Dear Democrats

Dear Democrats,

The local democratic group made a post on Facebook looking for candidates and I messaged them saying I was interested. I was upfront about not being registered as a democrat and thinking of myself as an independent. And that I had no previous political experience before. I would not have ran if someone else stepped up to the plate. I also wouldn’t have ran if the Republican Party hadn’t changed so dramatically in the past ten years.

I decided to give up my quiet non-public life and put myself out there because I want to help people. I am very concerned and disappointed at the state of the country and of Missouri. Learning more about public education funding in Missouri was my main motivation. I care deeply about the public school system and the future. I am tired of corruption, the inability to work together, short term thinking and puppets to wealthy donors.

I will try my hardest to enact policies that help the people of this community. I will not go to Jefferson City to make backroom deals. I am not there to make friends or sell out. I am there to work for the people I represent. I will work with anyone with good ideas no matter their party. I don’t care about my political future and I will do the best job I can in the term I am elected to and not make decisions based on the next election. I have a life outside of politics and will not compromise who I am and what I believe in to further my political career.

The Republican Party has been completely taken over by Donald Trump and anyone who stands up to him is pushed out of the party. Those people need a political home.

If the republicans won’t change to accommodate those people then the democrats need to do so. Parties have to adapt to a changing world. The MAGA base and Donald Trump are losing support.

Donald Trump wouldn’t have won if he wasn’t connecting with voters. The issues that motivate his base are real issues and need addressed. To dismiss that is to dismiss those voters that feel unrepresented already.

People are so against democratic policies because of the right wing narratives, even if it’s not true. I feel that a lot of republicans won’t even consider giving any democrat a shot. They think they gave up on people like them. That all democrats push far left ideologies. It’s very hard because the democrats don’t have the money behind them or the media infrastructure to reach them.

I don’t think the vast majority of people act out of malice, but that is the way it can be framed against republican voters, that they are evil people. They just want to do what is best for them and their families. Instead of vilifying these voters we need to start listening and addressing concerns.

If you want to make change you have to win elections and to win elections you need to have a candidate that can represent the constituents of the district. You can think you have all the best ideas, but if you can’t win it doesn’t matter. Meet the people where they are at, don’t always try so hard to push them to go further. Change takes time, people have to accept it, you can’t force someone to believe something. Change is happening in both parties and society faster than ever.

I posted recently about candidates being 100% Trump and I don’t want candidates to be 100% whoever is the next presidential candidate on the democrat’s side either. Or 100% on a certain ideology that forces people to agree with every single policy of the party. You can rally around someone without agreeing 100%. It leaves no room for dissent or change if you have to agree with everything without question.

One thing that I haven’t posted about is LGBTQ+ policy. I don’t know that much about it or the struggles that community faces. I believe I have different feelings about it than many democrats. It hasn’t came up during the campaign yet so I haven’t addressed it and that’s probably because I don’t have a primary opponent.

I think any adult should have bodily autonomy, be able to have consensual relationships with anyone they want and dress however they want, as long as they are not infringing on another person’s rights. They should be able to transition if they choose. I have no issue with same sex marriages. It doesn’t matter to me personally what your sexual orientation is. I would not treat someone differently because of that. Be whoever you are and your true self and stop caring about what other people are doing. I am not trying to legislate morality, but to protect the rights of all citizens.

I may disagree with you on:

- Trans athletes in women’s sports. All biological males and biological females taking hormones shouldn’t compete in female leagues. This is about protecting women’s sports. Biological males have a natural advantage over females and a female transitioning has an advantage if they are taking hormone treatment. I don’t believe this is happening very often, but is a big talking point from the right. I wouldn’t want my daughter to compete in a sport against a trans athlete with unfair advantages. But I also wouldn’t want my daughter to have to go through an invasive verification process. I worry about how this could be enforced without violating student’s rights.

- Minors transitioning. I wouldn’t be okay with my daughter transitioning as a child. I am not in that situation, so I can’t say for sure, but to me it feels like such a big choice for someone to make at such a young age that will affect the rest of their lives. We as a society don’t allow younger people to do many things because we understand their brain is not developed fully and they are not ready for that. That is my personal opinion, but if elected I wouldn’t vote to have the government involved in the choice. If a child, parent and doctor all believe it is the right decision then who am I to say otherwise, I don’t know them personally or their situation and it’s none of my business or the governments business.

If you don’t agree with me I would love to hear from you and learn more. I don’t have all the answers or all the information. If you disagree with me on some issues I hope to still have your support because my opponent will disagree on this and on many other issues.

I think I’ve covered my thoughts on most issues and plan on speaking to a few more in the future, such as abortion and climate change, but if I have missed something please let me know.

I am running and this is who I am. You don’t have to like all of my views, but I don’t want to be something I’m not. I will always listen to anything anyone wants to say to me and thoroughly consider it. I don’t want to take money or be influenced by others that do not accept me for who I am. Maybe my willingness to share my honest opinions will cost me the election and that’s okay with me. I would rather be myself and lose then disingenuous and win.