Like others who made the decision to run for the Legislature, I became interested in public policy when I saw firsthand that the schools my own sons attended were woefully underfunded. I volunteered in their classrooms when they were young and I wondered why classes were so large, why parents raised money for teacher aides, and why our kindergarten families paid a fee for a full-day program. It wasn’t right. If our children are indeed the future of our state, it is up to all of us to demand that the educational opportunities available to them through our public schools are adequately funded.

Now, as president of the Madison Elementary School District Governing Board, I continue to advocate for public school funding. With the implementation of universal vouchers in 2022, and the loss of revenue from the state’s General Fund to pay for private school vouchers, the funding issues have gotten worse. There needs to be a sustainable source of additional funding for our K-12 public schools. No more bandaids. There have been efforts in recent years to earmark funds to raise teacher salaries or hire additional counselors, but these efforts do not address the fact that Arizona is ranked at or near the bottom in the nation for its per student funding formula.   

This fall, we have the opportunity to pass the Arizona Abortion Access ballot measure. It would enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution until the point of viability. I was very active in the petition drive, gathering signatures to place the citizens’ initiative on the ballot and I am working hard to ensure the measure becomes law in Arizona.

Following the Dobbs decision overturning Roe v. Wade, abortion rights became a state issue. In Arizona, a state Supreme Court ruling returned us to a near-total abortion ban from territorial days. That ban was repealed by the Legislature this past session, but that left Arizonans with a 15-week ban, passed on a partisan vote by the Legislature in 2022 and signed into law by then Gov. Ducey. Fifteen weeks is an arbitrary number and I do not support the 15-week ban. There are no exceptions for rape or incest after 15 weeks and doctors risk prison time if they provide needed healthcare for women. 

As a legislator, I will continue to fight for reproductive rights as part of women’s healthcare. Whether it’s birth control, IVF treatments, or interstate travel for needed healthcare, the attacks on women’s rights will continue. I will always fight to protect a woman’s right to make her own decisions about her body.

Firearms are now the leading cause of death for children in America. I am shocked that there has been no action by our current Republican majority to keep our communities and schools safe from gun violence. In fact, there have been efforts instead to loosen gun laws. Our state legislature prevents cities and towns from sponsoring gun buy-back programs and any guns that are turned in must be sold, not destroyed. And in 2023, my opponent voted to allow concealed weapons on college campuses and to allow parents to bring firearms onto school property, though both bills were vetoed by our governor.      

I am a long-time volunteer with Moms Demand Action, founded by a mother following the Sandy Hook school shooting. As a school board member, I am well aware that there have been threats against local schools here in Phoenix, and incidents with children as young as first grade bringing weapons to school. I refuse to believe that there is nothing we can do to prevent gun violence in our schools and in our communities. When I am elected to the State House, I will work to pass gun safety legislation, including laws that mandate secure storage and universal background checks.   

Arizona is currently experiencing a 20-year drought with no clear, sustainable plan for the future of our water. It will take a bipartisan group of legislators working with the private sector and public officials throughout the state to develop a plan that includes conservation, new technology and new infrastructure. I support the efforts of the state’s Water Infrastructure Finance Authority (WIFA) to develop new sources of water and was disappointed that because of the current budget deficit, legislators chose to withhold support from the agency this year. Additionally, I support the regulation of groundwater in the rural parts of our state.