views
endorsement
Re-elect Stabenow
T
he JN endorses incumbent
Debbie Stabenow for U.S.
Senate based on her proven
record in championing policies to
benefit manufacturing, agriculture
and health care as well as her com-
mitment to protecting the Great
Lakes and her support for Israel.
It was also refreshing that her
campaign focused on her accom-
plishments and her policy priorities
— not on attacking her opponent.
As co-chair of the Senate
Manufacturing Caucus, Stabenow
has been a champion for auton-
omous vehicles and self-driving
technologies, which will help enable
Michigan to position itself as the
global center of this
technology. She’s also
a proponent of provid-
ing more skilled trades
training and improving
college affordability for
Michigan students to
Debbie
put
more of our young
Stabenow
people on a path to a
high-wage job.
As ranking member of the Senate’s
Agricultural Committee, Stabenow
coauthored the 2018 Farm Bill,
which passed the Senate on a bipar-
tisan vote of 86-11. Agriculture is
Michigan’s second-largest industry
and supports one in four jobs in the
state. We need a powerful voice on
that committee.
As ranking member of the
Subcommittee on Health Care within
the Senate’s Finance Committee, she’s
working to bring down the cost of
prescription drugs and ensure that
people with pre-existing conditions
will continue to have affordable
health coverage.
And, as a senior member of the
powerful Senate Finance Committee,
she is working to promote policies
to help small businesses in Michigan
grow and succeed.
Her opponent, Republican John
James, has never held public office
before; that inexperience would like-
ly make him a less effective cham-
pion for Michigan’s interests in the
U.S. Senate. That being said, the JN
believes James does have a bright
future in public office. We found
him to be thoughtful, with sound
Conservative principles and ideas —
and without the bitter partisanship
so often found in today’s politicians.
If James were to run for Congress
or a statewide office in a few years,
he would likely pose a significant
challenge to his Democratic oppo-
nent as a young leader who is willing
to work with others to effect change
and solve problems. But the U.S.
Senate is no place for someone to cut
his political teeth. ■
guest column
JCRC/AJC Endorses Proposals 2 & 3
I
have a confession to
make. I have never
waited in line to
vote. Having voted in
Farmington Hills, Ann
Arbor, Royal Oak and
Birmingham, I have
Alicia
often sent in an absentee
Chandler
ballot; and when I have
gone in person, I have
never had more than one or two people
in front of me.
Now that I think about it, I also have
never had transportation issues getting
to the polls or health issues that would
make it harder to vote. I have been
either a student or working in a profes-
sional capacity, meaning I did not have
to take time off work to go vote. For me,
voting has entailed absolutely no incon-
venience or cost — but this is far from
universally true.
In the last midterm election, only 41.6
percent of the voting age population in
Michigan cast a ballot: 1,607,399 voted
for Gov. Snyder, 1,479,057 for Mark
Schauer and 70,075 for other candi-
dates. The remaining 4,257,324 regis-
tered voters did not vote. If our democ-
racy was truly representative, we would
be left with an empty room.
8
October 25 • 2018
jn
This election season, there are two
proposals, Proposals 2 and 3, which
address some of the fundamental
reasons that people do not vote: the
perception that their vote does not mat-
ter and the barriers that make voting
difficult.
PROPOSAL 2
In Michigan, district boundaries are set
by the legislature. This creates incentives
for the political party in power to craft
districts that most benefit their party.
This practice is known as gerrymander-
ing. Proposal 2 would amend the state
constitution and establish a commission
of citizens with exclusive authority
to adopt district boundaries for the
Michigan Senate, Michigan House of
Representatives and U.S. Congress,
thereby removing the power from the
partisan legislature and placing it within
this citizen commission.
Gerrymandering has disempowered
voters. Living in a district that so heav-
ily favors one party or the other means
that when voters claim that their vote
does not matter, they are in some ways
correct. In 2016, a year the presidential
candidates in Michigan were separated
by one quarter of 1 percent, not a single
Michigan Congressional race was within
10 points. This is the result of allowing
the prevailing party to draw the lines.
While there are valid concerns raised
about certain details of the citizen com-
mission, Proposal 2 empowers voters
and makes elected officials more respon-
sive to the electorate instead of insulating
them through gerrymandered districts.
Because it will encourage more par-
ticipation in the democratic process,
JCRC/AJC endorses Proposal 2.
PROPOSAL 3
Voting can be a real challenge for some
people. In 2008, lines in the city of
Detroit topped five hours. Even in mid-
term elections, waits of more than two
hours are known to occur. This is tragic.
For our democracy to function, we can-
not cut off access to voting. The number
of people able to vote is driven down
by imposing excessive costs for voting,
such as long waits and the need to take
time off work, which is especially bur-
densome for hourly and shift workers.
Proposal 3 would authorize automatic
and Election Day voter registration,
no-reason absentee voting and straight
ticket voting. Furthermore, it would add
current legal requirements for military
and overseas voting and post-election
audits to the Michigan constitution.
While all aspects of Proposal 3 are
worthy of support, no-reason absentee
voting is the single most important step
that we can take in making voting more
accessible. Under our current system,
there are only six reasons for which a
voter can legally request an absentee
ballot. Without meeting one of these
reasons, no matter how compelling or
how difficult it is for you to get to the
polls, you cannot legally request an
absentee ballot. While concerns have
been raised about the potential for an
increase in voter fraud, 27 states have
adopted no-reason absentee voting pro-
grams without these fears coming true.
Because it will make access to vot-
ing easier for eligible Michigan voters,
JCRC/AJC endorses Proposal 3.
Regardless of how you choose to vote
on the ballot proposals, take part in the
democratic process on Tuesday, Nov. 6,
and BE A VOTER.
For information about your regis-
tration status and precinct, visit vote.
michigan.gov. ■
Alicia B. Chandler is president of the JCRC/AJC.