Age
46
Education
United States Naval Academy (Bachelor of Science in Ocean Engineering); Harvard Kennedy School (Master of Public Policy); the Wharton School (Master of Business Administration)
Hometown
Sanford, FL
County
Seminole County
Instagram
@baledalton
Our immigration system has been broken for decades. I support a comprehensive approach to immigration that secures our border and provides a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers. Having served in uniform for over 24 years, I believe that border security is national security; but while providing that security, we cannot enforce the law while breaking the law.
Climate change is not theoretical in Florida. We’re seeing the practical results, and homeowners are paying the cost. We can be proactive and ensure that clean energy is manufactured right here in America instead of in China, which is why I support restoring the tax credits around green energy in the Inflation Reduction Act – while ensuring the money doesn’t go to China. I’m committed to an “all of the above” approach to lowering energy costs for Floridians and ensuring energy independence for our Nation.
Making Florida affordable again is my first priority, and requires undoing this Administration’s illegal tariff taxes, providing oversight over utility and property insurance companies that are jacking up costs, and reversing the health care premium hikes that Congressman Mills voted for. With housing costs skyrocketing in Central Florida, we also need to increase our housing supply, while banning Wall Street speculators from buying up single-family homes.
The cost of living has also been rising due to corruption in DC, as politicians sell out their constituents and line their own pockets. Tackling corruption starts with kicking out Congressman Cory Mills, who is currently under investigation by the House Ethics Committee. However, we also need deeper structural reforms: banning Congressional stock trading, outlawing politicians and insiders from betting on prediction markets, and reforming our broken campaign finance system that gives billionaires an outsized voice in Washington.
As a Navy veteran, I swore an oath to the Constitution and the freedoms enshrined in it. Freedom of speech protects a vibrant press, which is free to uncover corruption and tell truth to power, without fear of retribution. Freedom of speech protects a proud tradition of peaceful protest in this country that traces back to the Civil Rights movement. Having served in Iraq and Afghanistan, I have seen how difficult it is to institute these hard-won rights; and how preserving the freedoms in our Constitution makes the United States exceptional.
We hold free speech as a fundamental right in the United States, and for good reason. Free speech does not mean that billionaires and corporations should be able to spend without limits to influence elections. Nor does it mean that citizens can incite violence against their neighbors. Understanding and living out our First Amendment rights is part of the ongoing work of creating our more perfect union.
Congress and the President are both charged with overseeing federal agencies. The President appoints agency leadership, which Congress in most cases must approve. Congress also holds the power of the purse, which sets funding levels for agency budgets. I believe our government works best when we have co-equal branches that enact the checks and balances our founders envisioned.
We have seen unprecedented corruption in Washington recently, with certain agencies abusing their powers, such as wasteful spending by the Department of Homeland Security spending $170 million on 2 luxury jets for top bureaucrats. Congressman Mills has been derelict in his duty to enforce the Constitution, putting his party’s interest over the nation’s interest.
The current federal SAVE Act imposes unreasonable burdens on voting; under this law, military IDs and REAL ID would be insufficient to register to vote. For most Americans, passports and birth certificates would be required. These onerous requirements would make it more challenging for women who have changed their names to vote, along with service members who are deployed overseas.
If this legislation does become law, the federal government must do everything possible to make it easier for citizens to register to vote. They should explore providing free and efficient services to procure a passport or birth certificate. All voters need to be clearly informed of these changes with enough time to make a plan to register to vote. The easiest and best solution, however, would be to avoid passing the current version of the SAVE Act without major changes.
I was raised by a public school teacher and am a proud product of Florida public schools. While education policy is often set in Tallahassee, the federal government is a key funder of early childhood education. Although Florida has made strides in universal pre-K, we have more work to do to serve students under the age of four. Additionally, we must ensure early childhood educators are fairly compensated, & that classroom ratios remain low.
At the K-12 level, schools must prepare students for the economy of the future. Florida has consistently stripped money from public schools to divert tax dollars into unregulated, for-profit companies. Congressman Mills wants to eliminate the Dept. of Education, which would hurt public schools.
Lastly, higher ed pathways must generate returns – not cycles of debt. That’s why I support investing in trade jobs, apprenticeships, & public service loan forgiveness, in addition to providing oversight into for-profit colleges with low graduation rates.
Age
68
Education
B.A. magna cum laude Harvard 1978; M.P.P. and J.D. cum laude Harvard 1983
Hometown
raised in the Bronx, New York City
County
Orange
Campaign Phone
4074939633
Treating the undocumented with humane respect. (Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.) Providing a pathway to legal residence for people who have lived here, as workers or students, for many years, particularly the "Dreamers." Expanding existing law regarding family unification.
Yes, of course. It is a slow death for tourism in Florida. Over time, it radically shrinks local markets and destroys local real estate values, in addition to the direct harm from climate catastrophes.
(1) Enforce the rule of law against the Trump Administration. Organize and kindle the opposition to dictatorship.
(2) Bring home every conceivable benefit to this area -- hospitals, healthcare, roads, schools, mass transit, lower mortgage rates, water/sewer systems, etc., just as I did in my earlier terms in Congress.
It means that what we say, as well as what we think, should not be prohibited or required by law. The central function of Congress is to make laws. That power does not apply, at all, to what people say or think, only to what they do.
People differ as to what the Constitution says on this subject. My view is that it doesn't say much of anything, which leaves the subject up to legislating. If the law says the President, then it is the President. If the law says Congress, then it is Congress. In my view, the law can put whatever constraints it wants the President's authority over federal agencies. (Obviously, this Supreme Court disagrees.)
I don't agree with the premise. I don't think that this type of proof of U.S. citizenship should be necessary in order register to vote. I've been doing it for 50 years, and I don't recall having to prove my citizenship. I think that if there were any significant number of non-citizens registering to vote, we would already know about that. It's a crime to register to vote improperly. That seems like enough of a deterrent to me.
Yes, to help to pay for it. For instance, I brought an additional $100 million home to both Orange and Osceola schools in my first year in office, and I kept seven schools from closing. ("Alan Grayson saved our schools! Alan Grayson saved our schools!") My own children went from school in trailers to a brick building while I was in Congress. There are difference of 10 to 1 in the local tax base for schools. That's not fair TO THE CHILDREN. The federal government should help to make up the difference.
Age
27
Hometown
Charlotte, NC
Instagram
Mecklenburg County
LinkedIn
https://www.linkedin.com/in/marialana-kinter-773aa5221
Campaign Phone
3212478403
I support a modernized immigration system that secures our borders while honoring the American Dream. Families should not be forced to wait years for approvals or denials. We must clear our court backlogs and provide efficient, legal pathways for those already contributing to our economy, ensuring our system is secure and functional. We cannot abandon American ideals rooted in humanity, compassion, and justice toward all.
Yes. Climate change is a massive financial liability, especially for Florida. Unchecked flooding and extreme weather are driving insurance premiums to record levels and pricing homeowners out of their properties.
Treating resilience infrastructure, such as hardening power grids, upgrading stormwater systems, and restoring wetlands, as a top national priority is the only logical path to stabilize our economy and protect property values.
We need to plan so that our communities are resilient regardless of what weather Florida endures. If we fail to act now, the long-term costs of disaster recovery will outpace the investment required to build a resilient, future-proof economy.
Prioritizing Floridians and Lowering the Cost of Living: My top priority is tackling the affordability crisis crushing working families. I will fight to protect Social Security, ensure access to affordable healthcare, and push for universal childcare to ease the burden on working parents. I will invest in skilled trade training programs through public education so our children are graduating with opportunity. Additionally, I will ban hedge funds and Wall Street from buying up our single-family homes and fight for a federal reinsurance
Accountability and Democracy Reform: I will fight to ban congressional stock trading and overturn Citizens United. Our democracy cannot function when the voices of citizens are drowned out by big money and special interest. Our government should work for US not special interest or personal gain.
We must restore integrity and accountability to Washington, ensuring representatives are held accountable to the people, not corporate lobbyists.
To me, freedom of speech is the absolute right to express dissent, protest, and speak openly without fear of government retaliation. It is the foundation of our democracy.
It allows citizens to hold those in positions of authority accountable and ensures that the marketplace of ideas remains open, even when those ideas are unpopular or challenge the status quo.
In Congress, I will fiercely protect the right to protest, organize, and dissent, regardless of political viewpoint. True freedom of speech is not just about the right to speak; it is about the right to participate fully in our democracy and influence the direction of our nation. A healthy democracy relies on an engaged, vocal citizenry that feels empowered to participate.
Both the President and Congress have roles in oversight, but they operate through different constitutional channels.
The President runs the daily operations and executive directives, but Congress has the right when it comes to accountability. Congress creates agencies, defines their missions, creates the laws, controls the budget (the power of the purse), and has the duty to act as the primary watchdog.
My view is simple: Congress exists to ensure federal agencies follow the law, manage taxpayer dollars honestly, and serve the public (not special interests). While the President carries out the law, Congress must use its power, such as hearings and subpoenas, to make ensure the work that is being done is consistent with the will of the people.
I oppose measures that create barriers to the ballot box, as these are often thinly veiled attempts to disenfranchise voters.
If documentary proof of citizenship is mandated, the government has a non-negotiable duty to provide free, immediate, and accessible resources to help citizens obtain necessary records. We cannot ask citizens to clear hurdles that the government itself creates.
I would support legislation that mandates federal funding to cover the costs of certified birth and marriage certificates and establishes mobile offices to assist those without transportation or internet access in obtaining documents. Administrative red tape must never be a tool for voter suppression.
Protecting the right to vote is a fundamental responsibility of a representative.
The federal government must ensure equitable access to quality education at every level.
We need universal federal funding for quality (and full-day) pre-school, as early childhood education is critical for long-term development.
At the K-12 level, we must provide robust funding that protects our public schools from privatization and ensures that every child, regardless of zip code, has access to a world-class education.
I support aggressive support for vocational and trade programs through our public education system. This ensures that our children are graduating with opportunity, including the opportunity to live and work debt-free in the communities they love. By valuing skilled trades as a legitimate, high-paying career path this also encourages universities to offer competitive educations.
The federal government’s role is to provide the resources and equity standards necessary to ensure that our future workforce is prepared to succeed.
