Candidate Questions and Answers: 45th Assembly District

Use: Youth Support Specialist at Professional Services Group

Before elected mandate: Beloit City Council, 2017–present

Other public service: Board Member, Beloit Meals on Wheels, 2020-present; Youth Hockey Coach, Beloit Youth Hockey Association, 2014-2020

Education: Bachelor of Psychology, UW-Whitewater, 2018

Campaign email or website: clintonforassembly.com

Why are you the best candidate for this position?

I have dedicated my career to helping people in need. From working with survivors of domestic violence to helping children with special needs, I have direct experience helping the often underserved in government. I have spent the past five years on Beloit City Council, including serving as Vice President and President. I am best prepared to fight for the communities around the 45th district.

What is the most important issue of this election and how would you approach it?

We are currently preventing 91,000 Wisconsin residents from receiving BadgerCare. I won’t play politics with your health care. We must accept Medicaid expansion dollars in the next legislative session. With a historic investment in Medicaid, we need to ensure that staffing levels continue. I would work to increase the capacity and retention of social service departments in the 45th.

What changes, if any, would you make to the state’s electoral system?

I would like to see one person’s vote count. I would fight for a non-partisan redistricting to ensure that people choose politicians and not the other way around. I am also a supporter of preferential voting. These two reforms would make our electoral process fairer.

What are your priorities for the state’s $5 billion surplus?

This is a smart budget measure to help with one-time capital projects or temporary relief for families. As gas prices have fallen in recent months, a temporary gas tax suspension could help families a lot. We need additional funds for our public schools, our technical schools and our infrastructure projects. These investments will have a significant impact on all residents.

Should abortion be legal in all cases, illegal in all cases, or something in between? Explain.

This is a health care decision between a person who becomes pregnant and their doctor. The government should not be involved. The law of 1849 which prohibits abortion must be repealed.

How should the state improve educational outcomes, particularly in the wake of the impact of the pandemic on student achievement?

The challenges facing schools have been exacerbated by the pandemic. Our children are an investment, I believe we need to take serious action. We need to increase funding so districts don’t have to resort to referendums to upgrade buildings. We also need to increase teacher salaries to address teacher retention issues and the ongoing teacher shortage.

How should the state address its workforce challenges, both in the public and private sectors?

One of our main exports is our youth. We need to make Wisconsin a desirable place for young people. We need to increase the number of affordable housing options by providing flexibility to local communities. We also need to increase the workforce by creating real child care options. Affordable child care would allow so many parents to return to the workforce.

Was Michael Gableman’s investigation of the 2020 election a good use of taxpayer resources? What follow-up should there be?

It was an incredible waste of taxpayers’ money. As families recover from a pandemic and face mounting costs, the GOP Legislature felt it was more important to jump-start the 2020 election. We could have used those funds elsewhere.