Candidate Profile: Deb Andraca For State Assembly District 23

WHITEFISH BAY, WI—The 2020 election is heating up in Wisconsin and there are plenty of races with candidates eager to serve in elected office. Eyes are primarily focused on the presidential election, but voters will also decide the outcome of state representative and senate seats.

Patch asked candidates to answer questions about their campaigns and will be publishing candidate profiles as election day draws near.

Deb Andraca, a Whitefish Bay resident is running for State Assembly District 23.

Age: 50
Party affiliation: Democratic Party
Family: Husband Marc, two daughters at Whitefish Bay high school, one labradoodle
Occupation: Substitute teacher, 2.5 years, previously vice-president at a global PR firm (3 years), environmental lobbyist and communications director at the Environmental Law and Policy Center of the Midwest (5 years), press secretary for successful Congressional campaign (6 mo), employee at the Solar Energy Industries Association and affiliated organizations (4 years)
Previous elected experience: none
Family members in government: no
Campaign website: http://www.debforwi.com

The single most pressing issue facing our state is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

The single most pressing issue facing our state is to contain the spread of COVID-19. We can never have a healthy economy without healthy people. Right now kids are unable to go to school, businesses are struggling, our most vulnerable citizens are getting sick and many are dying. Wisconsin is a national COVID hotspot, but it didn't have to be this bad.
I will listen to the recommendations of public health experts to establish a science-based COVID-19 response and do everything I can to directly support small businesses to get them through the pandemic. I also support accepting federal funds to expand Medicaid in order to to bring badly-needed healthcare dollars to our state. All of us must care for each other and work together so that our economy can come back stronger than ever.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

I want to represent all my constituents, not just the ones who agree with me. I got into this race through my volunteer work with Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense. Polls show that 80% of Wisconsin residents want common-sense gun reform, yet Jim Ott listened to the gun lobby, rather than his constituents, by refusing to support measures like having background checks on all gun sales. I knew that I since I couldn't change his mind, I would have to change his job.
Jim Ott is also the Assembly's leading denier of man-made climate change. He is a former meteorologist, but his position is not shared by the majority of people in our district and is even refuted by the American Meteorological Society. If I have the honor to represent the 23rd district, I look forward to listening to and meeting with constituents and working on the issues that matter most to THEM.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

I worked in politics before staying at home with my daughters, although this is my first time as a candidate. I earned a masters' degree in political management at George Washington University, served as a press secretary on a successful Congressional re-election campaign, and lobbied on the state level for the Environmental Law and Policy Center of the Midwest. I used these skills to train volunteers how to speak to their legislators in Madison when I was volunteering with Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense.

I have lived in the district for 17 years, and during that time I have always worked hard to give back to my community. I was a PTO president, volunteer fundraiser at the Urban Ecology Center, and a Girl Scout leader for both of my daughters' troops. When I saw a teacher shortage looming after Act 10 was passed, I went back to school to earn my teaching license so that I could make a difference, one classroom at a time. All of these experiences, personal and professional, have prepared me to represent the 23rd district and to be ready on day one.

What steps should state government take to bolster economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic for local businesses?

First and foremost we must control the spread of COVID-19. We must find ways to directly support small businesses through cash grants, low-interest loans, or tax breaks to ensure they can make it until a reliable vaccine is available. We can also help small businesses by tackling health care reform in a meaningful way. Providing health coverage for employees is one of the biggest expenses employers face.

The state can encourage more competition in our health care market to drive down costs, protect the subsidies provided by the Affordable Care Act that keep premiums from soaring and maintain coverage for people with pre-existing conditions, and bring more transparency and accountability to prescription drug prices and the entire health insurance marketplace. We can not have a healthy economy unless we have healthy people.

How will you address the calls for racial justice and police reform?

The Black Lives Matter movement is the result of decades of neglect and under-investment in our communities of color. Too many Black men and women are dying at the hands of police, and it is overdue for all of us, in every community, to re-examine what it means for law enforcement to "serve and protect."

I want to support our police departments by providing the specialized training and neighborhood services needed to address the root causes of crime, such as homelessness, substance abuse, gun violence, and mental health.

We need more investment in proven, data-driven solutions to crime prevention such as early childhood education programs, job training, and youth literacy programs. We need progressive criminal justice reform that includes model use of force policies, keeps violent criminals off the streets, and emphasizes rehabilitation. These measures are already being used in conservative states and have the support of the Trump administration, but NOT Wisconsin Republicans. Today Wisconsin spends more in incarceration than we do on education. This needs to change.

List other issues that define your campaign platform:

I am running for Wisconsin State Assembly to create a safer, smarter, healthier Wisconsin. This means better gun laws, support for schools and teachers, better access to high-quality health care, and better protection for Wisconsin's environment.

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

In 2020 we have a once-in-a-decade opportunity to end gerrymandering. This is a census year and new political maps are being drawn. In 2010 Republicans created maps in secret, without any input from the public, that guaranteed them a majority for the next decade. This is the root cause of our gridlock in Madison. We must create a non-partisan process that prevents political gerrymandering by either Republicans or Democrats and welcomes public input. Voters should be able to choose their politicians, rather than politicians choosing their voters. I have signed the Fair Maps Pledge. My opponent did not.

This article originally appeared on the Whitefish Bay Patch