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VOTE411 Voter Guide

Representative In Congress District 2

Members of Congress represent Nevada’s congressional districts in the U.S. House of Representatives and serve two-year terms. They introduce and vote on federal legislation, approve the national budget, oversee federal agencies, and help shape policies affecting taxes, healthcare, immigration, voting rights, national security, economic stability, and environmental protection. They also serve as a direct link between Nevada residents and the federal government, assisting constituents with federal agencies and advocating for local priorities. Because members of Congress help determine the direction of national policy and provide oversight of the executive branch, these races play a significant role in protecting democratic institutions, safeguarding constitutional rights, and ensuring that federal decisions reflect the needs and values of the communities they serve.

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    Teresa Benitez-Thompson
    (Dem)

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    Kathy Durham
    (Dem)

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    Gamaliel Z. Enriquez
    (Dem)

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    Matthew Fonken
    (Dem)

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    Gerold Lee Gorman
    (Dem)

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    Joshua Hebert
    (Dem)

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    Mark Jolle
    (Dem)

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    John Kerns
    (Dem)

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    Greg Kidd
    (Dem)

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    Morgan Wadsworth
    (Dem)

Biographical Information

What measures do you support to defend and protect voters’ rights?

What is your position on ICE and the role of Federal government?

What do you believe needs to be done to help ensure the economic strength of our state and our nation?

What federal policies, if any, would you support regarding abortion access and regulation?

Can you describe a specific example of how you have worked with individuals from different political perspectives to achieve a goal, and also how you would apply that approach in Congress?

X (formerly Twitter) @TBTNV
Campaign Email Teresa@ElectTeresa.com
Campaign Phone Number 510-501-2545
Endorsements National Organization of Women, Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada, Teamsters Joint Council 42, IATSE Local 363,
There is increasing federal interference with our right to vote. Utilization of executive orders to undermine our rights is unconstitutional and antidemocratic.

Nevada has a strong history of running elections with integrity and prosecuting those who break election law. Even the FBI knows this, having recently ended an investigation into election fraud in Nevada.

Continuation of funding to the states for election security is paramount. Recently, the Trump Administration curtailed funding and staffing for Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). CISA provides crucial support to state and local government to fight physical and cyber security threats. This makes no sense and is not only dangerous, but careless.
ICE tactics have become violent and deadly. What we've witnesses is not public safety, it's open hostility towards immigrants and those who express their First Amendment rights.

In Nevada, law enforcement must wear badges, body cameras, and show their face. Once a person is detained, they must be accounted for in the jail management system- they cannot simply disappear. If there is an officer involved shooting, an investigation by another law enforcement agency is mandatory, not optional. If a person's civil rights are infringed upon, there should be no qualified immunity to hide behind. At the federal level, I'll demand this same level of accountability.

We must be responsive to the needs of people in our communities and D.C. politicians have lost sight of what our daily lives are like.

For certainty in our economies and our daily lives, the President must answer for the costly war in Iran. We need clear objectives, not temper tantrum social media post.

Nevada has a high unemployment rate and a low college matriculate rate. This means our labor markets and our communities will take a big hit in job loss due to AI. Congress needs to act. I support requiring companies to provide advance notice before AI-driven workforce reductions, similar to WARN Act requirements. Most importantly, I support collective bargaining rights that include employee say in AI deployment decisions.

I support a federal law to enshrine a woman's right to make decisions about her health care, including abortions. I oppose policies and regulations that makes access to health care, including abortions, more burdensome.
I talk plainly and I talk to everyone. This served me well during my time in the Nevada State Legislature, where the vast majority of my bills passed with bi-partisan support. I plan to conduct myself in the same way as a Congresswoman.
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I support treating the right to vote as fundamental to being a citizen.

That means automatic and same-day voter registration, universal access to mail voting across all states, early voting options, and enough polling locations, staff, and equipment so people are not stuck in hours-long lines. Your right to vote should not depend on how much free time you have, what neighborhood you live in, or whether you can take off work.

I also support making Election Day a holiday or moving voting to a weekend, with guaranteed paid time to vote. Participation should be easy, not a scheduling obstacle course.

We need strong protections against voter intimidation, partisan interference, and politically motivated purges of voter rolls.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has lost legitimacy and should be abolished in its current form. Its record of abuse, secrecy, fear-driven tactics, and political misuse has broken public trust.

That does not mean no borders or no enforcement. The federal government has a real duty to maintain secure borders, process immigration claims, and protect public safety, but it must do so lawfully and humanely.

Those functions can be handled through U.S. Customs and Border Protection, immigration courts, and accountable civilian agencies focused on real threats like trafficking and violent crime, not headline-grabbing raids against families, children and workers.

Government should protect rights and serve people, not rule through fear.
Economic strength comes from broad freedom and stability, not extreme concentration at the top. When people can afford housing, healthcare, education, and transportation, they are more productive and communities are stronger.

My framework is simple: essential systems should serve the public, not extract from it. That means supporting small businesses, investing in infrastructure and new industries, protecting workers, and preventing monopolies and corporate capture.

A strong economy is one where prosperity is widely shared and no one’s basic future depends on the unchecked power of someone else. We need to drive the economy with a new national project. My proposal, a national train system for freight, light rail and high speed.
I support protecting abortion access at the federal level and restoring the principle that private medical decisions should not be dictated by politicians.

My broader view is that freedom includes bodily autonomy. Government should be very cautious about forcing people into deeply personal medical decisions, especially when pregnancy can involve health risks, trauma, or life-altering consequences.

I would support federal protections for access to abortion, contraception, and emergency reproductive care, while ensuring medical decisions are guided by patients and qualified healthcare professionals.

Personal liberty, health, and dignity should carry more weight than political ideology.
Yes. In business and everyday life, I’ve worked with people whose politics differ sharply from mine. When the goal is solving a real problem, labels matter less than competence, honesty, and respect. I’ve learned that if you lead with contempt, nothing gets done. If you listen, communicate clearly, and focus on shared interests, progress is possible.

I would bring that same approach to Congress. Most people, regardless of party, want affordable housing, decent healthcare, honest government, safe communities, and a fair chance to succeed. I would work with anyone acting in good faith to deliver real results, while being honest about where disagreements remain. Cooperation should be based on outcomes, not tribal loyalty.
The constitution is clear: The time and manner of our elections is up to the people of the State of Nevada, not the federal government. We have seen erosion and evisceration of voting rights both in the Supreme Court and the Executive Branch via the President. Nevada has a right to protect and defend its sovereignty and we will protect our voter data from unconstitutional government intrusion.
ICE, formerly Border Patrol, has a place in the Executive Branch enforcing our immigration laws. This does not give them a blank check to shred the constitution and trample upon federalism. Federalism means that states have their own role and their own governments to enforce their laws. While federal law is superior to state law, it does not provide for the kinds of excesses and abuses of U.S. citizens that we have witnessed recently.
Addressing our 39 trillion dollar deficit through a ten-year plan is the most important step to fixing our economy for the long-haul. The spending and borrowing done by our government is outrageous and has to stop now.
I support and defend a woman's right to choose. The Supreme Court decision in Dobbs has set an unwelcome precedent that only a constitutional convention may cure.
When I ran for State Senate two years ago, I indicated that I wanted to restore kindness to government interactions, and also that I was willing to work with our Republican governor to address the housing crisis. I will always reach out across the aisle to the opposing party if we can find common ground to work on issues together.
I support full administration of Nevada's Voters' Bill of Rights, including voting free from intimidation. Nonpartisan election officials must be respected and allowed to do their jobs. Nevada is a universal vote-by-mail state, and I support keeping it that way. I support online and accessible voter registration, plus expanding DMV registration to include secure digital credentials on mobile phones. Federally, I support restoring Voting Rights Act protections and passing the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. Trump's executive order federalizing elections is unconstitutional overreach — elections are constitutionally the states' province, and even Nevada Republicans have voiced confidence in our sovereign ability to run them.
ICE was created after 9/11 to protect us from terrorists — not to chase down old ladies, nurses, and US citizens. Its budget is out of control. America has never permitted a secret police force to break into homes or arrest people without warrants, and we shouldn't start now. There are serious concerns this force will be used for political benefit, including pressuring red-state gerrymandering before the midterms. I'll oppose that abuse. Trump's attempts to federalize state-run elections fit the same overreach pattern. We need bipartisan immigration reform that secures the border, respects legal immigration and human rights, protects Dreamers and TPS holders, and lets qualified healthcare workers our communities need stay and serve.
I support the Lithium Loop — mining, processing, manufacturing, and recycling, all in Nevada. We can lead the world in R&D here; the US is five years behind China, which is strategically unviable. I'm proposing a Nevada Permanent Fund to capture the value of our minerals rather than let it leave the state. Alaska's fund has $74 billion; Nevada's is $0. It would pay dividends to Nevadans for generations. Nationally, we need to simplify the tax code. I support progressive VAT/GST taxes that exclude necessities and ramp up on luxuries, and supplementing Social Security with fully-funded 401(k)-style accounts where workers directly benefit from what they pay in. The $166 billion in tariff rebates should go to taxpayers, not large corporations.
Without a federal law, this civil right has become a zoning issue — legal in one state, banned in another. That has to change. People should be in charge of their own bodies. I support federal legislation enshrining the right to abortion and oppose any national ban. A woman and her doctor should make this decision, not the government. I oppose funding restrictions like the Hyde Amendment, and I support protecting access across state lines, patient data privacy, and access to medication abortion including mifepristone. Beyond the legal right, Nevadans need actual access. When elected, I'll work to attract more healthcare practitioners and expand the pool of medical professionals serving women in NV-02 with comprehensive reproductive care.
In the 2025 Nevada legislative session, I led a push for payment-bank legislation that would lower costs and bring hundreds of millions in new revenue to the state. It was championed by the Retail Association of Nevada, sponsored by Speaker Steve Yeager, with amendments from Secretary of State Cisco Aguilar — business, Democrats, and independents pulling together. It lost by two votes and will return. I also spent years at the Federal Reserve as a senior payments analyst, working on policy across Republican and Democratic administrations. I'm a two-plus-two-equals-four candidate. Republicans, independents, and Democrats are tired of being told otherwise. I'll work with anyone serious about getting things done for Northern Nevada.
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