Candidate Questionaire: Josh Stein

Cary, NC — This is the first installment of our Candidate 2014 series, in which candidates get to respond in their own words to the same three questions.

This is our fourth year doing the Candidate series. As usual, we publish the responses in the order we receive them. First up is Josh Stein, the incumbent representing District 16 in the NC Senate.

Q: Why are you running?

As State Senator, I have been focused on strengthening our economy, improving public education, reforming health care, keeping the public safe and promoting clean energy. I want to continue working to ensure that our area remains the best place to live in the country even as we continue to experience remarkable population growth – that means having good schools, a comprehensive transportation system and clean air and water. If we achieve these goals, a strong economy and good jobs will follow.

Q: What are your top 3 priorities and how will you get it done?

My top three priorities are as follows:

1. Improve public education in North Carolina by making sure that we recruit and retain the best possible teachers by paying them appropriately and treating them as the professionals they are.
2. Strengthen our economy by adequately and innovatively investing in infrastructure, including roads and railroads, ports and airports, research and broadband.
3. Help our hospitals and medical professionals work through the dramatic changes in the financing and delivery of health care by accepting the federal government’s offer to return $15 billion of our own tax money over the next five years at no cost to the state’s general fund.

I will introduce legislation and actively push for these priorities.

Q: Give us a brief bio and tell us about your relevant experience.

I grew up in Chapel Hill and went to study at Dartmouth College. After college, I taught high school English and economics in Zimbabwe for a couple of years. I attended and graduated from Harvard Law School and the Kennedy School of Government before moving to Raleigh. I worked with the Self-Help Credit Union in Durham. And I served eight years as North Carolina’s Deputy Attorney General for Consumer Protection in the NC Department of Justice.

I am currently serving in my 3rd term in the North Carolina Senate, where I serve as Democratic Whip and was recently ranked the most effective Democratic Senator.

I am proud to have received recognition for my work in the Senate from organizations including The North Carolina Association of Educators, The Metro Mayor’s Association, The NC Justice Center, The North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association, Sierra Club, and Equality NC.

My wife Anna and I have three children – Sam (15), Adam (13), and Leah (10) – all of whom attend Wake County Public Schools.

It is an honor to serve as your Senator and I ask for your vote on November 4^th.

Website: http://joshstein.org/