiliation: Democratic / Age: 28 / Profession: Real Estate Investor Campaign Website: www.GoodWinForDC.com

Why are you running for office? My top campaign priority is addressing the inequities that define different areas of Washington, DC. It’s unacceptable that a child born on Alabama Avenue Southeast inherently has a slimmer chance at getting a good education and fulfilling their full potential compared to a child born on Massachusetts Avenue Northwest. I was raised on Martin Luther King Jr. Ave Southeast, where my father still lives, and having persevered through the structural barriers I will support 1. The Cooperative/HOA Solar Expansion Act (B22-0229) 2. The Solar Ready Roofs Act (B22-0437) of DC I feel profoundly inspired by an obligation to correct what I see as social and political injustices. What would be one of the first pieces of legislation you would pursue if elected? I want to ensure that we protect housing for our senior citizens who are being What are your plans to help the school system do a better job at preparing students for college? Submitted by Makeda, Ward 7 Youth Government Representative If elected to Council I will be more hands-on with oversight of our educational system. We need competent, high integrity and effective leadership. My mother is a DCPS teacher so our often family discusses education in DC and the solutions to bridging the achievement gap. I want to push our school system to implement the results of our consistent studies. I’ve seen from my own experience how one generation of educational opportunity can help a family overcome structural and institutional disenfranchisement. I want to expand and create those opportunities for others. How will you hold developers, subsidized by the city, accountable for creating affordable housing? I will do this three ways. 1. Hold slumlords accountable by committing more resources to consistent inspections and audits. Failure will result in steep fines. 2. Fix first source and ensure compliance of our contract procurement laws. Failure to hire small and minority business will result in permits being held up and fines being assessed. How will you work to create more affordable housing units for the District’s lowest income residents and families? 1. I want to increase support to the Housing Production Trust Fund and ensure that we have better oversight and

Jerimiah Lowery

review of how we invest in financing housing. 2. We also need to inventory all city owned property so that we know where we can provide housing without reaching out to private operators. What legislation will you create or support to establish a greener, more sustainable D.C.? I will create 1. An act to require large scale commercial buildings to have some form of renewable energy powering their building and offsetting their carbon footprint 2. Distribute composting bins to residents I will support 1. The Cooperative/HOA Solar Expansion Act (B22-0229) 2. The Solar Ready Roofs Act (B22-0437) How will you support or encourage the construction and renovation of housing, expanding funding and improving the application process for the Safe-at-Home program, expanding access to affordable senior rentals, and/or senior property tax relief? Submitted by AARP I am profoundly committed to financially supporting seniors to age in place. 1. I support the Housing Assistance Program for Unsubsidized Seniors. This legislation would set up a fund for rental subsidy assistance for seniors living in market rate housing. 2. I support freezing property taxes for low-income seniors who live on a fixed income. 3. I support funding rebates for all in home adaptations that specifically address livability standards for seniors. What is your commitment to closing the education and employment gaps for Black and Latino residents in the District? I am supportive of a racial consideration in the development of our city. Any development project that is built in this city should have to have a racial equity consideration before it’s approved. Each project’s community benefits agreement should have to address racial equity in job training, job placement and educating the community. As the city continues to gentrify what will you do to make living in D.C. more equitable regardless of a resident’s ward or zip code? The DC Council’s move to cut the estate tax leaves funding gaps in homelessness, high poverty schools and child care programs. We have to tax something and excessive transfers of wealth are a good place to start and maintain a tax base for the benefit of supporting equality and high-quality services in our city. Access to affordable housing, public education, quality healthcare services, reliable public transportation, basic amenities and reasonable childcare options should take precedent over preserving generational wealth which excludes many people, benefits a select few and perpetuates inequality.

Office: DC Council At-Large / Party Affiliation: Democratic / Age: 32 / Profession: Community Advocate Ward of Residence: 4 / Campaign Website: jeremiah2018.com

Why are you running for office? I am running to transform D.C. from what it is to what it must be to guarantee that everyone has an opportunity to live and thrive here. This means providing accessible, high-quality child care; K-12 public education; and colleges and adult learning centers. It means generating opportunities for workers to build a city run on 100 percent clean energy, so D.C. can be an environmentally sustainable leader of the green economy. This means working with residents, tenants, community leaders, and advocates to use community-powered land trusts to develop and preserve affordable housing, expand green spaces, and promote small businesses. What would be one of the first pieces of legislation you would pursue if elected? I will introduce legislation to stabilize or lower property taxes for district residents, and as well as strengthen rent control for tenants. What are your plans to help the school system do a better job at preparing students for college? Submitted by Makeda, Ward 7 Youth Government Representative I will examine and reflect on the structure, culture, and instruction within their schools and how those elements expose students to rigorous, engaging, and relevant coursework that would prepare them for various college and career paths. Based on that I will: Conduct a transcript analysis to determine which students are completing a cohesive academic and career-oriented curriculum and identify the reasons why some students may not be. Assess graduation requirements to see how well they align with entry requirements at colleges. Systematically develop and support teachers to provide rigorous and engaging instruction. How will you hold developers, subsidized by the city, accountable for creating affordable housing?

I am currently the only candidate in this race who has not worked for a luxury housing developer with financial ties to the DC government. Developers are funding my two opponents; therefore I am the only candidate in this race who is able to truly hold them accountable. If a developer is receiving tax cuts or public money and they are not building 80 percent or more affordable housing units, I will vote No. How will you work to create more affordable housing units for the District’s lowest income residents and families? I will introduce a law that increases the percentage of affordable housing units, including family units in all new development. I will use the comprehensive plan amendment process to ensure that developments are only approved when they preserve or replace each and every existing subsidized home affordable to the low-income residents and families. I would work with advocates and the DC government to use community land trusts as a model to build and ensure long-term affordable housing for low-income residents and families in DC What legislation will you create or support to establish a greener, more sustainable D.C.? As a board member of the DC Sierra Club and endorsed candidate, I have worked on committees and with coalitions to make DC an environmentally sustainable city. I am currently the only candidate running who has worked on environmental policies before running for office. I plan to lower our energy bills by pushing DC towards a 100 percent clean energy city, use community land trusts to expand and preserve green spaces, fund programs that employ our youth and returning citizens in the green economy, and use legislation to move DC towards a zero-waste city. How will you support or encourage the construction and renovation of housing, expanding funding and improving the application process for the Safe-at-Home program, expanding access to affordable senior rentals, and/or senior property tax relief? Submitted by AARP As a former AARP employee, I have worked on senior

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LOWERY FROM PAGE V-5 housing and repair programs, and I plan to continue that work on the DC Council. I will make it a budget priority to double safe-at-home funding, and I will introduce a senior housing legislative packet that includes property tax relief for residents who are 55+ plus, it would also identify land for the purpose of creating community land trusts for the construction of thousands of below-market rates affordable housing for seniors in DC. What is your commitment to closing the education and employment gaps for Black and Latino residents in the District? According to the DC Auditor, DC mismanages a lot of money that is supposed to go to at-risk students & special needs students. I support an independent review board that will oversee how our money is spent & will report to the council on a yearly basis. I will be a watchdog who makes sure students who are most in need are able to get funding for

David Schwartzman

programs that benefit them. I will also expand our summer youth program to create year-round green jobs for youth, & I will create a green jobs program for returning citizens, as well as expand vocational programs. Lastly, I will introduce a bill to hold developers accountable to local hiring laws. As the city continues to gentrify what will you do to make living in D.C. more equitable regardless of a resident’s ward or zip code? I am the only candidate in this race that isn’t being funded by big developers in DC. I will go into office with an independent mind and free of any conflicts of interest. When elected I plan to: I would also introduce a “redevelopment in place” bill, that would direct the DC government to look into funding mechanism to ensure residents are able to stay in their building as the city develops. I plan on reforming and strengthening rent control. I will stop landlords and developers from exploiting provisions in DC’s rent control law. I also plan on stabilizing and lowering property taxes for current homeowners.

Office: DC Council At-Large / Party Affiliation: DC Statehood Green Party / Age: 74 / Profession: Professor Emeritus, Howard University / Campaign Website: https://dcsgp.nationbuilder.com/david_schwartzman

Why are you running for office? I am running to empower the struggle for an alternative to trickle -down economics and housing, to champion and implement once in office the critical steps for a better quality of life for all DC residents, but especially for our low-income, working class residents. Reducing income and wealthy inequality is a priority, noting DC has the highest income inequality in the nation compared to the 50 states. As a green socialist, I support redistributing income from the top to the bottom, more socialism, less capitalism! For the many, not the few! What would be one of the first pieces of legislation you would pursue if elected? Recover the big federal income tax cut for wealthy DC residents as revenue for DC by hiking the DC income tax rates for the same taxpayers, leaving them paying the same overall taxes (federal plus DC), thereby generating hundreds of millions of dollars annually for the coming years, to fund affordable housing for low-income residents, the homeless, repairing public housing (at least $50 million of funding), financing community land trusts, and boost rental assistance, income support for low-income residents (increase TANF income support to the federal poverty level and tax rebates). For more details go to https://www.dcctj.org/. What are your plans to help the school system do a better job at preparing students for college? Submitted by Makeda, Ward 7 Youth Government Representative I taught as a college faculty member for over 40 years. I know that motivating students to learn requires lessons that are relevant to their lives, with teaching critical thinking an essential component of their educational experience. No more teaching to the test! I stand behind the Washington Teacher’s Union under the outstanding leadership of Elizabeth Davis, in their efforts to improve the quality of education in our public-school system. Eliminating child poverty would have profound positive impacts school performance and the quality of life for both students and their families as demonstrated by leading educational scholars. How will you hold developers, subsidized by the city, accountable for creating affordable housing? I will legislate and organize for curbing public deals/subsidies from DC’s revenue going to gentrification and displacement of long-term residents. I will implement strong claw-back for existing projects, with fines going to truly affordable housing for the majority; shift the $ hundreds of millions for annual subsidies for high rent apartments and condos to low to middle income residents to meet the goal of no more than 30% income going to rent or mortgage expense; strengthen the Comprehensive Plan for residents, block the developers’ efforts to weaken it! No Amazon Deal! Bring slumlords to trial for their crimes against tenants! How will you work to create more affordable housing units for the District’s lowest income residents and families? I will work tirelessly for the repair and expansion of public housing, creating social housing and community land trusts, expand locally funded rent supplements to meet low-income needs, strongly implement Tenant Opportunity to

Purchase Act (TOPA) and District Opportunity to Purchase Act (DOPA), including using eminent domain to take over slumlord property. Funding will come from the shift of subsidies for luxury apartments and condos to truly affordable housing as well as hiking the DC income tax rate of wealthy residents, especially millionaires who now pay a lower overall DC tax rate than all but our poorest residents. What legislation will you create or support to establish a greener, more sustainable D.C.? I am an environmental scientist and participant in Sustainable DC working groups. Move to 100% renewable energy by 2035; sharply reduce air pollution with its harmful health impacts (e.g., childhood asthma and dementia); expand electric bus service serving all neighborhoods, especially east of the river with lower fares, progressive dedicated funding (see Support Save Our System Coalition (WMATA), https://www.savemetro.org/).We must take stronger action to protect our residents, especially our children from exposure to lead in drinking water! Save McMillan Park, void the Mayor’s VMP bad deal! Support carbon rebate for DC residents. How will you support or encourage the construction and renovation of housing, expanding funding and improving the application process for the Safe-at-Home program, expanding access to affordable senior rentals, and/or senior property tax relief? Submitted by AARP The displacement of long-term residents must be stopped. There are already several provisions in DC law designed to help seniors to stay in their homes, e.g., homestead deduction for seniors, the Elderly Tenant and Tenant with a Disability Protection Law, and Schedule H in the DC income tax schedule (should increase benefit). But outreach by the OTA must be increased to make possible the full implementation of these laws, along with adequate funding for sufficient staff. As far as Safe at Home, only systematic outreach will achieve this goal, likewise simplified application. Strengthen rent control, include all apartment buildings. What is your commitment to closing the education and employment gaps for Black and Latino residents in the District? Our elected government is mainly following the white supremacist trickle-down economics/housing agenda of the Federal City Council, the lobby of big developers and bankers who have been gentrifying and displacing long-term DC residents. Closing these gaps will require legislation and strong oversight to make sure implementation is favoring the many, not the few. I will work to greatly expand apprenticeship programs in high schools and the community with union jobs upon completion, eliminating discrimination against returning citizens and their families as well as promoting entrepreneurship with low-cost loans from a DC Public Bank. As the city continues to gentrify what will you do to make living in D.C. more equitable regardless of a resident’s ward or zip code? Rather than continuing along this path, using the resources of my office I will help organize for equitable development using mechanisms mainly outside the market, namely repairing and expanding public housing, building social housing, community land trusts, locally funded rent supplements, TOPA and DOPA. Establishing a DC Public Bank will facilitate this approach; I am on the Steering Committee of the DC Public Banking Center (https://www.dcpublicbanking.org/). This Public Bank will receive DC’s tax revenue instead of Wall Street, and partner with local banks to promote truly affordable housing, jobs and the goals of sustainable DC.

Ward 1 Councilmember Brianne K. Nadeau

Office: Councilmember, Ward 1 / Party Affiliation: Democratic / Age: 37 / Profession: Councilmember Campaign Website: briannefordc.com

Why are you running for office? I am running for re-election because over the past three and a half years, I’ve put more than 500 units of affordable housing in the pipeline in Ward 1, invested hundreds of millions of dollars in our neighborhood schools, supported small businesses and established one of the most effective constituent services operations in the city -- but there is still more work to do.

How will you work to create more affordable housing units for the District’s lowest income residents and families? Whether it was the emergency legislation I passed to preserve 64 units in Columbia Heights, my support for 90 units on U Street, 138 on Florida Ave, or the hundreds being built as part of Park Morton, I have been a leader on affordable housing production. I have ensured funding for the Housing Production Trust Fund, Local Rent Supplement Program, rehabilitation dollars for our public housing and have advanced opportunities for homeownership so our residents can build equity.

What would be one of the first pieces of legislation you would pursue if elected? My first piece of legislation in 2015 reformed our code of ethics.

What legislation will you create or support to establish a greener, more sustainable D.C.? I recently co-sponsored legislation to double-down on our air quality standards, and have supported initiatives to reduce solid waste, storm water runoff and e-waste initiatives since my time on the ANC.

What are your plans to help the school system do a better job at preparing students for college? Submitted by Makeda, Ward 7 Youth Government Representative It’s our responsibility, as leaders in government, to ensure we are preparing our children for the future.That is why I co-introduced the District of Columbia Education Research Advisory Board and Collaborative Establishment Amendment Act, which will create an independent Education Research Collaborative.The Collaborative will conduct research and assess the data collection of our education agencies.This will allow us to further distance education from politics and provide the Council with more tools for effective oversight of our education system. How will you hold developers, subsidized by the city, accountable for creating affordable housing? As Councilmember I introduced and passed the Land Disposition Transparency Amendment Act, which requires the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development to provide regular reports about the deals they are making with private developers. I have worked to ensure that all projects that involve government subsidy fulfill their promises of truly affordable housing, which has allowed me to put more than 500 units of affordable housing in the pipeline for the people of Ward 1.

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needs of our young people so that once they are in class they can focus on learning. Our lowest income students of color have not made the progress they need to.That’s why along with my colleague David Grosso I created the Office of Youth Outcomes, which is now funded at nearly $20m to provide out of school programming for our kids. Mentoring, tutoring and extra-curricular activities will now be widely available at all of our schools and especially for children in need. As the city continues to gentrify what will you do to make living in D.C. more equitable regardless of a resi-

dent’s ward or zip code? Ward 1 is the most diverse ward in the District.That’s why I’ve fought so hard to preserve affordable housing, to create pathways to homeownership so residents can build equity to pass on to the next generation. I’ve created jobs that lead to careers; I’ve supported our youth to stay on the right track. In changing neighborhoods I support longtime residents and business owners, so our neighborhoods do not become unrecognizable to them.We have a long way to go to right the wrongs of our past and even our present, where racism led to the inequities we face today. But I’m committed to that work, and I’m doing it as Councilmember.

Office: D.C. Council Ward 1 / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 54 / Profession: Former D.C. Superior Court Magistrate Judge Campaign Website: loriparkerward1.com

Lori Parker

Why are you running for office? I am running for the Ward 1 seat on the D.C. Council because I believe in my heart we can truly achieve “A Ward 1 for All,” where everyone can benefit and participate in the economic prosperity that exists in the Ward today. To achieveWard1’struepotentialrequiresexperiencedleadership. I’m the only candidate in this race with more than 25 years’ experience serving District residents in all branches of District government, most recently having served for 11 years as a Magistrate Judge on the D.C. Superior Court bench. I have a strong and extensive track record of addressing difficult issues and improving the lives of District residents. What would be one of the first pieces of legislation you would pursue if elected? If elected,one of the first bills I would introduce is a bill to establish a dedicated fund,and regular reporting requirements,for the maintenance and repair of our public housing/DCHAmanaged properties in Ward 1. Everyone in the Ward,regardless of income or ability,deserves to live in safe,decent, and affordable housing. What are your plans to help the school system do a better job at preparing students for college? Submitted by Makeda,Ward 7 Youth Government Representative #GoodTeachersMatter and #Children/YouthFirst! As such,I’m so appreciative for being endorsed by the WashingtonTeachers’ Union. As a former judge and Interim Deputy Mayor for Children, Youth,Families and Elders,I have dedicated the majority of my professional career in ensuring all of our students have the best opportunities for educational success. Through D.C.Council performance and budget oversight,I will hold all public-school system leaders (traditional and charter) accountable for allocating adequate resources that support teachers in preparing our students for successful transitions to post-secondary or career opportunities. How will you hold developers,subsidized by the city,accountable for creating affordable housing? Through D.C. Council oversight,I will ensure that developers receiving any form of public subsidy to build new housing maximize the number of units at 30%-50%AMI for families (40% at 30%AMI,40% at 50%AMI,and 20% at above 50%AMI is the stated policy for use of the Housing ProductionTrust Fund to subsidize new housing developments). This HPTF policy should serve as the affordable housing goals for each new housing development in Ward 1 being subsidized by the city. I would also hold District housing agencies account-

able for monitoring/reporting whether developers are compliant with inclusionary zoning and affordability requirements. How will you work to create more affordable housing units for the District’s lowest income residents and families? I would be a strong advocate for maximizing the number of affordable units at 30%AMI in new housing developments in Ward 1 through public-private partnerships (equitable public land dispositions with discounted land values),private developments receiving public financing (loans and/or grants),housing choice vouchers,low-income tax credits,and/or other tax incentives (abatements and/or tax increment financing). What legislation will you create or support to establish a greener,more sustainable D.C.? I would support a Climate and Community Reinvestment bill to reduce carbon emissions. How will you support or encourage the construction and renovation of housing,expanding funding and improving the application process for the Safe-at-Home program,expanding access to affordable senior rentals, and/or senior property tax relief? Submitted by AARP I will be a strong advocate for the preservation of existing and development of additional permanent supportive housing for seniors; increased funding for programs and services allowing our senior homeowners to age at home; increased property tax relief for senior homeowners; and maximization of the number of affordable senior rentals at 30-50%AMI in new housing developments subsidized by the city. What is your commitment to closing the education and employment gaps for Black and Latino residents in the District? Absolute. I will bring strong and experienced leadership to the D.C.Council,and through performance and budget oversight,hold District agencies accountable for collecting and reporting accurate data on the District’s performance/progress in improving the achievement and employment gaps for Black and Latino residents. As the city continues to gentrify what will you do to make living in D.C.more equitable regardless of a resident’s ward or zip code? As a former judge,interim Deputy Mayor for Children,Youth,Families and Elders,and Mayor’s Liaison to the Family Court of the D.C.Superior Court,I’ve seen firsthand the struggles and challenges that individuals and families go through in all facets of their lives. I’ve also seen how resilient individuals and families are when their needs are addressed in a timely and dignified manner. I’m the only candidate in the Ward 1D.C.Council race with a solid and demonstrable track record for improving the lives of some of our most vulnerable District residents for more than 25 years.

Ward 5 Councilmember Gayle Hall Carley

Office: Ward 5 City Council / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Profession: Mental Health / Ward of Residence: 5 Campaign Website: otegaylecarley.org

Why are you running for office? I am a public servant who’s running for Ward 5 City Council to change DC’s educational and housing system by addressing the disparity that keeps our young hopeless and huddled.

What legislation will you create or support to establish a greener, more sustainable D.C.? I plan to write and support legislation to reduce, reuse, recycle, zero waste, eliminate landfills and carbon emission to establish a greener, more sustainable DC. .

What would be one of the first pieces of legislation you would pursue if elected? The first piece of legislation I’d pursue if elected is reform education and regulate DC Water Authority (WASA).

What are your plans to help the school system do a better job at preparing students for college? Submitted by Makeda, Ward 7 Youth Government Representative To help the school system better prepare students for college, advocate distributing equity and quality among DCPS; access to high quality early learning, quality teachers in all classrooms, raise standards for all students, and ensure we meet students where they are, with tutoring. Legislation that returns oversight and hiring of a superintendent for DCPS to a duly elected school board. How will you hold developers, subsidized by the city, accountable for creating affordable housing? Developers, subsidized by the city, can be held accountable for creating affordable housing by restricting Tax Incentive Financing (TIF) to truly blighted areas and requiring projects to meet community needs for affordable housing. How will you work to create more affordable housing units for the District’s lowest income residents and families? I plan to chair the Housing & Revitalization Committee to ensure the 5.5 million dollars DC receives from HUD annually is not returned but used for its intended purpose; distribute housing vouchers and develop affordable housing. Redefine the term “Affordable Housing” to meet the needs of low-income residents and families.

Kenyan McDuffie

As the city continues to gentrify what will you do to make living in D.C. more equitable regardless of a resident’s ward or zip code? As the City continues to gentrify I plan to work hard to ensure there’s equitable prosperity for everyone in DC regardless of a resident’s ward or zip code. I plan to redefine the term “Affordable Housing” ensure that the most underserved DC residents; struggling with mental health and military veterans have stable housing and employment. I support development without displacing and job preference.

Office: Ward 5 Council / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 42 / Profession: Councilmember / Ward of Residence: 5 Campaign Website: www.kenyanmcduffie2018.com

Why are you running for office? I am proud of what the ward 5 community and I have been able to accomplish since being elected to council in 2012. As author of the NEAR act, we have helped make DC a safer city. I have delivered on the renovation of ward 5 schools and brought two new middle schools to ward 5 families. Revitalizing corridors within the ward like NY Ave, RI Ave, and Bladensberg Rd. and funding the Great and Main Street programs has provided millions in funding for local businesses and created jobs for residents. There is still more for us to do. I am

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What is your commitment to closing the education and employment gaps for Black and Latino residents in the District? My commitment to closing the education and employment gaps for Black and Latino residents in the District begins with the need for jobs and training. My commitment is to hold developers in Ward 5 accountable for employment and apprenticeship preference to unemployed Ward 5 residents. Offer incentives to those lacking a diploma to return to the classroom or gain vocational skills. Advocate for local businesses to offer internships and continue to advocate and award college-bound students scholarships.

running fight for racial equity in our schools and workplaces and to bring our community together. What would be one of the first pieces of legislation you would pursue if elected? If elected my top priority is to continue fighting to ensure the NEAR act is fully funded and implemented. I worked tirelessly authoring this legislation to reduce violence, make policing more transparent, protect children stuck in the juvenile justice system and make our communities safer. I believe fully funding and implementing the NEAR Act will go a long way towards improving life for all

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MCDUFFIE FROM PAGE V-7 residents of the District of Columbia. What are your plans to help the school system do a better job at preparing students for college? Submitted by Makeda, Ward 7 Youth Government Representative Helping the entire family unit understand what it takes to prepare for college is crucial to helping DC students graduate, apply, get accepted to and then attend college. Teaching families/guardians and students what to expect with regard to financial aid, the application process, and providing college counseling will be crucial in helping improve the opportunities available to DC students. How will you hold developers, subsidized by the city, accountable for creating affordable housing? The comprehensive plan places a low percentage for the amount of affordable units that must be created in new construction. I would be willing to work together with developers and communities to increase the percentages. I pride myself on holding parties accountable and I am always willing to look at data to ensure developers are adhering to laws and agreements made with local communities. How will you work to create more affordable housing units for the District’s lowest income residents and families? I pledge to work with communities and developers to increase the recommended affordable housing percentages required of new construction. Increasing the 8% requirement to 20% will go a long way towards improving affordable housing in the District of Columbia. I will also work to protect seniors from rapidly rising property taxes forcing them from their homes. I worked to pass legislation called Short-term Rental Regulation and Affordable Housing Protection Act of 2017. This act limits the owners to creating shortp-term rentals with only their primary residence, thus increasing the long-term housing units available to District residents What legislation will you create or support to establish a greener, more sustainable D.C.? I co-sponsored legislation which requires buildings with 4 or fewer dwelling units to include solar-ready zones, possess sufficient roof load capacity to hold a solar system. This bill also requires commercial properties with 5 or more dwelling units to include an

Joyce Robinson

What would be one of the first pieces of legislation you would pursue if elected? Legislature that advises Seniors that they can stop paying high assessed property values, however when they expire, the family owes accumulated tax assessments with 6% interest attached. Overturn laws that do not honor wills written by seniors, and attach liens for Medicaid paid for homeowner. Stop tax assessors from placing large fees on owner occupied housing causing stress and undue hardship

What are your plans to help the school system do a better job at preparing students for college? Submitted by Makeda, Ward 7 Youth Government Representative The school system has changed and no longer incorporates parents and the community as a vital partner in students’ education. It takes a village to raise a child and taking the parent and community out assures failure. Every child is not going to college, however, they should have a curriculum, that incorpo-

Bradley Thomas

How will you support or encourage the construction and renovation of housing, expanding funding and improving the application process for the Safe-at-Home program, expanding access to affordable senior rentals, and/or senior property tax relief? Submitted by AARP I am committed to improving access and providing additional services for seniors in the District of Columbia. I have worked to create legislation that protects seniors from scams. I believe we must build new housing for all income levels in the District of Columbia. Without new housing being built, it keeps the supply low and forces people out of their neighborhoods as property values rise. What is your commitment to closing the education and employment gaps for Black and Latino residents in the District? From my time as an asst. states attorney to working as a civil rights lawyer at DoJ and then as Ward 5 Councilmember, I have always fought for racial equity and worked to correct disparities particularly seen in minority populations. I pledge to fight for racial equity and to represent those who have been underserved and under-represented. Many of the issues the district faces are systemic. We need livable wages for parents, eradication of food desserts, pre-school and after-school programming for all, de-concentrations of poverty, and better workforce development. Only then can we bring Ward 5 (and our city) together. As the city continues to gentrify what will you do to make living in D.C. more equitable regardless of a resident’s ward or zip code? One of the biggest problems DC faces is the concentration of poverty and the geographical racial segregation. One of the ways this can be improved upon is by creating more inclusive communities and providing more affordable housing units in parts of the city that currently have little to none. I supported legislation that requires district government owned land to have 20% of units be affordable and in cases where they are close to a metro, 30%. I pledge to keep working to provide property tax caps to senior so they may age in their homes as opposed to being forced out by rising property values.

Office: Ward 5 Councilmember / Party Affiliation: Democrat

Why are you running for office? To ensure that Senior Citizens voice is at the table and overturn legislation that is causing Seniors to be gentrified and family homes lose.

on senior citizens.

on-site renewable energy system capable of generating at least 10% of the building’s energy needs. I will work together with community stakeholders and my fellow councilmembers to pass other legislation that helps the district grow it’s renewable energy systems.

rates college readiness, in case they want to go later in life. Vocational and Career Education should be a vital part of students’ education. How will you hold developers, subsidized by the city, accountable for creating affordable housing? Developers, subsidized by the city should be held accountable for creating affordable housing. If they receive funds and do not comply, all monies funded by taxpayers should be refunded or housing should have a lien placed on it until they return funding. How will you work to create more affordable housing units for the District’s lowest income residents and families? The city knows that unless you bring AMI down o 30 percent, very few will qualify. What legislation will you create or support to establish a greener, more sustainable D.C.? Working over 30 years with the Office of the Peoples Counsel gave me a rich knowledge of several factors that work for a greener, sustainable D.C. If the Department of Energy continues to talk and not implement their plan, it will never achieve a green city. There also has to be buy in from the elected officials. The lobbyists have taken over DC Wand the riches companies are the utility companies who take advantage of the consumer of their products.

Office: Ward 5 Councilmember / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Profession: Attorney Campaign Website: www.bradleythomas4dc.com

Why are you running for office? I am running to give Ward 5 responsive and comprehensive representation that takes into account the views and interests of people across the spectrum of the tapestry that makes up the ward in terms of age, race, national origin, gender, sexual orientation and identity, and economic status. What would be one of the first pieces of legislation you would pursue if elected? I would pursue legislation that would return authority over our public schools to an elected school board. What are your plans to help the school system do a better job at preparing students for college? Submitted by Makeda, Ward 7 Youth Government Representative I would ask the elected school board, once in authority, to hire a professional superintendent with a mandate to end the practices of teaching to the test and of rating teachers based on Impact scores. I would also ask and expect the new superintendent to develop a collaborative approach among teachers working with a curriculum that includes art, music, culture, financial literacy and 21st century vocational training. How will you hold developers, subsidized by the city, accountable for creating affordable housing? I would increase the affordable housing set aside, under our Inclusionary Zoning law, to double the current 8 to 10 % requirement and I would expand that set aside to include balanced shares of 80%, 60%, 50% and 30% of Median Family Income (MFI) qualified residents so that we have more economically diverse communities as opposed to enclaves of prosperity in some neighborhoods contrasted by pockets of poverty in others. How will you work to create more affordable housing units for the District’s lowest income residents and families? As indicated in the previous answer, I would expand Inclusionary Zoning to require 15% to 20% set asides for housing affordable to people at the 80%, 60%, 50% and 30% MFI levels. What legislation will you create or support to establish a greener, more sustainable D.C.? I would consider legislation that would require a certain percentage of green space for every so many square feet of develop-

ment. That percentage, as I envision it, would be smaller in the center city and greater as we pan out from the center. Of course, stakeholder engagement being very important, I would incorporate into the legislation a methodology for local neighborhoods, perhaps though the affected Advisory Neighborhood Commissions, to have input into the parameters of this mandate, giving residents a voice in requests to deviate from the formula on a case by case basis. How will you support or encourage the construction and renovation of housing, expanding funding and improving the application process for the Safe-at-Home program, expanding access to affordable senior rentals, and/or senior property tax relief? Submitted by AARP I would insist that all new construction be ADA compliant and I would simplify the Safe-At-Home application process by supporting legislation that would establish every public library and certain strategically located public school buildings as centers at which seniors can get assistance in applying for that program as well as property tax relief and rental housing assistance. At each such location, there would be computer terminals and trained staff to assist in the process and I would even consider pairing seniors with high school students who could earn graduation credits by assisting students with their applications. What is your commitment to closing the education and employment gaps for Black and Latino residents in the District? I am very committed to closing those gaps. We can start, as I stated in response to earlier questions, by returning autonomy over the school system to an elected school board and hiring a professional superintendent. We should also incentivize teachers to teach in Title 1 schools and, through tax incentives and housing vouchers, to actually live in financially challenged neighborhoods in close proximity to underserved schools. On employment, we can start with amending our criminal code to expand the process of sealing criminal records for those who have paid their debt to society, so they can escape the trap of permanent unemployability. As the city continues to gentrify what will you do to make living in D.C. more equitable regardless of a resident’s ward or zip code? I would push for the establishment of more economic opportunity zones in which business, particularly those which provide “green jobs”, are incentivized to locate in traditionally depressed neighborhoods and hire local residents. I would also see that school resources are distributed more equitably so that students and neighborhood residents will have access to those resources no matter what neighborhood they happen to reside in. And I would open, and fund not notch recreation centers in all wards of the city.

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Ward 6 Councilmember Charles Allen

Office: DC Council, Ward 6 / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 41 / Profession: Councilmember Campaign Website: www.charlesallen2018.com

Why are you running for office? I am running for re-election so that residents can always call Ward 6 neighborhoods home, focusing on affordable housing, education, and criminal justice reform. On affordable housing, we’ve added 1500 new homes since 2015 with 2100 more on the way, but it’s still not enough and we must do more. On education, I’ve added more than $200 million to modernize Ward 6 school facilities and fought to get much-needed resources into our classrooms. On criminal justice reform, I am working on the most significant reform of our youth laws in more than 30 years, and will continue implementing the NEAR Act, a public health approach to violence reduction. What would be one of the first pieces of legislation you would pursue if elected? When I was first elected in 2014, the first bill I introduced was to create the Books from Birth program in an effort to close the word gap for children who may have no other access to books before beginning school. In the two years DC Public Library has had the program up and running, we’ve delivered over 450,000 books to children from birth to age 5 across the District, with 83% of kids in target neighborhoods enrolled. As more and more Books from Birth “graduates” enter our schools, I expect this investment in early literacy will help close the “achievement gap” for students who might otherwise have not had access to books at home. What are your plans to help the school system do a better job at preparing students for college? Submitted by Makeda, Ward 7 Youth Government Representative In the wake of the reports highlighting attendance and graduation policy violations, it’s crucial that we work to restore trust in our schools and continue striving to ensure every senior is college or career ready. I believe that starts with transparency and engagement. Parents, educators, and communities should be true partners in the success of our schools and have a stronger voice in setting goals, evaluating leaders, and providing input. Every parent should have confidence that our graduates have earned their diplomas, and at Council we must keep asking the hard questions of our citywide school leaders about where we’re falling short. How will you hold developers, subsidized by the city, accountable for creating affordable housing? We need to find ways to move funds more quickly through the Housing Production Trust Fund, so that we’re not just banking millions of dollars that could be put to work more quickly housing families, while also ensuring that the District government is closely overseeing these investments and targeting them to extremely low-income households. Another approach is through the Comprehensive Plan update, where we must focus on affordable housing creation and preservation, affordability at a variety of unit sizes, and reducing displacement at every entry point. I am working with colleagues to review and prepare Comp Plan amendments to this effect. How will you work to create more affordable housing units for the District’s lowest income residents and families? In Ward 6, I have a track record of using my leadership to deliver new affordable housing. We’re leading the way with more than 1,500 new affordable homes created in the last 3 years and over 2,100 more on the way, more than any oth-

Lisa Hunter

What legislation will you create or support to establish a greener, more sustainable D.C.? I authored the Commission on Climate Change and Resiliency Establishment Act, led the effort to divest DC’s retirement and pension fund from carbon and fossil fuel investments, and introduced the Distributed Energy Resources Authority Act to shift energy consumption to renewables generated here. I authored the Tree Canopy Protection Act and led the effort to revitalize Kingman and Heritage Islands. I support the Put a Price on It campaign, placing a fee on carbon emissions, and am moving legislation to expand access to solar power. I led the effort declaring 2018 the Year of the Anacostia in honor of the Anacostia River’s revitalization. How will you support or encourage the construction and renovation of housing, expanding funding and improving the application process for the Safe-at-Home program, expanding access to affordable senior rentals, and/or senior property tax relief? Submitted by AARP Working to ensure seniors can always call Ward 6 home is a priority for me. I authored the Safe at Home Act to help low-income seniors and persons with disabilities age in place by providing grants to modify their homes to better accommodate them. I’ve led on ensuring DC is constructing senior-specific affordable housing. When I first started on the Council, I helped our Hill East neighbors stop a controversial construction project, requiring it go back to the drawing board to focus on creating units for seniors. By bringing together the community, we are now planning a project that will bring market-rate and affordable housing for seniors. What is your commitment to closing the education and employment gaps for Black and Latino residents in the District? I believe we should apply an equity lens to every decision we make as a government to address the District’s significant economic inequality. In education, that means a commitment to additional funding for the students who need it most, interrupting the school-to-prison pipeline, and programs like Books from Birth to ensure every child is ready for school. In employment, I led the fight for a $15 minimum wage for all DC workers, am working to ensure fair access to career opportunities by reforming our record sealing and expungement laws and sponsor a twice-yearly career fair that connects residents seeking jobs to actual employment. As the city continues to gentrify what will you do to make living in D.C. more equitable regardless of a resident’s ward or zip code? The current process underway to amend the city’s Comprehensive Plan is a powerful opportunity to help guide the District’s growth and prioritize equity. The lens I will bring to the review will focus on land use choices that create and preserve affordable housing, avoid displacement, invest in more equitable transportation choices, aggressively pursue sustainability and resiliency policies, and create more geographic equity and access in job creation. On affordable housing in particular, we must focus on creation and preservation, a variety of unit sizes, and reducing displacement.

Office: DC Council, Ward 6 / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 33 / Ward of Residence: 6 Campaign Website: www.lisaforward6.com

Why are you running for office? I am running because our current council member is leaving too many of our neighbors behind.We have some of the widest health, racial and economic disparities in the nation, right here in Ward 6, and they have continued to grow over the last four years.There are shiny new condos everywhere, yet our affordable housing crisis is the worst it has ever been. Our schools are underfunded, and too many of our public housing units are in disrepair. I have seen too many neighbors forced to leave their homes because the cost of living continues to rise. It is time for us to elect leaders who work for their neighbors, not wealthy developer donors. What would be one of the first pieces of legislation you would pursue if elected? I would immediately move to ban taxpayer subsidies for commercial development and require that all taxpayer money used to subsidize housing be used to build truly affordable housing - units that all of our neighbors can afford, including units that are large enough to accommodate families. Recent projects in Ward 6 such as The Wharf were given permission by the DC Council to skirt affordability requirements, so those projects served to displace residents, not help them remain in our community. It is immoral for the DC Council to be subsidizing the displacement of our neighbors from their longtime communities, and it stops with me What are your plans to help the school system do a better job at preparing students for college? Submitted by Makeda, Ward 7 Youth Government Representative Our DC Council has not conducted appropriate oversight of our schools, so we’ve learned about most issues because reporters have uncovered them. I would start by making sure the Council is regularly conducting oversight to identify problems before they become crises. I would also fund our schools based on what teachers are telling us they need. I am the only former teacher running in Ward 6, and I know how hard it is to be successful when you don’t have the resources to do your job. We are funding our schools at a lower level in real dollars now than we were 10 years ago, because the Council hasn’t made education a priority. That must change. How will you hold developers, subsidized by the city, accountable for creating affordable housing? I would require mandatory disclosure of all campaign contributions made by developers to the DC Council. My opponent, Charles Allen, has taken almost $25,000 from developer executives this year, because they know they can count on him. Over the last four years he allowed developers to gut the affordable housing requirements at The Wharf and has voted against tens of millions of dollars in funding for affordable housing. His developer donors got what they paid for.That ends with me. I will require that any taxpayer subsidies given to developers be used ONLY to fund truly affordable housing - housing that our neighbors can actually afford. How will you work to create more affordable housing units for the District’s lowest income residents and families? We can create more affordable housing units if we elect leaders who make it a priority. Last year my opponent,

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er Ward in our city. I also champion the creation of larger units, such as the effort I led to convert the new construction at 13th & H Streets, NE into 100% affordable homes, all with 2 or 3 bedrooms. And when affordable housing is being redeveloped, I am a leading voice to deliver for long-time residents, such as at Greenleaf Gardens in Southwest, where I’m leading a “Build First” effort to prevent displacement.

Charles Allen, voted to cut the corporate tax rate and the estate tax. Those two votes constitute hundreds of millions of dollars in giveaways to the ultra-wealthy over time. I would immediately reverse those tax cuts and redirect that revenue to addressing our affordable housing and homelessness crises. Budgets are moral documents, and the way we spend our tax dollars reflects our values. I believe we should be using our taxpayer dollars to help the most vulnerable among us, not to give tax breaks to ultra-rich campaign donors. What legislation will you create or support to establish a greener, more sustainable D.C.? I support establishing a carbon fee and rebate program to incentivize use of renewable energy sources. I differ from my opponent in that I would scale this program so it does not impose financial stress on low-income residents who live paycheck to paycheck and cannot afford an increase in their monthly expenses. I also support full mandatory funding for REDF and SETF programs to expand the use of clean energy in DC. How will you support or encourage the construction and renovation of housing, expanding funding and improving the application process for the Safe-at-Home program, expanding access to affordable senior rentals, and/or senior property tax relief? Submitted by AARP I am the only candidate running in Ward 6 who will not give taxpayer subsidies to commercial developers, and I would redirect those funds to incentivize construction of truly affordable housing, including for seniors. I would increase funding for Safe-at-Home so requests are filled more quickly, and provide the recommended $40 million needed for basic maintenance and repairs on our public housing stock, so residents are not displaced due to unsafe conditions. I would offer property tax relief to longtime residents who are struggling to age in place, and tax credits for seniors in historic districts so they can afford to maintain their homes. What is your commitment to closing the education and employment gaps for Black and Latino residents in the District? As a Latina raised in a mixed household,the daughter of parents who rose from poverty to achieve success,I was raised to understand how fortunate I am,and taught to fight so that others are able to achieve success.It’s why I dedicated my life to service,first in the Peace Corps,and later the Obama administration.DC has one of the widest opportunity gaps in the nation,and we can begin to address it by adequately funding our schools,including special needs and language access programs,but also investing in housing so students have safe,stable housing.We must also invest in job training and require that all developers hire local. As the city continues to gentrify what will you do to make living in D.C. more equitable regardless of a resident’s ward or zip code? Nobody should be forced to leave their community to find work, housing, or basic services. I fully commit to funding projects that provide all of our residents with access to healthy affordable foods, health care, reliable public transit, and local jobs. This means shifting the DC Council’s priorities from subsidizing new condos that nobody can afford to live in, to investing in our communities and our neighbors who are already here. We must use taxpayer subsidies only for projects that benefit our neighborhoods by providing affordable housing or public amenities such as grocery stores and require that those developers and stores hire local.

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Michael Bekesha

Office: Ward 5 Councilmember / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Profession: Attorney Campaign Website: www.bradleythomas4dc.com

Why are you running for office? Every single member of the 13-person DC council is a Democrat. That’s unacceptable. It lends to groupthink. It creates an echo chamber. And it results in a real lack of accountability. Corruption breeds more easily in a one-party system, So, I want to change that. DC is extremely diverse, both in socioeconomic status but also in ideas. Having a one-party Democratic council does not represent DC residents. It also doesn’t lead to new, innovative ideas. There is no member on the council willing to question or challenge the other members. This must change. So, I am running because it’s time for new ideas and a fresh perspective on the Council. What would be one of the first pieces of legislation you would pursue if elected? I would introduce legislation to change our elections from partisan to nonpartisan. I am running because the one-party system that DC currently is not working. There is less accountability and fewer ideas. We need fresh perspectives and new solutions. As long as we have a one-party system, DC will never reach its full potential. What are your plans to help the school system do a better job at preparing students for college? Submitted by Makeda, Ward 7 Youth Government Representative Every student learns in different ways and at different speeds. We need to stop teaching every student in the same way. We need to localize our schools. We need to ensure that individual schools, its administrators, and its teachers have the resources necessary to best prepare the students at their schools for college. We also need to make sure students are on the path early on. If a student us already behind in 6th grade or even 9th grade, it is very difficult to prepare him or her for college in that shorter period of time. So, we need to invest more in our elementary school educations. How will you hold developers, subsidized by the city, accountable for creating affordable housing? By sitting down and talking to them.To ensure everyone who wants to live in DC can, we need to work with all stakeholders.Talking to the developers and the landlords.The renters and the home buyers.The banks, the community groups, and our small

businesses.We need to hear from everyone.We need to understand where people want to live, how they want to live, and what they can reasonably pay to live there.We also need to hear what it takes to build, manage, and maintain housing in the District. We know there is shortage of housing, especially affordable housing.We need to all work together to find a solution. How will you work to create more affordable housing units for the District’s lowest income residents and families? We cannot continue to build large, isolated housing complexes. Housing is only truly affordable when it is easily accessible to jobs, schools, daycare, supermarkets, health facilities, commercial services, public transportation, and green space. If housing is placed away from such essentials, residents must spend considerable time and resources gaining access to them. We therefore need to ensure that housing is being developed in ways in which residents do not have to spend time and resources finding employment, education, and food. Our goal should be to create more housing on the approximately 849 acres of underutilized sites throughout DC. What is your commitment to closing the education and employment gaps for Black and Latino residents in the District? I believe nonprofits and volunteers can have as meaningful and successful impact on our neighbors’ lives as government programs. As DC continues to grow, we must find new, innovative ways to enable everyone who wants to live in DC, who dreams of working here, and who seeks to make it his or her home can. We must therefore do a better job supporting our nonprofit and volunteer communities. We should find additional ways to support the literally dozens, if not hundreds, of organizations in DC helping close the education and employment gaps in the District. As the city continues to gentrify what will you do to make living in D.C. more equitable regardless of a resident’s ward or zip code? The best way to make DC more equitable regardless of a resident’s ward or zip code is to ensure everyone gets the education they need and everyone has the necessary resources available to them. Unfortunately, our current elected officials focus on their own pet projects that benefit a select few. They listen to only those who think the way they do. They only legislate in the present and do not consider how the new laws may impact future growth. I don’t have all the answers. Nor do I claim to. But I have a different perspective. Another way to look at problems and propose more efficient and effective solutions.

Attorney General Office: Attorney General / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 55 / Profession: Lawyer Ward of Residence: 1 / Campaign Website: www.karlracine.com

Karl A. Racine

Why are you running for this office?As the District of Columbia’s first elected Attorney General, I fight for residents every day. Since my election in 2014, I have built an independent office, led the way on justice reform, cracked down on slumlords, stopped scammers, and stood up to President Trump. There’s still work to do—and that’s why I am running for re-election. Is there any state law that you would like to see be eliminated or changed? The Office of the Attorney General has the power to introduce legislation, and we have done so – and will continue to do so -- when we have seen that current law is inadequate to safeguard the interests of District residents. In our first four years we have introduced legislation to reform campaign finance laws, enhance protections for District consumers and crack down on dangerous synthetic drugs. If elected, what will be the priorities of the office? I will build on the work my office is already doing to reform the juvenile justice system and help young people get on the right path, preserve affordable housing and protect tenants, and protect District residents from scams, fraud, and abuse. My priorities will include: • Using a public health approach to reducing violence. • Expanding my work on affordable housing and wage theft, and bring cases in new areas such as environmental protection and civil rights. • Standing up against harmful Trump administration actions that would roll back reproductive rights, LGBTQ rights, protections for immigrants, and more.

How will you work around federal limitations on the office to enact your priorities? I will continue to work to make sure the District is able, in spite of federal interference, to enact policies that reflect our values. In my first term, I provided legal advice that helped the city set up an immigrant legal defense fund that could withstand Congressional attack, and helped make sure the city’s marijuana legalization initiative took effect. I have also moved forward with juvenile justice system reforms while leading other attorneys general from around the country in challenging harmful and unlawful Trump actions, such as the Muslim ban and rollbacks of protections for consumers, the environment and reproductive rights. Where do you stand on the issue of commercialization of marijuana in the District? In order for the District to be able to regulate, tax and commercialize marijuana, we need to be free from Congressional interference. This is why I am a strong supporter of statehood and self-determination for the District. We should be allowed to make decisions about important local issues at the local level. How will you combat violent crime in the city? As the District’s chief juvenile prosecutor, I have implemented data-driven programs that are smart on crime and put young people on the right path, instead of outdated strategies that fail to make communities safer and disproportionately affect the poor and people of color. In the future, we will build on the progress we’ve made by: • Increasing referrals to effective diversion programs; • Expanding our “restorative justice” program that resolves conflicts and aims to repair the harm caused by crime; • Expanding participation in “treatment court” programs, like ones we have helped to develop that address substance abuse and sex trafficking.

Statehood Delegation Michael D. Brown

Office: United States Senator / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 64 / Profession: United States Senator (DC) Ward of Residence: 3 / Campaign Website: www.michealdbrown2018.com

Why are you running for office? To complete the work I started 12 years ago. When I was elected, DC worked to get just one vote in the House of Representatives now we work for full equality through statehood. I’ve played an important role in this transition. I helped write a new constitution, get a statehood referendum on the ballot and get DC statehood put back in the national Democratic Platform. I helped get a record number of cosponsors for statehood in the US Senate and I get more than 400,000 hits a year on the internet. I am a co-founder of the DC Statehood Coalition and have opinion pieces on statehood in more than 20 national publications. It’s time to become #51. How will you expand on the District’s current efforts for statehood? Through national and international outreach. I started an internet radio show three years ago that now reaches more than 400,000 a

year. In addition, I have created a website for Social Studies teachers that uses examples from the struggle for DC statehood to teach students about civil rights. I just returned from an international conference where I addressed participants from more than 70 nations and last year I got 42 international organization to pass a resolution in support of DC statehood. I also have an effective social media program reaching thousands every week. 80% of people in the world don’t know our situation, I am changing that. In your opinion, what is the most pressing issue facing the District as it relates to statehood? How will you tackle it? On Capitol Hill DC Statehood has become a strictly partisan issue., Even though we have a record number of cosponsors on a statehood bill in both houses of Congress, all 181 of them are Democrats. For statehood to become a reality, we need more widespread support. Last month my office reached out to four Republican offices in the US Senate to begin a dialog about our pending legislation. So far we have met with three of these offices and are continuing to communicate with them in the hope of

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BROWN FROM PAGE V-10 forming relationships leading to bipartisan support with Senate Republicans for our statehood bill. This is essential to the success of DC Statehood. What can be added to the District’s current strategy that will move the issue of statehood along? There are two things that we need. More resources and more activism. I have been arrested, gone

Andria Thomas

Office: United States Senator / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 43 / Profession: Strategy Advisor Ward of Residence: 6 / Campaign Website: https://at4dc.com

Why are you running for office? I am fed up with how Congress interferes with our local laws, like gun regulations that keep guns out of our schools and help keep our kids safe. I am fed up with not having two Senators and a Representative to call when federal laws are being determined. Laws that impact health care. Or our taxes. Or whether our drinking water remains clean. I am running for Shadow Senator because it offers a platform for advocating strongly, on the Hill and across the country, to defend DC rights and to demand the statehood that we deserve. How will you expand on the District’s current efforts for statehood? I want to bring a modern and strategic approach to our fight for statehood. We need new national partners who both sign up in name and commit real resources, in money and people time, to helping build state-by-state efforts. We need dramatically more funding for a statehood effort, which we should be seeking from private and public sources. And we need more professional and sustained advocacy efforts, with strategic social media plans, to remind people and Congress that lack of statehood is fundamentally voter suppression. As Shadow Senator, I will work with statehood partners to achieve these goals.

Franklin Garcia

to trial and been removed from congressional hearings in protest of our lack of equal rights. We need more of this. It’s been seven years since 71 of us were arrested for statehood in one week. When we get 7,100 arrested in a week we will be on our way to finally getting statehood. In addition since promoting activism nationally and locally requires funding, we need to dedicate more resources to our effort. Surely a city with a 14 billion dollar budget can dedicate more than just a few hundred thousand dollars to securing our basic civil rights.

In your opinion, what is the most pressing issue facing the District as it relates to statehood? How will you tackle it? The most urgent issue I see is our lack of full voting representation - meaning two Senators and a Representative - in Congress. A single non-voting Representative is not enough. Without this voice and leverage in both the House and Senate, we will always be subject to Congressional interference, and we will lack the ability to self-govern, control our budget, and negotiate against federal control in other areas such as our criminal justice system. Tackling it means focusing our efforts on statehood, because two voting Senators for DC will be the hardest goal to achieve. But one worth fighting for. What can be added to the District’s current strategy that will move the issue of statehood along? 1) To activate a broader group of committed volunteers in DC: Tying the #HandsOffDC movement more explicitly to statehood. Far more people turn out to defend against Congressional interference because it feels more relevant to their lives, but we aren’t fully tapping that frustration. 2) To expand our allies to businesses and institutions: Analyzing the financial implications and creating the “business case” for statehood. Too many people still see statehood as financially unrealistic. We know this isn’t true, but need to show it. 3) To fund a national advocacy effort: Seeking substantial commitments of funding from outside donors.

Office: U.S. Representative / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 48 / Profession: Technology Professional Ward of Residence: 5 / Campaign Website: www.franklinfordc.com

Why are you running for office? To help bring full democracy to the residents of Washington DC by helping DC become the 51st state.

it relates to statehood? How will you tackle it? No OFFICIAL recognition of anyone from Washington DC in the US Senate.

How will you expand on the District’s current efforts for statehood? By continuing to engage people in the city, outside the city, the international community, and a heavy media campaign on the issue of DC Statehood.

What can be added to the District’s current strategy that will move the issue of statehood along? Invest more in the unified effort of all the local grassroots groups, which are doing a very good job. Have clear designated “missionaries” deliver the message of DC Statehood across the nation. Engage media experts to engage in national campaign.

In your opinion, what is the most pressing issue facing the District as

Delegate, US House of Representatives Kim R. Ford

Office: Delegate, U.S. House of Representatives / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 37 / Profession: Education and Workforce Development Executive / Ward of Residence: 5 / Campaign Website: https://kimford4congress.com/

Why are you running for office? My mother, Dietra L. Ford, was a lifelong public servant who taught me the importance of service. As a native Washingtonian, I’ve seen DC change and while economic growth has skyrocketed, too many DC residents get left behind. I am running for Congress because I see possibilities, not limitations. I learned in the Obama Administration the power of government and as Dean at UDC’s Community College, I saw how government can truly change lives. We can open pathways for residents and businesses, reverse federal control over local matters and solve regional issues - while being incredibly visible in the community. What will your legislative priorities be if you are elected? 1. Provide tangible outcomes on the road to statehood – we need someone with the ability to garner support on both sides of the aisle. 2. Utilize the federal government to the District’s advantage – view it as an asset. We can pilot student loan forgiveness and internship programs. 3. Ensure all federal funds are spent – so we can leverage additional federal resources. 4. Establish a permanent Capital Regional Caucus for DC, MD and VA – we need to work together instead of competing with one another. 5. Redefine federal constituent services – establish a visible, active, and a responsive Delegate’s office. What would be one of the first pieces of legislation you would pursue if elected? In addition to a Statehood Bill, I would work to amend the Revitalization Act and introduce a student loan forgiveness program. This trio of legislation reflects my values and record of increasing equality and leveling playing fields. The pains of not being a state have cascading consequences in DC. Men and women in the criminal justice system lack support systems and programming because they are in the federal system. Lastly, we have an entire generation of people who are “stuck” because they don’t have the credentials to move forward and can’t go back to school because they have outstanding debt. What are your plans to move the District’s statehood bills along in the House and Senate? Despite in recent history having Democratic control of the House, Senate, and Presidency, we have not secured statehood. Our single-party, “statehood or nothing” strategy has failed. As a past board member of DC Vote, I saw first-hand how critical it is to work with ALL Representatives in Congress. Statehood will require bi-partisan support, which the movement does not presently have, though there has been bi-partisan support in the past. As we prepare for a new wave of leaders in Congress, it’s important to have someone to foster and capitalize on new relationships and a willingness to work across the aisle. What can be added to the District’s current strategy that will move the issue of statehood along? In addition

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to lobbying Members we can educate them and their constituents about the extent of our inequality. Members understand DC based on the route from their apartments to Capitol parking lots. They don’t see our neighborhoods or our citizens. They don’t see the diversity of our Wards or the families that have built this city for generations. If all they know of DC is a caricature, they can’t understand the ways in which our status creates inequities. They live here, we can engage them in the real DC and ask, no, demand that they strengthen their conviction for statehood. As the city continues to gentrify what will you do to make living in D.C. more equitable regardless of a resident’s ward or zip code? My legislative priorities will focus on maximizing federal support in the key areas such as, education, workforce development, housing and justice matters. When DC residents do not have the skills or credentials to obtain a family sustaining wage in a growing global economy, then they are pushed out of the city. Without a family sustaining wage, residents who are forced to leave are shrouded in hopelessness and can begin a dangerous domino effect that leads to the justice system.This is preventable. I plan to solve this problem by legislating wins that support a system of lifelong learning.

INITIATIVE MEASURE NO. 77 District of Columbia Minimum Wage Amendment Act 2017 If enacted, this initiative will: • Gradually increase the minimum wage in the District of Columbia to $15.00 hourly by 2020; • Gradually increase the minimum wage for tipped employees so that they receive the same minimum wage directly from their employer as other employees by 2026; • Beginning in 2021, require the minimum wage to increase yearly in proportion to increases in the Consumer Price Index. The minimum wage increases under the initiate will not apply to DC. Government employees or employees of D.C. Government contractors.

n YES, to approve

2018 WASHINGTON INFORMER VOTER’S GUIDE / www.washingtoninformer.com

n NO, to reject

Eleanor Holmes Norton

Office: Delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 81 / Profession: Member of Commerce / Ward of Residence: 6 / Campaign Website: www.dcforeleanor.com

Why are you running for office? I will be in a position to use my seniority to do much more for DC as chair of a committee or subcommittee, if as expected, Democrats take the House. I have brought home many benefits for my D.C. constituents but almost always without the extraordinary power that a chairmanship and Democratic control of Congress would give me. DC has never had a Member of Congress with as much seniority and potential to advance the city. DC is now on the cusp of achieving real and substantial power in Congress if I am reelected to Congress in 2018. What will your legislative priorities be if you are elected? First, if Democrats take control the House, I will seek a vote on my DC statehood bill. I also will have a home rule package ready, as the most immediate strategy for getting more quickly at least the most important elements of statehood-budget

autonomy, and legislative autonomy. Second, I am in line to chair a committee or subcommittee with direct jurisdiction over Metro. I am preparing packages to reauthorize ten additional years of capital improvement funding for much needed repair and rehabilitation of Metro. In addition, for the first time, I also will ask for annual operating funds for Metro. What would be one of the first pieces of legislation you would pursue if elected? I have gotten most Democrats as co-sponsors (many as original co-sponsors, who co-sponsor the bill along with me when I first introduce my DC statehood bill). I will get the few Democrats who have not yet co-sponsored, and I’ll increase the number of original co-sponsors. I also will increase the number of Senate co-sponsors. This is part of a careful strategy that maximizes Democratic congressional strength while Republicans, who do not favor DC statehood, control Congress and the White House. What are your plans to move the District’s statehood bills along in the House and Senate? However, Republicans are not our only obstacles. My greatest frustration are polls showing most Americans think DC residents have the same rights they do. Increased use of social media will be necessary to educate the public sufficiently to move a statehood bill in the Congress. Although many residents, including me, a prolific user of social media, District residents have no coordinated DC statehood messaging on social media. What can be added to the District’s current strategy that will move the issue of statehood along? However, I have repeatedly encouraged residents to develop a regular, systematic social media DC statehood strategy, the only practical way to get beyond the District to the entire country, without funds. Short of violating House and Ethics Rules, I will ask residents with the requisite skills to meet with me and ask them to form a statehood social media group. As the city continues to gentrify what will you do to make living in D.C. more equitable regardless of a resident’s ward or zip code? To fight back against gentrification, I have made some hard-fought incremental progress for affordable housing. The District’s affordable housing crisis is compounded by the federal height limit that keeps DC from building above a few stories, about 130 feet to protect the historic vistas in the nation’s capital. Nevertheless, I have achieved some funding for affordable housing, including community development funding for new affordable apartments in ward 8; $ 7.8 million in addition, in the 2018 omnibus appropriation, I got a 3% increase in Section 8 housing for moderate income families.

Bruce Majors Office: Delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives / Party Affiliation: Libertarian / Age: 59 / Profession: Realtor Ward of Residence: 2 / Campaign Website: https://www.facebook.com/Bruce-Majors-Libertarian-for-Delegate-472478469821101/

Why are you running for office? D.C. has suffered for too long from corruption and pay to play politics benefitting only the politically connected, and from a lack of political choice or competition. What will your legislative priorities be if you are elected? Expanding school choice; protecting the independence of charter schools; ending the radically unequal funding of charter school, traditional public school, and voucher students; eliminating programs that kill jobs and businesses. What would be one of the first pieces of legislation you would pursue if elected? Getting rid of professional licensure, especially regulations that prevent residents who do not have college degrees from starting businesses and creating jobs. What are your plans to move the District’s statehood bills along in the House and Senate? I think we should highlight any gains in getting D.C.’s own house in order, to make it clear we deserve to be represented, and that such offices won’t just be new high paid sinecures for our local political class. What can be added to the District’s current strategy that will move the issue of statehood along? I can’t discern a strategy that D.C. has now. Other movements change people’s hearts and minds by pointing out that everyone has a family member impacted. D.C. should figure out how to copy that strategy. As the city continues to gentrify what will you do to make living in D.C. more equitable regardless of a resident’s ward or zip code? We need to end the practice of giving slots in schools, and in higher end “affordable” housing, to the politically connected. We need to allow growth and expansion of opportunities by getting rid of laws and regulations that prevent them.

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Maryland candidates / 2018 Governor of Maryland Rushern L. Baker III

Office: Governor of Maryland / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 59 / Profession: County Executive of Prince George’s County Residency: Cheverly, Maryland / Campaign Website: www.rushernbaker.com

What do you consider the largest statewide issue and what’s your proposal to either eliminate it, or improve it? Submitted by CAMP SPRINGS CIVIC ASSOCIATION As governor, my number one priority will be education. As a kid, I struggled with reading, got into fights often, and was kicked out of many schools. If it weren’t for my loving parents and dedicated teachers, I would not have had the opportunity to be the first in my family to graduate college. I know that fully funding schools is the first step to ensuring that every student in our state has the same opportunities I had. I will prioritize fully funding our schools in order to increase teacher salaries; create more dual-enrollment programs; expand universal pre-k and full-day kindergarten. The same as I did as County Executive. Do you agree with state lawmakers approving more than $6 billion in tax incentives for the Amazon HQ2 proposed project? Explain. When it comes to Amazon’s HQ2, I have been publicly supportive of Montgomery County’s bid for the White Flint area, and have publicaly supported the Governor’s incentive package. I firmly believe that if Amazon’s HQ2 locates anywhere in the DMV it will have a tremendously positive ripple effect throughout the area. Our interconnectivity as a region is a strength that has not been played often enough when approaching massive regional opportunities. According to realtytrac.com, the foreclosure rate in Maryland ranked fourth in the nation in March. What plans do you have to provide affordable housing and decrease foreclosures? The central focus of my Transforming Neighborhoods Initiative (TNI) was to bolster communities in the county that face economic, educational and public safety challenges. As part of this initiative, we made significant investment in affordable housing. As governor, I will expand TNI throughout the state. Another program I have proposed to address this issue is the path to homeownership program, a part of my ‘Uplift Baltimore” plan. This program. would rehabilitate and build state-of-the-art green housing and create opportunities for homeownership that don’t depend on credit history, savings, or other historic impediments to wealth building. What proposal do you have to boost affordable housing for seniors? Affordable, high-quality, housing options—

Ben Jealous

Prince George’s County educators.

Should recreational marijuana be allowed in Maryland and why? I support legalizing marijuana in a thoughtful way that provides equity in all communities. As Governor, I will put forward plans for entrepreneurship that reach communities devastated by the bias of our past drug policies. A significant portion of tax revenue from sales of marijuana for adult use should be directed for education, career development, child care, housing, and other restorative initiatives for the people locked up for simple possession or who paid fines, or lost jobs due to past laws. I will champion a plan for mass expungement that puts little to no burden on those prosecuted under our past marijuana possession laws. Do you support the measure approved recently by Maryland lawmakers to put an armed school resource officer in every public school? Explain. I do not support arming teachers. As County Executive, I worked hard with Maryland’s former Governor Martin O’Malley and the General Assembly to pass some of the nation’s strictest gun-licensing laws, including requiring fingerprinting for gun buyers, new limits on firearm purchases by the mentally ill, and bans on assault weapons and on magazines that hold more than 10 bullets. This past November, I called for a nationwide ban on assault weapons. We owe it to the victims and the families of gun violence to create responsible gun policies. Some criminal justice reform advocates believe additional funding given to police should be diverted for other mental health or social welfare uses. Briefly explain your opinion on whether police departments should receive millions of dollars solely for guns and other weapons to fight crime? Our criminal justice system is broken.We don’t need to prosecute crimes of poverty and addiction; we need to provide economic and educational opportunities for all communities,support re-entry programs that offer second chances to returning citizens and create better,more effective police-community relations.As governor,I will fully review the entire budget and allocate resources in order to create safer communities.

Office: Governor of Maryland / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 45 / Profession: Former National President & CEO of the NAACP and Partner at Kapor Capital / Residency: Anne Arundel County / Campaign Website: www.benjealous.com

What do you consider the largest statewide issue and what’s your proposal to either eliminate it, or improve it? Submitted by CAMP SPRINGS CIVIC ASSOCIATION Our schools have fallen from 1st to 6th, and fully funding education is the largest statewide issue. When we shortchange education today, we shortchange our economy tomorrow. I’m the only candidate to release a detailed plan for universal pre-k, raising teacher pay, and ensuring that more funding reaches our poorest schools and districts. I want to ensure every child graduates high school ready for a career. I’ve been endorsed by the Maryland State Education Association, including receiving the overwhelming support of

Do you agree with state lawmakers approving more than $6 billion in tax incentives for the Amazon HQ2 proposed project? Explain. As a businessman, I do not believe the best way to grow our economy is by passing on tax incentives to billion dollar corporations, especially one that has at times paid no federal taxes. We have to change our mindset to creating more opportunities to invest in our small businesses and entrepreneurs already in Maryland. It’s inexcusable we haven’t found the same courage to fully fund our schools and help build an educated workforce for the careers we currently need filled right here in Maryland. We don’t have a shortage of jobs, we have a shortage of young people we have trained for the jobs we have. According to realtytrac.com, the foreclosure rate in Maryland ranked fourth in the nation in March. What plans do you have to provide affordable housing and decrease foreclosures? The first step is making sure that everyone is paid a fair wage. I’m committed to ensuring a living wage for all Marylanders to ensure that they can afford Maryland’s standard of living. I’ve put out an economic development plan called Great Cities, which is on my website, benjealous.com that outlines how we can provide quality, affordable housing opportunities for all Marylanders. As governor, I will develop a set of programs that will help homeowners stay in their homes by paying for necessary repairs or adaptive modifications. I will also provide state funds for rent assistance and expand our affordable housing strategy. What proposal do you have to boost affordable housing for seniors? I’ve released a plan directed towards seniors which you can see on benjealous.com to make sure that seniors are afforded the ability to age with dignity. That means ending home losses due to unpaid property taxes and working to expand

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for a range of income levels, preferences, and phases of life—play a critical role in achieving this vision. In the County, we implemented a Comprehensive Housing Strategy.We will create a similar plan across the state that to help build sustainable, diverse, and inclusive communities connected to economic opportunity. With a growing population, new housing developments and expanding employment opportunities, it is imperative that we factor in the needs of both existing and future residents.

affordable housing opportunities for seniors. Should recreational marijuana be allowed in Maryland and why? Yes. I’m proud to be the only leading candidate for governor in favor of legalization for adult use. These laws are relics from a failed war on drugs and it’s time we pivot toward real criminal justice reform and ending this era of mass incarceration. I’m the only candidate with a comprehensive criminal justice reform plan that calls for marijuana legalization and would save taxpayers more than $600 million, that I would invest in making our colleges tuition free. My education plan also calls for using revenue from marijuana legalization to pay for universal pre-k. What will be your plan to spend money on school construction projects, especially for schools at least 30 years and older? My education plan calls for fully funding our schools and prioritizing spending toward our most impoverished school districts. Oftentimes these are the districts that also have the most dilapidated schools, which are also a factor in the achievement gap. As a part of my effort to fully fund schools, I would advocate that these reforms extend to ensuring our oldest and most in need facilities receive additional support. Do you support the measure approved recently by Maryland lawmakers to put an armed school resource officer in every public school? Explain.There’s nothing more important than ensuring our kids are safe. We need to institute stronger gun safety legislation that ensures that no student has to go to school in fear. However, much of what we need is expanding mental health counselors and the availability of mental health resources for our students. Additionally, each school should locally determine their security needs, it shouldn’t be mandated from the top-down. Some criminal justice reform advocates believe additional funding given to police should be diverted for other mental health or social welfare uses. Briefly explain your opinion on whether police departments should receive millions of dollars solely for guns and other weapons to fight crime? I’m proud to be the only candidate with a comprehensive plan for police reform, to help improve public safety and stop the killings of unarmed civilians. I believe to make our communities safer and reduce crime, we also need to invest much more in mental health and social welfare uses, as well as violence interruption programs because we cannot police our way out of a crime problem. When funding our police departments, I believe a more comprehensive approach is needed beyond enforcement.

2018 WASHINGTON INFORMER VOTER’S GUIDE / www.washingtoninformer.com

Richard S. Madaleno, Jr.

Office: Governor of Maryland / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 52 / Profession: Public Servant/Maryland State Legislator / Residency: Kensington, Maryland / Campaign Website: www.MadalenoForMaryland.com

What do you consider the largest statewide issue and what’s your proposal to either eliminate it, or improve it? Submitted by CAMP SPRINGS CIVIC ASSOCIATION Education is the largest statewide issue. I have long been an advocate for building a strong public system of education in Maryland and have been a leader in improving education. I am committed to making an excellent public education available to every child in Maryland. As a member of the Commission on Innovation & Excellence in Education (the Kirwan Commission) and the father of two children who attend and have attended Maryland public schools since kindergarten, my priority is to implement and fund its recommendations, including providing prekindergarten, supporting educators and building career and college pathways. Do you agree with state lawmakers approving more than $6 billion in tax incentives for the Amazon HQ2 proposed project? Explain. Yes. I voted for the bill to provide potential tax incentives to Amazon because I believe that the location of Amazon’s HQ2 will benefit Maryland and Marylanders by providing new good-paying jobs here. Maryland’s investments in education, infrastructure and transportation have made Montgomery County an attractive location for Amazon, and under this law tax credits will only be available if Amazon commits to carrying out, over a 17-year period, the hiring of 40,000 qualified positions (paying at least $60,000) and spending $4-5 billion in specified project expenditures; state tax credits are available upon hiring these employees. According to realtytrac.com, the foreclosure rate in Maryland ranked fourth in the nation in March. What plans do you have to provide affordable housing and decrease foreclosures? I believe that affordable housing must be available for all Marylanders. As Governor I will fund the Rental Housing Works program to support housing which has been cut under the Hogan administration. I will strengthen and support community development programs to create more affordable housing and will make sure that our state laws still provide appropriate incentives for creation and maintenance of affordable housing despite changes in federal tax law. I will seek to stabilize rents through the establishment of a Rental Housing Commission to keep rental increases in check in our state where about one third of all residents are renters. What proposal do you have to boost affordable housing for seniors? As Governor I will provide funding for construction of more affordable housing for seniors. I also will ensure that we provide more home and community-based services to enable people to live in their own communities, apartments or homes as long as possible. I will create a caregivers program in Maryland to provide financial support for qualified caregivers and home-based care. In the state legislature I have championed successful legislation

Alec Ross

for all our students.

to provide needed funding for the construction and renovation of adult day centers and housing for the elderly. Should recreational marijuana be allowed in Maryland and why? As Governor I will provide funding for construction of more affordable housing for seniors. I also will ensure that we provide more home and community-based services to enable people to live in their own communities, apartments or homes as long as possible. I will create a caregivers program in Maryland to provide financial support for qualified caregivers and home-based care. In the state legislature I have championed successful legislation to provide needed funding for the construction and renovation of adult day centers and housing for the elderly. What will be your plan to spend money on school construction projects, especially for schools at least 30 years and older? As governor I will champion an innovative and bold new state program where the state will provide school construction funding to help our Counties fund school construction and to support issuance of County bonds for such projects. I have long supported providing more funding to support our school facilities and infrastructure, including heating and water systems, and providing adequate funds for school construction, as the state currently does for Baltimore City schools. I fully support the 21st Century School Facilities Act enacted this year over the Governor’s veto to improve our school facility funding decision making process. Do you support the measure approved recently by Maryland lawmakers to put an armed school resource officer in every public school? Explain. I support the recent legislation to enhance school safety in Maryland. It requires secure and lockable doors for each classroom and permits schools to either have a trained school resource officer or adequate law enforcement personnel available. I also support the current policy in the Baltimore city schools of not permitting school police to carry weapons in school buildings. Like many educators and school administrators, I believe that the Baltimore school police are effective at maintaining safe schools using restorative and mediation practices and that the risks of weapons in schools outweighs the possible benefits. Some criminal justice reform advocates believe additional funding given to police should be diverted for other mental health or social welfare uses. Briefly explain your opinion on whether police departments should receive millions of dollars solely for guns and other weapons to fight crime? I am a strong supporter of reforming our criminal justice system and improving policing practices. I will champion the creation of more diversion and restorative justice programs and providing adequate funding for them. I voted for the Public Safety and Violence Prevention Act of 2018, which establishes the Maryland Violence Intervention and Prevention Program Fund to support violence reduction and fund grants to local governments and nonprofits to fund evidence-based health programs. This Act includes funds for the Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion Program.

Office: Governor of Maryland / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 46 / Profession: Author / Residency: Baltimore City Campaign Website: www.alecross.com

What do you consider the largest statewide issue and what’s your proposal to either eliminate it, or improve it? Submitted by CAMP SPRINGS CIVIC ASSOCIATION I began my career as a public school teacher in Baltimore City and believe that we still haven’t made access to quality education available statewide. Education is the starting point for addressing nearly every societal need, and we must prioritize equitable, innovative educational programs for our children. We have a once-in-15-years opportunity to reset how education is funded through the Kirwan Commission, and our next governor must make it their utmost priority to get this model right and increase equity in education

Do you agree with state lawmakers approving more than $6 billion in tax incentives for the Amazon HQ2 proposed project? Explain. I am not in agreement with the incentives offered to Amazon and believe that we should be prioritizing investment in our homegrown entrepreneurs and small business owners. The Amazon bidding process did show us what the state can accomplish when state and local governments work with local business leaders to come up with a creative plan that works for all. I believe that if we fail to be selected as the Amazon HQ2 site, we should take a long hard look at taking the incentives we proposed to Amazon and offering them to local entrepreneurs and businesses. According to realtytrac.com, the foreclosure rate in Maryland ranked fourth in the nation in March. What plans do you have to provide affordable housing and decrease foreclosures? We need to recommit ourselves to not just protect, but extend programs like the low-income housing tax credit, which builds and rehabilitates affordable rental housing in the U.S. In addition, we must significantly invest in the capacity of the community organizations, many of them nonprofits which have as their core mission, the revitalization, and rebuilding of our urban communities. Lastly, as development patterns go from creating affordable housing in large, dense developments to more spread out, single family affordable housing units, we have to make sure this housing is distributed over many communities, not just previously dense ones. What proposal do you have to boost affordable housing for seniors? We must invest equally across the board in affordable housing options, from single-family to seniors and everything in between. We must acknowledge that our population is living healthier, longer lives and provide them with options to live affordably and happily during their lifetimes in Maryland. I would commit to always integrating options for seniors in my affordable housing agenda as governor.

Should recreational marijuana be allowed in Maryland and why? It is high time for Maryland to adopt progressive marijuana policies. The social and economic benefits of taxing and regulating a legal market for marijuana are a clear win for the state and redress a legacy of failed drug policies. That is why I have already released comprehensive policy outlining how we would go about legalizing and regulating recreational marijuana. Legalization and the expungement of the records of those with past marijuana convictions are also the right thing to do, recognizing and reversing many years of discriminatory criminal justice policies that have disproportionately burdened minority communities. What will be your plan to spend money on school construction projects, especially for schools at least 30 years and older? We need to reform the current funding models for school construction in Maryland and make additional investments in construction to ensure that our students have access to the top school facilities in the country. Maryland’s current system of funding school construction is rooted in political favoritism and inequitable financing models between the various jurisdictions in the state. While some jurisdictions have the ability and means to build new schools, many do not. We must look for savings in our current funding models but also look for new streams of revenue into the capital budget. Do you support the measure approved recently by Maryland lawmakers to put an armed school resource officer in every public school? Explain. I am in agreement with this measure and believe that we must take safety in our schools seriously, while also prioritizing common sense gun measures that make it so we don’t have so much violence to deal with in our schools. This includes investments in school counselors and other mental health services, as well as looking at new technologies like smartgrips, that would make it so that guns can only be used by their legal, registered owners. Some criminal justice reform advocates believe additional funding given to police should be diverted for other mental health or social welfare uses. Briefly explain your opinion on whether police departments should receive millions of dollars solely for guns and other weapons to fight crime? I am in complete agreement that we must fund mental health and social welfare programs for our officers, not just provide them with firearms and bulletproof vests. Only providing weapons and the like to officers, but not giving them access to tools to deal with the stresses of their work, is a surefire way to both burn out officers and diminish their results with the communities they work with. We must prioritize budgets for law enforcement that give them both the tactile and cognitive tools they need to do their jobs.

www.washingtoninformer.com / 2018 WASHINGTON INFORMER VOTER’S GUIDE

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Jim Shea

Office: Governor of Maryland / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 65 / Profession: Chairman Emeritus of Venable LLP; former Chair of University System of MD Board of Regents,Central MarylandTransportationAlliance,and Baltimore Empowerment Zones / Residency: Baltimore County / Campaign Website: www.jimshea.com

What do you consider the largest statewide issue and what’s your proposal to either eliminate it, or improve it? Submitted by CAMP SPRINGS CIVIC ASSOCIATION As Governor, my highest priority will be to improve Maryland’s public education system. Education is the surest ladder of opportunity and should provide every child with the chance to succeed. In Maryland, however, we are failing our children as our system is slipping to the middle of the pack. Last year, I released my education plan, which addresses the changes we need to make outlines how we will do it. We must invest in early childhood education, expand opportunities for disadvantaged students, and put a curriculum that is indexed against international standards in the hands of professional and properly compensated educators. Do you agree with state lawmakers approving more than $6 billion in tax incentives for the Amazon HQ2 proposed project? Explain. I am always suspicious of financial incentive packages, particularly when the state plans to give billions of dollars to huge, profitable corporations. As a state, Maryland must do a much better job of instituting a system of accountability with regards to financial incentives, both before and after the incentive has been granted. Here, it seems to me that it will be very difficult for the benefits to exceed the costs. I am more concerned, however, that, as far as I can tell, the State has not properly conducted the cost benefit analysis. With a 10-figure price tag, too much is at stake. According to realtytrac.com, the foreclosure rate in Maryland ranked fourth in the nation in March. What plans do you have to provide affordable housing and decrease foreclosures? Home ownership is a useful way to gain economic independence, and as Governor I will work to make home ownership a better option for more Maryland families. I will bolster an Affordable Housing Trust Fund, which will be used to make housing more affordable. I will ensure that the State of Maryland collaborates with local jurisdictions to monitor data on specific neighborhoods in which home values are increasing and low- and middle-income Marylanders are experiencing a pinch. Then I will target the State’s affordable housing development resources to maintain access to affordable housing for low- and middle-income Marylanders. What proposal do you have to boost affordable housing for seniors? The state of Maryland can do more to ensure that housing remains affordable for seniors. I support, for example, recent efforts to prevent Marylanders from being kicked out of their house for being late on their water bills. I also will implement policies that allow seniors to age in place, including working with developers to ensure that new construction projects include units that are sustainable for senior living. Finally, I will work with my

Krish O’Mara Vignarajah

Should recreational marijuana be allowed in Maryland and why? Yes, as Governor, I will fully support legalizing, taxing, and regulating recreational marijuana. For too long, marijuana arrests have disproportionately affected minority communities. And, the marijuana trade has perpetuated the public safety crisis in our state. Not only will I work to legalize marijuana, but I will also work to expunge the records of those with nonviolent marijuana offenses. What will be your plan to spend money on school construction projects, especially for schools at least 30 years and older? I support the goal of increasing the floor for school construction in the capital budget. It is critically important for the state of Maryland to provide additional funds for school construction, and we must update the current plan to account for needs on the ground. My administration will prioritize proper funding of K-12 education and school construction in both the operating and capital budgets. I will phase in increases to school construction, accounting for borrowing ratios and budget realities, to ensure that we provide modern and functional facilities for our teachers and students. Do you support the measure approved recently by Maryland lawmakers to put an armed school resource officer in every public school? Explain. I do support the recent measure approved by the General Assembly that will put a school resource officer in every public school, as well as the additional funding for school safety and the red flag law. As we just saw recently with another school shooting in Texas, we must be taking proactive steps to ensure that our children can go to school in a safe environment. I do not support measures that Republicans across the country have pushed that will put guns in the hands of teachers. However, we will not fully address the epidemic of school shootings until we take steps federally to prevent gun violence, including a federal assault weapons ban. Some criminal justice reform advocates believe additional funding given to police should be diverted for other mental health or social welfare uses. Briefly explain your opinion on whether police departments should receive millions of dollars solely for guns and other weapons to fight crime? I believe that we must strike the proper balance. Our police departments should be given the resources they need to do their job. We also must focus more on access to mental health care and other social welfare priorities. My running mate, Baltimore Councilman Brandon Scott, recently submitted a bill to the city council that would require city agencies to conduct an equity assessment, and then to devise a plan to remedy any systems that perpetuate inequity. In the version he submitted, funding for the implementation is indexed to the city’s police department budget. This is a creative way to ensure that there is a proper balance.

Office: Governor of Maryland / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 38 / Profession: Policy Director for Michelle Obama Residency: Gaithersburg, Maryland / Campaign Website: www.KrishforMaryland.com

What do you consider the largest statewide issue and what’s your proposal to either eliminate it, or improve it? Submitted by CAMP SPRINGS CIVIC ASSOCIATION Improving our public education system is my top priority. We must close the $2.9 billion spending gap identified by the Kirwan Commission, provide tuition free community college, expand 21st century STEAM education opportunities to every school, invest in universal pre-K, and provide free healthy meals to food-insecure students. My parents were Baltimore City Public School teachers, and I’m the only candidate for Governor who is a K-12 product of Maryland public schools. Education helped my family go from living paycheck to paycheck to running Michelle Obama’s Let Girls Learn initiative in just a single generation. Do you agree with state lawmakers approving more than $6 billion in tax incentives for the Amazon HQ2 proposed project? Explain. Under Governor Hogan, Maryland lost its first Fortune 500 company, and his strategy to keep the state open for business has failed. I believe we must invest in our state’s education system, infrastructure, and mass transit to improve our competitiveness. We should make a strong bid for the Amazon HQ2 project, and the business of all other Fortune 500 firms, but we don’t need to promise away the benefits that these firms offer to working Marylanders before the first shovel breaks ground. I’m focused on building homegrown talent that ensures you don’t need incentives to want to do business here. According to realtytrac.com, the foreclosure rate in Maryland ranked fourth in the nation in March. What plans do you have to provide affordable housing and decrease foreclosures? I plan to create a state-level version of the federally funded Housing Choice Voucher Homeownership program, which helps working families pay their mortgage and build homeowner equity. This program will help support Marylanders in need of a home and directly attack wealth inequality. The state must also carefully guard against the unethical lending practices that place prospective homeowners in financially precarious situations. What proposal do you have to boost affordable housing for seniors? Seniors can more easily stay in their homes when builders comply with the Fair Housing Act’s design and construction requirements, but most single-family homes don’t meet these requirements. We need subsidies for seniors in single-family homes for construction, so that their homes remain livable and affordable. Long-term, I’ll offer incentives to builders to comply on the front-end with Fair Housing standards, as it is significantly cheaper to build an

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administration to issue grants to seniors to make the renovation and maintenance of their homes more affordable.

accessible home from the beginning than it is to add on the accessibility features down the road. I’ll also incentivize landlords to allow tenants to make similar modifications to their units. Should recreational marijuana be allowed in Maryland and why? I support the legalization, regulation, and taxation of marijuana for medical and recreational purposes. Legalizing medical marijuana has tangible public health benefits, like creating significant reductions in the number of opioid-related overdoses. Further, the taxation of marijuana could become an important source of revenue to fund education in Maryland, but the cultivation and sale of cannabis also needs careful regulation and fair competition for licenses to ensure that no one is shut out from the potential economic opportunities. Ultimately, I believe we need to treat drug use as a public health issue, not a criminal one. What will be your plan to spend money on school construction projects, especially for schools at least 30 years and older? I support the Kirwan Commission recommendations to invest heavily in new school infrastructure. There is currently 600 million dollar capital infrastructure gap in school spending in Maryland, and I believe funding should flow first according to need. As a result, I’d focus these the state’s initial new investments in school infrastructure on schools at least 30 year old or older. Do you support the measure approved recently by Maryland lawmakers to put an armed school resource officer in every public school? Explain. Gun violence must be treated as a holistic public health crisis. The NRA suggests we arm educators and “harden the perimeter” of schools to prevent shootings, instead of passing comprehensive gun violence prevention measures. I want to remove weapons of war from our schools and streets, not add them. Teachers don’t need shooting lessons; they need more guidance counselors and better training to identify and support at-risk youth. To make schools safer, we need to invest in mental health resources and care for students, improve lockdown protocols, fund the Maryland Center for School Safety, and raise the minimum age for gun purchases. Some criminal justice reform advocates believe additional funding given to police should be diverted for other mental health or social welfare uses. Briefly explain your opinion on whether police departments should receive millions of dollars solely for guns and other weapons to fight crime? I believe we should fully fund and support our police departments across the state of Maryland. I’ve released a comprehensive set of community policing policies, which will help ensure communities, and particularly communities of color, rebuild their trust in law-enforcement and improve these communities’ participation in the policing process. We must further enact comprehensive gun violence prevention laws, so neither police officers nor everyday citizens need weapons of war to do their jobs and live their everyday lives.

2018 WASHINGTON INFORMER VOTER’S GUIDE / www.washingtoninformer.com

Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks

Office: Prince George’s County Executive / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 47 / Profession: Lawyer Residency: Prince George’s County / Campaign Website: www.angelaalsobrooks.com

What do you consider the largest statewide issue and what’s your proposal to either eliminate it, or improve it? Submitted by CAMP SPRINGS CIVIC ASSOCIATION I believe the most fundamental responsibility of the county government is to provide a first rate public education system for county residents and that is the issue that I would focus on. In addition, we must make sure that every community is safe and that we continue to grow our local economy and create jobs for our residents. According to realtytrac.com, the foreclosure rate in Maryland ranked fourth in the nation in March. What plans do you have to provide affordable housing and decrease foreclosures? We need to not only work to keep families in their homes, we also most deal with the impacts that foreclosures continue to have on our neighborhoods, such as vacant and unattended to homes. We need to better enforce the standards on these homes so that they do not negatively impact the rest of the neighborhood as well as work to get families back into these homes. What proposal do you have to boost affordable housing for seniors? We need to examine creating a housing investment trust to increase the quantity and quality of affordable housing that is available to seniors.

Paul Monteiro

Although it didn’t pass this year in the state legislature, do you support legislation to restructure the school board? Yes, though we should not let ourselves believe that changing the governing structure of the school system is what is holding us back from reaching our full potential. I have laid out a comprehensive plan to focus more resources in the classroom, better prepare our children for school, provide more support for arst generation college students, increase the offerings for those seeking career and technical education, as well as several other improvements. How would you ensure money is being spent appropriately for roadwork and other projects? We need to have greater transparency in the budget, for roads, education and the entire county budget. What piece of legislation would you introduce that would strengthen the county? There isn’t one piece of legislation, but a great focus on being active in the community, directly listening to the needs of the community, holding people accountable for delivering results and providing the efficient, effective and responsive government that tax payers deserve.

Office: Prince George’s County Executive / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 37 / Profession: Chief of Staff to the President, Howard University / Residency: Maryland / Campaign Website: www.paulforprincegeorges.com

What do you consider the largest statewide issue and what’s your proposal to either eliminate it, or improve it? Submitted by CAMP SPRINGS CIVIC ASSOCIATION Education. 60% of our entire budget goes to public education and it is the most important issue. We must confront failing infrastructure in old buildings with poor water and/or air quality. We must dramatically expand career track academies that lead to well-paying jobs. We must invest in early childhood education and deal with rising hunger rates with programs that provide meals over long weekends or holidays. An Inspector General should be appointed to bring fisscal accountability to a $2 billion school system. Every other priority is impacted by whether we succeed in strengthening schools. According to realtytrac.com, the foreclosure rate in Maryland ranked fourth in the nation in March. What plans do you have to provide affordable housing and decrease foreclosures? Expand investments in our affordable housing trust fund and insist on inclusive development that sets aside significant percentages of new units for low-income residents. Our goal should be to create mixed income communities. Banks doing business in our county should not be allowed to freely market problematic mortgage products to our residents. With robust community input and approval, I support accessory dwelling units (ADUs) to expand our inventory and offer truly affordable options. We also have to confront the challenge of squatters illegally occupying vacant properties while banks turn a blind eye. What proposal do you have to boost affordable housing for seniors? We owe it to our seniors to allow them to age with dignity in communities they have made their home. Rent stabilization, financial supports and tax breaks should be offered to ensure our elders are able to maintain their residences and not be subject to exploitation by unscrupulous lenders.

Tommie Thompson

Do you support the measure approved recently by Maryland lawmakers to put an armed school resource officer in every public school? Explain. Yes. Keeping our children safe in school should be a priority.

Do you support the measure approved recently by Maryland lawmakers to put an armed school resource officer in every public school? Explain. No. Research demonstrates that armed school resource officers do not guarantee safer schools and could in fact create more risk and danger to students. There is already an overuse of the criminal justice system to deal with school discipline issues resulting in Prince George’s leading the state in number of students arrested on campus. Although it didn’t pass this year in the state legislature, do you support legislation to restructure the school board? Yes. The school board should be elected by the parents and taxpayers of this county and be accountable to them. It’s equally important that voters elect members that have the skill set and disposition to lead a complex, $2 billion dollar organization. It’s also critical that the Board have an Inspector General to insist on accountability in how public monies are spent. How would you ensure money is being spent appropriately for roadwork and other projects? Appoint a Chief Procurement Officer to provide desperately needed oversight and accountability to the Office of Central Services and other critical county components to ensure money is being spent wisely and fairly and that the competition for county business is done equitably and efficiently. We also need to further improve coordination with WSSC so that pipe repairs do not result in late or poor patching that further degrades road surfaces. What piece of legislation would you introduce that would strengthen the county? It’s important to engage the County Council around legislation to increase resources for the Inspector General to monitor county grants. Public money to deliver critical services around everything from health care to domestic violence lacks sufficient oversight. I would also partner with the Council to expand our ability to support victims of domestic violence (DV). It’s inexcusable that we only have one shelter even as we lead the state in the number of DV cases.

Office: Prince George’s County Executive / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 60 / Profession: PhD. Philosophy, CPA, President of BCA, Entrepreneur / Residency: Bowie, Maryland / Campaign Website: tommiethompsoncares4u@gmail.com

What do you consider the largest statewide issue and what’s your proposal to either eliminate it, or improve it? Submitted by CAMP SPRINGS CIVIC ASSOCIATION For me our biggest challenge is Establishing and Maintaining Excellence in Education. As County Executive, every decision I make will have a direct or indirect impact on improving education and creating an environment where our children will be able to compete in the world economy of tomorrow. We will meet this challenge with Strategic Planning, Leadership, and by creating a culture of the 5 R’s: Respect, Relationship, Responsibility, Results and Rewards. We will reduce class sizes, pay teachers, feed the children, and leverage technology through public private partnerships to make schools energy efficient & technology relevant. According to realtytrac.com, the foreclosure rate in Maryland ranked fourth in the nation in March. What plans do you have to provide affordable housing and decrease foreclosures? We will hire new leadership for all of the housing departments and empower them to develop and to implement a comprehensive housing program. The resources are there to create affordable housing, senior housing and special needs housing and we will build a strong and robust pipeline of projects using smart growth principles. With regards to the impending foreclosures, we will proactively reach out to the investors of the loans, HUD, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, VA, Banks and Servicers to work a deal designed to give people more time to ax their situations. We will also get foreclosed homes into the hands of nonprofits to be axed up and sold. What proposal do you have to boost affordable housing for seniors? As County Executive I’m going to Level the Playing Field. My Campaign is called EMPIRE. EMPIRE stands for:

• Establish and Maintain Excellence in Education • Master and Accelerate Economic Development • Provide and Deliver for Seniors • Inspire and Ignite Sustainable Community Development • Revitalize and Enrich Young People • Expedite and Stimulate Small, Women Owned, Minority Business Enterprise (SWMBE) Opportunities Increasing senior housing is an integral part of the I in EMPIRE. As Housing Dir. I did more senior housing than any other Housing Dir. We will relight that are. Do you support the measure approved recently by Maryland lawmakers to put an armed school resource officer in every public school? Explain. I support creating a safe environment in schools. I believe that an armed police officer makes sense. But these professionals must be properly trained and be well rested. I don’t want anyone other than law enforcement armed in schools. I also believe we need to clean the County. We will go to two trash pickups immediately, cut the medians and implement legislation restricting signage along the roads. Although it didn’t pass this year in the state legislature, do you support legislation to restructure the school board?] I support an elected school board. But please be clear. When I’m the County Executive, the “Buck” stops at my desk from day one on all County matters! It doesn’t matter to me whether the Board is Elected or Appointed or a hybrid. As County Executive, I am responsible for Establishing and Maintaining Excellence in Education from day one. Respectfully note, that we will make sure that the Board, gets trained. I will work in partnership with the Board and practice the 5 R’s:

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important so we will implement and publish a score card on the County Executive, the County Council, the State Delegation and the Prosecutor’s Office.

How would you ensure money is being spent appropriately for roadwork and other projects? This is an interesting question. Once the budget is approved, we will administer the budget in accordance with what was approved. If there is a need to reallocate the budget, we will follow the rules and be transparent about the need for reallocation. Transparency is

What piece of legislation would you introduce that would strengthen the county? We need to move to public funded elections. This will take the PAC money and developer money out of the game. I would prefer to have developers invest in our non-profits and to receive preferences for those types of investments.

Respect, Relationship, Responsibility, Results, Rewards.

Prince George’s County Council At-Large Juanita Culbreath-Miller

Office: County Council-at-Large / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Profession: Educator/Administrator Residency: Clinton, MD / Campaign Website: www.juanitamiller.org

What do you consider the largest county-wide issue and what’s your proposal to either eliminate it, or improve it? Submitted by CAMP SPRINGS CIVIC ASSOCIATION At this time the county has two large issues one being the leadership of our school system and its lack of accountability and transparency . I would request that my colleagues on the council develop and enforce an oversight policy which would require transparency that would make the system leadership accountable for various aspects of procurement, contracting and overall operations. The second issue is the foreclosure crisis. I would work closely with the Clerk of the Court to monitor and enforce the laws that govern and the practices used in the process. I publicize an update on current relief programs offered by the county. According to realtytrac.com, the foreclosure rate in Maryland ranked fourth in the nation in March. What plans do you have to provide affordable housing and decrease foreclosures? I would support and help enforce the existing legislation that governs affordable housing. I plan to support community programs that provide a more diverse housing stock and rental subsidies that assist families especially our senior citizens with the high cost of living. What proposal do you have to boost affordable housing for seniors? I would propose to adopt a similar policy that D.C. uses to help keep seniors in their current homes (with lower property taxes) and rent control for seniors 65+. Do you support the measure approved recently by Maryland lawmakers to put an armed school resource

Calvin Hawkins

Although it didn’t pass this year in the state legislature, do you support legislation to restructure the school board? I support returning to an elected school board with At-Large members appointed by the County executive. This could bring more balance, transparency and accountability in budget and overall operation of the system. How would you ensure money is being spent appropriately for roadwork and other projects? I would track road and other capital improvement projects through the planning, design and construction phases to understand a projects milestones, activities and deliverables. I will actively work with a developer to ensure compliance with engineering, public safety and health requirements and facilitate timely completion to meet or come under budget. What piece of legislation would you introduce that would strengthen the county? At this time, my position would be to enforce existing legislation. However, our county suffers from poor branding. It will be a priority to work with and engage county officials, community leaders and businesses to create a brand that promotes a positive image of Prince George’s that make it a great place to live, work and grow up.

Office: County Council-at-Large / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 56 / Profession: Educator/Administrator Residency: Prince George’s County / Campaign Website: www.calvinhawkins.com

What do you consider the largest county-wide issue and what’s your proposal to either eliminate it, or improve it? Submitted by CAMP SPRINGS CIVIC ASSOCIATION The largest county-wide issue is increasing the commercial tax base. For example, Montgomery County has over a 60% commercial tax base while Prince George’s County is around 40%. I will work with my fellow council members and the County Executive to increase economic development. I believe that implementing a smart growth approach to expanding the county commercial tax base is the key to improving schools, ensuring public safety and increasing the quality of life for every resident. If we increase our commercial tax base, we can begin addressing some of the systemic issues impacting Prince George’s County. According to realtytrac.com, the foreclosure rate in Maryland ranked fourth in the nation in March. What plans do you have to provide affordable housing and decrease foreclosures? I believe that the Council should set aside $200,000.00 to begin addressing the affordable housing challenges. Through collaborating with affordable housing organizations, the county can take positive references from Arlington and Montgomery Counties to implement a viable, practical and sustainable affordable housing plan. The initial plan would offer housing to seniors, individuals with disabilities and veterans. This program would be modeled after County Executive’s Baker’s Economic Development Incentive fund. We would use the County regulatory power and surplus county properties to build affordable housing around transit hubs. What proposal do you have to boost affordable housing for seniors? One of the first pieces of legislation that I will propose is boosting affordable housing for seniors. I plan to create additional incentives to businesses that offer seniors low rent for housing. I believe the County could partner with developers to build 10,000 units for seniors 65 years or older based on their income to live rent free for ten years. The seniors would pay for their utilities and rent insurance. I will propose

To Our Readers: The Washington Informer invited all of the candidates participating in the District of Columbia Primary and those vying for State offices and Prince George’s county-wide offices. Due to limited space, we were unable to include the candidates running for local party offices. We appreciate those who responded and offered their perspective on the issues of deep concern to our readers. We also want our readers to know that there are other qualified candidates that do not appear in this Voter’s Guide, but their names will appear on the ballot.

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officer in every public school? Explain. The current status of violence in schools around the country may tend to dictate the need for this level of protection for our students. It should be noted that what is happening around the country is happening in white, suburban areas. Police in schools can have adverse effects on students, teachers and administrators. Their appearance tends to contribute to reasons that non-violent issues escalate into removal from school and arrests. PGCPS has the highest percentage of student arrest in the state of MD. This appears indicative of the school to prison pipeline. Making schools safe is a priority. Police do not make schools safe.

legislation that give tax breaks and other incentives to current senior living communities to provide more financial breaks to seniors living in their properties. Do you support the measure approved recently by Maryland lawmakers to put an armed school resource officer in every public school? Explain. I support putting an armed school resource officer in every public school. The increase in school shootings require an armed school resource office to provide added protection for students. If merely to deter potential assailants, it is worth having armed resource officers. Public school students should feel safe and comfortable in their educational environment; we owe them that much and nothing less. Although it didn’t pass this year in the state legislature, do you support legislation to restructure the school board? I do. I believe in full democracy. However, I believe that the public school system has become too political. We all need to take a step back and consider if we are honestly working to make our public school system better with our actions or are we making it worse. There is no middle of the road answer: Either you are engaged in positive efforts to advance our public school system or you are a part of the problem. How would you ensure money is being spent appropriately for roadwork and other projects? As a 23-year county employee, I understand oversight. The key is regular updates and vigilant oversight. A council member must have a plan in place to ensure that funding directed to roadwork and other projects are properly used. There is no other way to get around serving as an advocate and voice for county residents. What piece of legislation would you introduce that would strengthen the county? I would submit legislation to increase funding for public transportation, specially to expand the county bus services throughout the county and support WMATA’s management team to correct the challenges facing WMATA. I believe implementation of the aforementioned legislation would strengthen Prince George’s County.

We hope this guide will help you to make an informed decision about each candidate before you cast your ballot in June. We wish all of the candidates the very best and commend them for upholding the democratic process. We also encourage every eligible voter to go the polls and vote in this very important Primary Election and to mark your calendar for the upcoming General Election on Tuesday, November 6, 2018.

VOTE!

2018 WASHINGTON INFORMER VOTER’S GUIDE / www.washingtoninformer.com

Melvin Bernard Johnson

Office: County Council-at-Large / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 65 / Profession: Entrepreneur Residency: Upper Marlboro, MD / Campaign Website: www.melvinbernardjohnson.com

What do you consider the largest county-wide issue and what’s your proposal to either eliminate it, or improve it? Submitted by CAMP SPRINGS CIVIC ASSOCIATION Public education. We need an all elected board with authority to hire/are the Superintendent and CEO. We need to partner with a local University to assist with the delivery. The students could earn credits for their internships. Public education. We need an all elected board with authority to hire/ are the Superintendent and CEO. We need to partner with a local University to assist with the delivery. The students could earn credits for their internships. According to realtytrac.com, the foreclosure rate in Maryland ranked fourth in the nation in March. What plans do you have to provide affordable housing and decrease foreclosures? Pre-purchase education should be mandated by the state and or county. Some of the foreclosures could be purchased by nonproats for group homes for the homeless. Returning citizens, victims of domestic violence, group homes for seniors or made available to arst time home buyers. What proposal do you have to boost affordable housing for seniors? New developments should be mandated

Gerron Levi

additional tax increases.

According to realtytrac.com, the foreclosure rate in Maryland ranked fourth in the nation in March. What plans do you have to provide affordable housing and decrease foreclosures? Among other steps, I will focus on the condominium communities in the county which are facing acute mortgage financing issues because of a high number of homeowners being delinquent on their condominium assessments. The problem means that condo owners have had the most difficulty recovering their property values and a larger number remain underwater on their mortgages. Condominiums are often the first step to affordable homeownership, and homeownership is the way most in the county have built wealth. I will also work on the Council to bring more affordable rental housing units to the county that working families and seniors can afford. What proposal do you have to boost affordable housing for seniors? Among other steps, I will work to increase the amount of affordable housing available in the county and to develop policies that will help seniors age in place/in their

Social and Family Services.

Do you support the measure approved recently by Maryland lawmakers to put an armed school resource officer in every public school? Explain. Yes, we do want to do everything feasible and reasonable to protect our children. However, I do not support arming other staff members. Although it didn’t pass this year in the state legislature, do you support legislation to restructure the school board? Yes. How would you ensure money is being spent appropriately for roadwork and other projects? There should be a separate deducted fund for each purpose or project. The funds could be grants from state and federal government or from bond sales. What piece of legislation would you introduce that would strengthen the county? I would introduce legislation to provide for an independent ethics/ Inspector General employed by the State.

Office: County Council-at-Large / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 65 / Profession: Lawyer/Federal Lobbyist Residency: Mitchellville / Campaign Website: www.votelevi.org or gerronlevi.com

What do you consider the largest county-wide issue and what’s your proposal to either eliminate it, or improve it? Submitted by CAMP SPRINGS CIVIC ASSOCIATION Improving education is a top concern but also issues around the homeowner tax burden and property values. On education, I will continue work started as a state delegate around bringing stakeholders together, seeking grant dollars and passing law designed to improve 3 key factors: reducing classroom disruption and chronic absenteeism and increasing out-of- school learning. On homeownership, I have pledged to oppose further increases in the county’s real property tax rate and focus on improving property values. A county commission has identified a number of budget issues on the horizon and has recommended

Julian Lopez

to set aside a certain percentage for seniors and low income. Churches and nonprofits should be assisted by the Federal, state and local governments in this effort.

homes. The state has recently designated several so-called “Opportunity Zones” in Prince George’s County which can draw new private investment dollars to affordable housing and others economic development projects in the county. Opportunity Zones combined with other incentives can help bring more affordable housing to the market. My pledge to hold the line on the county’s real property rate is also designed to ensure that seniors can afford their homes and age in place. Do you support the measure approved recently by Maryland lawmakers to put an armed school resource officer in every public school? Explain. I have various concerns about having armed officers on every school campus. I look forward to working with the county police department and other local law enforcement agencies, our municipalities and other local stakeholders to meet the requirement in the state law that schools have “adequate local law enforcement coverage”. Although it didn’t pass this year in the state legislature, do you support legislation to restructure the school board? Yes. I support a fully elected school board and I voted for it when I served as a state delegate. How would you ensure money is being spent appropriately for roadwork and other projects? I would like to undertake a review of how we are setting road and infrastructure priorities and to reevaluate the extent to which the county is waiving development impact fees which support roadwork and other infrastructure projects and foregoing significant future tax revenues as a part of our economic development deals. In addition, if the county better focuses its economic development so that it is smart and transit-oriented, then we could also better target the scarce infrastructure dollars that we have to meet more needs and particularly the needs in the county’s older and more established communities. What piece of legislation would you introduce that would strengthen the county? I expect my first pieces of legislation to be around housing and economic development. I also expect to undertake significant organizational steps around education early in my tenure on the County Council.

Office: County Council-at-Large / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 33 / Profession: Former Federal Agent / Residency: Prince George’s County, MD / Campaign Website: www.votejulianlopez.com

What do you consider the largest county-wide issue and what’s your proposal to either eliminate it, or improve it? Submitted by CAMP SPRINGS CIVIC ASSOCIATION Deficiencies in our public schools system is the single most consequential issue our county is facing in the short and long terms. We must consider doubling the funding on wrap- around services (Health, Social and Family Services) as was recommended by the Education Act, No Child Left Behind, The Kirwan Commission and the Thornton Plan. When we are only paying $37m on all 3 wrap-around service agencies for a population of 1 million. This tells me that our politicians are not serious in effecting change. We must work on switching the budget of the Dept of Corrections ($90m) with the combined budgets of Health,

According to realtytrac.com, the foreclosure rate in Maryland ranked fourth in the nation in March. What plans do you have to provide affordable housing and decrease foreclosures? Day one, we must hold the line on property tax increases and unfair increases in utility taxes. In the medium-term, we must rebrand our community as a retirement destination. This creates a surge of income in our economy. This means high paying jobs in the medical aeld. In the long-terms, we must refocus on providing tax incentives to technology-based industries as oppose to tax incentives for housing developers. What proposal do you have to boost affordable housing for seniors? As part of rebranding our county as a premier retirement destination, I will consider implementing an act to stabilize taxes or to eliminate real estate taxes for axed income seniors who have lived in our community for more than 20 years. I would like to see our seniors employed by the county and sustain their living. I will also reverse many homeless and senior programs our county council eliminated or substantially decreased such as the income disparity grant or homeless services.

officer in every public school? Explain. Yes, because a death of one child from gun violence is more than enough. Funding, however, must come from the State and Federal Governments. We must also consider a program of allowing honorably retired police oRcers to support security of our public schools. While safety is my concern, I will not allow our schools to become a prison for our kids. We must strike a balance. Although it didn’t pass this year in the state legislature, do you support legislation to restructure the school board? Yes, but the bigger issue to contend is our County Council’s complete acquiescence of authority to the State. We have surrendered our control of our local functions even to the appointment of an Inspector General for the public schools system. We must do better in exercising leadership and authority vested to our County Council. There’s no legal impediment or prohibition in a County Council exercising the power of the purse. What we have now in Upper Marlboro is simply a failure in leadership. How would you ensure money is being spent appropriately for roadwork and other projects? Our procurement and non-procurement offices are a corruptive haven. Our County Council has not acted in the best interest of us all. In the federal government, we have several safeguards from the Federal Acquisition Regulation and many provisions contained on 2 CFR. On ethical guidelines for use, there are several other regulations to safeguard tax dollars. We must model strong enforcement of models we already know. We must eliminate corruptive mechanisms through strengthening enforcement. What piece of legislation would you introduce that would strengthen the county? Besides my strong social justice values and my PGCEA endorsed education policies, I am running as an Anti-Corruption candidate. I will introduce legislation to eliminate corruptive mechanisms in all levels of our government. This means, strengthening safeguard mechanisms from proposals to post funding reviews. I will seek closer relationships with the State and Local investigative agencies to review enforcement processes. Day 1, we will begin a government accountable only the people of our county. And for those who beneated on corruption, I will hold them accountable.

Do you support the measure approved recently by Maryland lawmakers to put an armed school resource

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Reginald Tyer

Office: County Council-at-Large / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 35 / Profession: Prince George’s County Schools: School Success Coach / Residency: Upper Marlboro, MD / Campaign Website: ReginaldTyer2018.com, Reginald Tyer Face book

What do you consider the largest county-wide issue and what’s your proposal to either eliminate it, or improve it? Submitted by CAMP SPRINGS CIVIC ASSOCIATION Our school system is instrumental to county wide success.Youth and residents need to be able to have a innovation education system that works for them. Providing opportunities for our children as well as residents should all ways come first.Adding more accredited technology adult learning centers should be apart of the conversation as well.We have not had the oversight and accountability in county in order for us to flourish.This school system does a lot of wasteful spending. Restructuring the county schools are critical to economic development.We are asking investors to invest when we know families move based on their local schools. According to realtytrac.com, the foreclosure rate in Maryland ranked fourth in the nation in March. What plans do you have to provide affordable housing and decrease foreclosures? That’s sad when we have the fourth highest foreclosure rating and we pay some of the highest state taxes in the union. Offering more incentives and tax credits to homeowners teachers, police officers,firefighters and nurses.Working with more banks ensuring our residents has access to more loans. Explaining small businesses as well. Not driving out small businesses and being sure we all have a chance at opportunity at economic development. Some small business owners taxes are going up 800% in Seat Pleasant Md.We invite big business to grow our economic base. If not taxes will continue to be on the raise and on the backs of PG residents. What proposal do you have to boost affordable housing for seniors? This issue is very important to so many people, seniors and young middle age people.We must be sure we are holding the line when it comes to spreading our wealth through out the county and not creating pockets where we see impoverished communities. Commercial property owners must have

a percentage of units decaded to affordable living. Speaking to affordable builders that are interested in building affordable housing. Every home in our county shouldn’t start at $400,000. Being sure we all have access to opportunity that is not all ways the case.The candidates in this race haven’t been talk about the average person. Do you support the measure approved recently by Maryland lawmakers to put an armed school resource officer in every public school? Explain. Yes I do support that measure.The climate we are living in now cause for this resource. Training School security offers and offering resources for them is crucial. Learning from pass moments are teachable moments. This would be a great opportunity for our police department to build greater relationships with the communities. Although it didn’t pass this year in the state legislature,do you support legislation to restructure the school board? Yes I do support restructuring the school board.We live in a democracy and residents have the right to choose their representative.Residents of this county have been feeling like government hasn’t been on their side.We have been through two decades of corruption and wasteful spending.The residents haven’t seen the growth it should.Moving pass old elected leaders that doesn’t have the residents best interest at hart.We demand highly qualified teachers but we choose not to pay them.But CEO’s are allowed to give themselves 40% increases.Teachers of pgcps hasn’t had a living increase in 7 years.We are losing great qualified teachers. How would you ensure money is being spent appropriately for roadwork and other projects? Providing the oversight and accountability to our infrastructure is needed.We are at a point where the council wasn’t focused on the growth of residents and schools or the infrastructure that has fallen apart.Answering to the people letting them know where their tax dollars are going is vital to our success. What piece of legislation would you introduce that would strengthen the county? I would introduce school reform legislation.That allows the residents to have more say over there school system and affordable housing would be attached.

Prince George’s County Sheriff Melvin C. High

Office: Sheriff / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 73 Profession: Law Enforcement Executive / Residency: Prince George’s County, MD / Campaign Website: www.friendsofmelvinchigh.net

Why are you running for this office? Earning CALEAaccreditation attests to our effective focus on core mission.We’re making headway on the insidious issue of domestic violence.Creating the DomesticViolence Intervention Division resulted in tremendous progress but there’s more work to be done to achieve fewer incidents.I’ve always focused on school safety and our middle school program results show that we can achieve safety while promoting learning.I’d like to expand to all middle schools.I’m the experienced, large law enforcement agency CEO who’s implemented effective programs and with experience negotiating budgets to meet the workload demands so we can deliver expected services.

Some criminal justice reform advocates believe additional funding given to police should be diverted for other mental health or social welfare uses. Briefly explain your opinion on whether police departments should receive millions of dollars solely for guns and other weapons to fight crime? Social issues and crime have a historical connection.Mental health issues and the proliferation of guns have changed the demands and response of public safety. There’s a need for comprehensive planning and service delivery to address the underlying challenges and outcomes. Money is also needed for enhanced crisis intervention,implicit bias and de-escalation training,ballistic helmets,shields – preventive skills tools rather than weapons - to improve public safety and response to ever changing threats. I support funding for mental health and social services professionals and counselors to complete a comprehensive strategy that fosters education,prevention,and intervention for healthy communities.

Is there any state law that you would like to see be eliminated or changed? Explain. Maryland’s GeneralAssembly has been progressive on how we manage guns and on domestic violence. There’s more to do.Aviolent or threatening mentally distressed subject of an Emergency Petition should be required to surrender firearms until a court determines that it is appropriate to return them.At the intervention stage of DomesticViolence,there may be an opportunity – like drug court – to direct individuals to court-monitored programs.I support directing more resources to assisting batterers to understand non-violent conflict resolution responses,anger management techniques,and community/family-based interactive therapy to help them break the cycle of domestic violence.

What services do you think would assist county police in dealing with those with mental illnesses? I employed a strategy to safely engage individuals in mental distress.Emergency Petitions are court orders to deliver people to mental health facilities for professional evaluation; they’re initiated by family,medical professionals,or law enforcement based on direct observations. We developed a team of highly trained Deputies in crisis intervention,communication,and tactical deployment to ensure safety of the individual,the family,and Deputies serving the growing number of naturally high risk orders. The result has been more orders served more safely. Having mental crisis professionals respond with Deputies to guide and further de-escalate situations would be of great value.

Do you support the measure approved recently by Maryland lawmakers to put an armed school resource officer in every public school? Explain. I support the legislation because a safe,positive learning environment is critical to the future success of our children. Until further measures are enacted to eliminate the threat of violence in our schools,providing qualified, trained law enforcement professionals provides an immediate improvement to securing schools and protecting students and educators. Aschool resource officer who knows,understands,and interacts with students has far-reaching benefits,including cultivating a safety orientation,building relationships of trust,pro-active intelligence information,identifying and referring social service needs,and providing positive role models.

How will you combat domestic violence in the county? Deputies will continue response to 911 calls in Police District III, intervention by serving peace and protective orders,outreach through our SpecialVictimAssistants who help victims develop safety plans and access resources.Prevention starts when we discuss friendship and healthy relationships with young people.I’ve testified for stronger laws,added sworn staff,permanent s and bilingual advocate positions,and promoted education in schools and to offenders.I created Purple Light Nights©,to promote communitywide awareness and to improve services with tremendous results. I’ll continue to expand services,build and maintain our partnerships,and advocate for improved legislation to support victims.

Sylvester E. Jones Sr.

Office: Sheriff / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 58 Profession: Retired Assistant Director U.S. Marshals Service Residency: Prince George’s County, MD / Campaign Website: sylvesterjonesforsheriff.com

Why are you running for this office?Why are you running for this office? I am running for the Office of Sheriff to continue to serve our community and bring proven innovative leadership and enhanced law enforcement and security programs to Prince George’s County, MD Is there any state law that you would like to see be eliminated or changed? Explain. No Do you support the measure approved recently by Maryland lawmakers to put an armed school resource officer in every public school? Explain. Yes. School Safety and Child Security has been a major concern and focus for me and this has not changed since I ran for the Office of Sheriff in 2014. We need more armed and well trained school resource officers especially at the Middle and Elementary schools.

should receive millions of dollars solely for guns and other weapons to fight crime? I think there should be dedicated funding for social and mental health programs to aid law enforcement in dealing with people who have mental health challenges and other social challenges. What services do you think would assist county police in dealing with those with mental illnesses? Having mental health professionals assist the police by providing awareness training and serving as advisers will assist police officials in their decision making when coming into contact with someone who has PTSD or other mental heath challenges. De-escalation and Community focused Cultural Sensitivity training will also help. How will you combat domestic violence in the county? I will combat Domestic Violence (DV) by continuing to partner with non-profits that are committed to mitigating this epidemic by hosting Town Hall Informational Sessions in an effort to not only help victims and potential victims, but to try and educate everyone that DV must end. I will also work with the States Attorney, Police and other entities to also mitigate DV, and advocate for funding for more shelters.

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2018 WASHINGTON INFORMER VOTER’S GUIDE / www.washingtoninformer.com

Kendall Wade

have lost parents to domestic violence.

Why are you running for this office? I am running for this office because it was a calling from God.As a county resident and a current Deputy Sheriff for nearly a decade I have worked in every division of the sheriff’s office and I am tired of seeing the corruption within the agency. Even the agency is ready for a change as evident by me receiving the endorsement from the Sheriff’s Labor Union by 74% to the current Sheriff’s 25%.The men and women who do the job have made it very clear who they would like their next leader to be. I only hope that the voters will answer their call to action.

may impact the overall safety in schools.

Is there any state law that you would like to see be eliminated or changed? Explain. I would like to see the current crime victim fee increased by an additional $20 specifically to go towards scholarship funding for children who

What services do you think would assist county police in dealing with those with mental illnesses? The sheriff’s office currently handles emergency psychiatric services, which are court ordered psychiatric evaluations that are deemed to be high risk. I would like to see a better collaboration with county police, the sheriff’s office and local hospitals to make that process safer and more efficient. I would also like to hire the first mental health professional to work for the sheriff’s office to not only provide services to deputies in need but also to help us better understand the mental health field as we service our county.

Do you support the measure approved recently by Maryland lawmakers to put an armed school resource officer in every public school? Explain. Yes, safer schools is one of my major platform issues. Not only would I like to see more officers and more metal detectors in the schools, but I would also like to work with more mental health professionals to collaborate on interventions designed to assist with bullying, harassment, and other social and psychological issues that

How will you combat domestic violence in the county? As a current Deputy Sheriff, I have done two tours in the domestic violence division. I believe we can combat the issue of domestic violence by creating a registry for repeat convicted offenders of domestic violence.

Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Aisha Braveboy

Office: State’s Attorney / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 43 / Profession: Attorney/Manager Residency: Prince George’s County / Campaign Website: www.aishabraveboy.com

Why are you running for this office? The short answer is that I am running to keep my community safe and to protect the investment that residents and business owners have made in the County that I love. I will implement smart criminal justice reform measures that will reduce mass incarceration and address the underlying issues that cause crime in our communities. I will be tough, but fair. Is there any state law that you would like to see be eliminated or changed? Explain. As a long-time Delegate, I understand how laws are made an changed. I anticipate having a robust legislative agenda. This includes support in the elimination of mandatory minimum sentences, which unduly limit the ability to craft fair and reasonable sentences that address the specific factors that lead people to crime, as well as additional support for diversion, prevention and intervention to eliminate criminal behavior. Do you support the measure approved recently by Maryland lawmakers to put an armed school resource officer in every public school? Explain. School violence is a serious problem. School resource officers can be a useful tool if they are properly trained and guided, especially in regards to outside threats, but they are not the solution to the serious problems that occur in our schools and with school-age children. As one of my first acts, I intend to create a working group of prosecutors, educators, school resource officers, juvenile case workers, and others familiar with issues related to juvenile justice to explore best practices when it comes to stopping those problems that exist and preventing new ones from emerging. Some criminal justice reform advocates believe additional funding given to police should be diverted for

D. Michael Lyles

other mental health or social welfare uses. Briefly explain your opinion on whether police departments should receive millions of dollars solely for guns and other weapons to fight crime? There is no question that we need substantial addition resources for mental health, drug treatment, counseling and diversion and intervention initiatives, and I will work to secure that funding. And it is clear that guns and weapons alone don’t stop crime. I strongly believe we have to act smarter when it comes to fighting crime and put our money and resources into things that do, in fact, make us safer. But I also understand that effective law enforcement staffing and access to the latest in equipment and technologies is an important part of the effort to fight crime. What services do you think would assist county police in dealing with those with mental illnesses? Training is essential, like the trauma-informed trainings that I have developed through Children’s National Health System for School Resource Officers and judges. All officers need to know how to deescalate potentially violent or disruptive situations. They need to be able to distinguish actual threats from those that don’t present immediate danger to those involved or nearby. This needs to be an ongoing process that is reinforced on an ongoing basis. We need to provide emergency housing, clinics, therapists and ongoing support mechanisms that monitor the activities of those with problems. How will you combat domestic violence in the county? Addressing domestic violence is a high priority. It is the cause of a disproportionate share of the murders and injuries suffered by residents. In addition to ensuring that we have the staff and resources to handle these cases, I will work with other stakeholders and the community at large to increase awareness of the problem and to ensure that more and better options are available to those suffering from domestic violence. I will work with our business community to develop quality transitional housing for victims, where they can live with dignity.

Office: State’s Attorney / Party Affiliation: Democrat / Age: 55 / Profession: Attorney at Law Residency: Bowie, Maryland / Campaign Website: www.votemikelyles.com

Why are you running for this office? I am running for the Office of State’s Attorney for Prince George’s County in order to fulfill my passion for using the legal system to protect the community and our most vulnerable citizens, to continue the fight to provide justice with compassion and to broaden the safeguarding of the civil and human rights of victims of crime as well as those accused of crime. Is there any state law that you would like to see be eliminated or changed? Explain. I would support eliminating the Maryland sentencing guidelines to give judges and prosecutors more discretion in punishment for crimes and more choices in developing punishment alternatives to mere incarceration. I also would like to see an expansion of the list of offenses available for expungement and to make the process easier, so that more formerly convicted persons, if worthy, might get opportunities to access to jobs, housing, education and the full promise of the American dream after having served their punishment without incident. Do you support the measure approved recently by Maryland lawmakers to put an armed school resource officer in every public school? Explain. I do not support the measure approved recently to put an armed resource officer in every public school. Schools are not jails and although our children deserve protection, armed security can be outward facing outside of the school buildings if necessary. I believe that armed guards in schools defeats the purpose of schooling by presupposing that the school is a dangerous place full of harmful people. I believe a better approach would be to use the proposed “armed guard” funding to instead enhance delivery of education and educational opportunities to all students in the state at equal levels no matter the child’s zip code. Some criminal justice reform advocates believe additional funding given to police should be diverted for other mental health or social welfare uses. Briefly explain your opinion on whether police departments should receive millions of dollars solely for guns and other weapons to fight crime? I believe that funding should be made available for mental health training for police officers. I think that the money used for social welfare programs and mental health initiatives can best be used where police and social welfare agencies work together on how best to apply the funds they are given, in order to produce the best results in policing as related to managing a growing mental

health problem in our community and in our jails. The real impact for lowering crime rates though has more to do with improvements in educational outcomes for all children. What services do you think would assist county police in dealing with those with mental illnesses? The services I think would be most effective in assisting county police in dealing with those with mental illness would be for officers at every level to have appropriate training on how to assess and deal with situations involving those with mental health issues. I also see the need for mental health professionals to be part of the community policing approach of all our police departments, county and municipal. How will you combat domestic violence in the county? I will combat domestic violence by advocating for more resources from the Health Department to do prevention education for our citizens and to work with mental health professionals on ways to have those accused of crimes related to domestic violence provided the necessary mental health counseling so as to prevent accused abusers from becoming repeat abusers. The State’s Attorney’s Office under my leadership will aggressively prosecute violent abusers while at the same time utilizing the services of the Family Justice Center to keep victims safe from further abuse and to get them and any children affected stabilized.

“What I would advise, what I advised before the election, and what I will continue to advise after the election, is that elections matter; voting matters; organizing matters; being informed on the issues matter.” Barack Obama

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