Meet Mae Flexer, Democratic candidate for Connecticut's District 29 state senator

Election Day in Connecticut is Nov. 8, when dozens of candidates will vie for positions in federal and state offices. Several cities and towns will ask local questions on the ballot in addition to the statewide question about early voting.

The Norwich Bulletin sent questionnaires to candidates running for several state seats in Eastern Connecticut. The Bulletin is publishing the answers with edits only for grammar or if a candidate wrote over the word limit and did not resubmit a shorter version by deadline.

Three candidates are running for state senator of District 29 - Democratic candidate and incumbent Mae Flexer, Republican candidate Susanne Witkowski and Green Party candidate Jean de Smet. The district includes Brooklyn, Canterbury, Killingly, Mansfield, Putnam, Scotland, Thompson and Windham.

Meet the Republican candidateMeet Susanne Witkowski, Republican candidate for Connecticut's District 29 state senator

Meet the Green Party candidateMeet Jean de Smet, Green Party candidate for Connecticut's District 29 state senator

Name: Mae Flexer

Campaign website: electmaeflexer.com

Profession: Executive Director, State Senator

What makes you the best candidate to represent District 29?

It has been the honor of my life to serve the residents of our Senate district. I have lived in Northeastern Connecticut for over 30 years, and I am so proud to fight for our community and am enjoying welcoming Pomfret to our district. I became involved in local politics as a KHS student, and I have not stopped since. As our State Senator, I work tirelessly to get things done for, working with our neighbors to address today’s challenges.

My experience uniquely positions me to know all of the major issues in every town in our district and I have delivered. I brought home new funding for our local schools from Thompson to Scotland to Windham and for school construction in Killingly, Putnam, Windham and Mansfield. I fought for funding for our hospitals and secured millions of dollars of funding for police, fire and emergency services across northeastern Connecticut. I worked to build a new community and senior center in Windham and the new Putnam municipal complex. I worked to improve playgrounds and parks in Brooklyn and Putnam. And our critical infrastructure has seen key improvements in Canterbury, Windham and across the district.

I grew up in a family led by an Irish immigrant and a Vietnam veteran that knew struggle and the hard work and community support it takes to make ends meet. Because of this, I led the fight to establish Paid Family and Medical Leave and to raise the minimum wage for hardworking families - this has made a real difference in people’s lives. I wrote the landmark legislation to address domestic violence and sexual assault and increase penalties for these crimes. As we all face increasing costs, I suspended the state gas tax, created the $250 child tax credit and eliminated the income tax on retirement benefits.

With reproductive rights on the line, I have fought to expand access to abortion and contraception, and enhance protections for providers and patients seeking care from states that have outlawed abortion. This decision comes down to our state legislature, and I am the only candidate in this race that will oppose any effort, from Hartford, Congress, or the Supreme Court to restrict freedom to access reproductive healthcare.

I urge you to consider which candidate will meet this moment with leadership, passion, and empathy. I hope to earn your vote so we can keep fighting for Northeastern Connecticut, together.

What do you think is the biggest issue facing your district, and how would you solve it?

The biggest issue facing the 29th Senate District is access to essential healthcare services close to home. In Windham, I have fought year after year against Hartford Healthcare’s disastrous policies at Windham Hospital. First they closed the critical care unit and then they closed the labor and delivery unit without seeking approval by the state and are now neglecting to pay their nurses and staff a fair wage. There are nearly 65,000 constituents living within Windham Hospital’s service area that now need to drive 30+ minutes to seek reproductive healthcare.

In Putnam, Day Kimball is one of the few remaining independent healthcare organizations in the state. It is one of the biggest employers in our region and is facing serious financial challenges. I have worked tirelessly to secure state support for DKH, including $5 million in state funding in 2022 alone. Day Kimball is considering merging with Covenant Health. This merger must be looked at closely. By merging with Covenant Health, the hospital must adhere to the Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic health care services that will limit reproductive healthcare delivery, family planning, end of life care and more. This is causing concern with many in our area, myself included. I will continue to fight for Day Kimball’s future and ensure this critical part of our community is there when our neighbors need it.

Healthcare delivery has been a major ongoing issue for many years in our district, and in rural regions across the country. I worked to create and revamp the Office of Healthcare Strategy to ensure that we hold powerful healthcare corporations accountable. I worked on legislation to expand who can perform certain reproductive procedures to account for healthcare deserts. I wrote legislation to protect the essential health benefits of the Affordable Care Act into state law and ensure that women continue to have access to the full spectrum of reproductive healthcare and that everyone with a pre-existing condition will be protected. It would be devastating to our community to lose access to healthcare, despite our hard work in the legislature to protect these essential resources. While Day Kimball and Windham Hospitals have faced tough challenges, it is more crucial than ever that we protect access to healthcare to meet the needs of our diverse community.

This article originally appeared on The Bulletin: Mae Flexer Q&A: Democratic candidate for CT Senate District 29