Issues

More than 1.5 million students attend North Carolina’s public schools.

If elected, I will fight to ensure our public schools receive the funding and support guaranteed by our state constitution.

Instead of siphoning taxpayer dollars into an expanding voucher program that benefits wealthy families, funds schools that raise tuition, discriminate against students, and hide performance results, we should fully invest in the public schools that serve every child.

Fully funding schools is a proven way to prevent violence, including gun violence, by addressing problems before they escalate. When schools have adequate resources, they can provide smaller class sizes, mental health support, and early intervention for students facing trauma or isolation. Fully funded schools can reduce factors strongly linked to violent behavior.

Just as importantly, well-funded schools create environments where students feel connected, supported, and invested in their future, which significantly reduces the likelihood of harm to themselves or others.

Safer school environments: Better training, staffing, and restorative practices reduce conflicts before they escalate

More mental health support: Counselors, psychologists, and social workers can identify and help at-risk students early

Stronger student engagement: Extracurricular activities and mentorship programs build belonging and purpose

North Carolina public schools employ over 100,000 teachers.

There are also countless staff members and administrators who along with those teachers work every single day to keep students safe, engaged, and learning.

They deserve better.

Along with increasing revenue to fund staff and administrator pay increases, I am going to:

Restore Longevity Pay
Restore Master’s Pay
Restore Retiree Health Coverage
Unfreeze Step Increases
Cap Health Care Premiums
Link Inflation to Cost of Living Pay Increases

North Carolina is a wonderful place to raise a family. My wife and I moved back when our first son was born so we could build our life here. Fifteen years later, with four kids, we understand firsthand how hard it is to make ends meet.

Groceries cost more. Utility bills are rising. Rent is climbing. Interest rates remain high. Child care is so expensive I still remember the shock of seeing the price for our two youngest. Families are being squeezed from every direction.

Supporting families takes more than slogans. When leaders in Raleigh ignore the real cost of raising children, they make it harder for people to build the lives they want in the state they love.

If elected, I will expand Pre-K and child care subsidies, strengthen the child care workforce with better pay and clearer pathways into the profession, stop Duke Energy and Enbridge from shifting rate hikes onto working families while protecting corporate profits, and increase the housing supply so every family can afford a place to call home.

In the richest country in the world, everyone deserves access to healthcare. That means comprehensive coverage, from doctor visits and dental care to vision services and specialized treatment so families can stay healthy and thrive.

Reproductive healthcare, including abortion, is healthcare. I will defend a woman’s right to choose and oppose restrictions that create barriers to care. North Carolina must also address its ongoing maternal and infant health crisis, particularly for Black mothers and rural families, by fully protecting and funding Medicaid expansion. Healthcare for transgender North Carolinians is also under attack, and I will stand against efforts to restrict or defund care for this vulnerable community. I am committed to fighting for accessible, affordable healthcare for everyone no matter who they are or the care they need.

Whenever I talk about fully funding public schools, paying teachers what they deserve, or expanding healthcare for North Carolinians, the first question is always: “How will you pay for it?”

Here’s how.

I will stop the NC GOP’s plan to cut the corporate income tax to 0% by 2030 — a move that drains state revenue and pushes our budget toward a fiscal cliff. There is no justification for corporations paying zero in taxes while profiting from North Carolina’s workforce and infrastructure.

I will also raise the minimum wage from $7.25 an hour. It’s not 2009 anymore.

And I will end the practice of letting corporations and millionaires write our laws.