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Wisconsin U.S. House, District 2/Representantes de Wisconsin por el Distrito 2

Legislative Branch: U.S. CongressThe United States Congress consists of two bodies: the House of Representatives and the Senate. Congress is the law-making body. Congress also allocates federal spending through the budget and appropriation bills. Proposed laws (bills) can start in either the Senate or the House of Representatives. Both houses must pass a bill before sending it to the president for signature or veto. Congress can vote to override a veto.House of RepresentativesThe United States House of Representatives currently consists of 435 members. The elected members are called either representatives or congresspersons. Members of the House represent the people in a state’s congressional district. Each congressional district has roughly the same number of residents. U.S. Census information is used to create the districts. The number of districts in each state depends on the state s population. Wisconsin has 8 representatives. Voters elect representatives to serve for a two-year term. There is no term limit.___PODER LEGISLATIVO: CONGRESO DE LOS ESTADOS UNIDOS:El Congreso de los Estados Unidos consiste de dos cuerpos: la Cámara de Representantes y el Senado. El Congreso es el órgano legislativo. El Congreso también asigna el gasto federal a través del presupuesto y los proyectos de ley de asignación. Las leyes propuestas (proyectos de ley) pueden comenzar en el Senado o en la Cámara de Representantes. Ambas cámaras deben aprobar los proyectos de ley antes de enviarlos al presidente para su firma o veto. El Congreso puede votar para anular un veto.Cámara de RepresentantesLa Cámara de Representantes de los Estados Unidos está formada actualmente por 435 miembros. Los miembros elegidos se llaman representantes o congresistas. Los miembros de la Cámara de Representantes representan a las personas en el distrito congresal de un estado. Cada distrito del Congreso tiene aproximadamente el mismo número de residentes. Para crear los distritos se utiliza la información obtenida del Censo de los Estados Unidos. La cantidad de distritos en cada estado depende de la población del estado. Wisconsin tiene 8 representantes. Los votantes eligen representantes para servir por un período de dos años. No hay límite de términos.Nota: Las respuestas de los candidatos que aparecen en español se tradujeron de las respuestas originales de los candidatos en inglés.

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  • Candidate picture

    Douglas Alexander
    (Dem)

  • Candidate picture

    Mark Pocan
    (Dem)

Biographical Information

Please describe your priorities for your term in office and your specific qualifications to effectively address those issues.

What policies, if any, would you support to promote a healthy economy and lower the cost of living for Wisconsinites?

What laws, if any, would you change or be in support of to ensure all voters have an equal opportunity to cast their ballot?

What, if anything, will you do to ensure equitable, accessible, and affordable health care services, including reproductive health care (i.e. contraception, IVF, and abortion) for Wisconsinites?

What measures, if any, would you propose to ensure the fair and humane treatment of immigrants and refugees while maintaining national security?

Committee Friends of Douglas Alexander
Campaign Phone 608-535-9727
Campaign Mailing Address 637 South Shore Dr
Madison, WI 53715
Campaign Twitter Handle @@Dglas4TermLimts
Education Randall Elementary & Madison West, The Stony Brook School, Wycliffe College (exchange student in England) Bucknell University (B.A. Political Science), N.C.State University (M.A. Education Administration)
1) The first step to grab back power from a corrupt & dysfunctional Congress is to impose term limits on Congress. 2) It requires a Constitutional Amendment (CA) 3) You say “That’s hopeless Douglas!--Congress will never propose it” 4) I say “Silly Wabbit, that’s what I thought, but Constitution Article V states if ⅔ of state legislatures call for a CA on an issue, it gets proposed, thus end-running Congress.” 5) Fifteen states have already called for a CA imposing term limits on Congress; fourteen are in various stages of consideration. We only need five more, so there IS hope!

I'm all in. If elected, I’ll testify in state legislatures as a sitting member of Congress. YOU please contact friends in each state to lobby their reps.

Article I, section 8 delegates 14 powers to Congress. Neither economic development nor managing the cost of living are among them.

Congress can affect the cost of living in peripheral ways; negatively, by putting us all in $39,000,000,000,000 debt. The 2025 Federal budget was $7 trillion: 59% mandatory spending, 27% discretionary, 14% interest, which = $980 billion. It was equivalent to our 2025 defense budget.

Many think spending that much on defense is itself obscene. Spending $980,000,000,000 on interest is obscener, if that’s even a word!

Our cost of living is based on our economy. The best way Congress can affect our cost of living is to "man up" and genuinely balance the budget, then slowly start bringing down the federal debt.
Power over elections belong mostly to the states. Some states do not require an id to vote, but Wisconsin does. I’m fine with that. A photo id is required for many activities in one’s normal life: entering venues, purchasing alcohol, flying…but Congress has no power to force all the states to require an id

Ex-convicts should be allowed to vote. Our prison system is such a mess, if anyone deserves to vote it’s those who paid their debt to society, and know how best to reform prisons!

Undocumented immigrants deserve a reasonable path to citizenship, and thus, to vote. Congress ultimately allowed them to enter, and refuses to legislate a path for them because power brokers are happy keeping them in limbo. It is shameful. They are negligent.
Healthcare is corrupted by powerful forces propping up both sides of the isle, making ↑ money, and happy just the way it is. If term limits are imposed, Congress could announce next session as the “Healthcare Congress.” Experts from hospitals, insurance, pharma, doctors, nursing, rural & patient groups could come for two years to hammer out their best solution. Patients need to know what services cost. Incentives for doctors need to reward health, not prescriptions.

Post Dobbs Congress has ↓ sway in the abortion debate. Politicians on both sides cynically fundraise on the issue: don’t take the bait. This poignant issue pits Life ⟷ Liberty & the Pursuit of Happiness: WORT podcast “A Current Affair: Dana Pellebon w. Dr. Mary Fariba Afsari.”
Building on the above…they should not have to work in awkward, quasi-slave environments. Congress tolerated a porous border for 15+ years, it is hypocritical not to give them hope. The border needed to be secured; now Congress should provide a path to citizenship. This will anger owners who take advantage of their quasi-slave status; but please others who want their employees to have a future + a hope.

I spoke with a fine immigrant S. of Madison: farm owner, employer, model contributor to WI’s economy. He told me he can’t fly home to visit his family b/c he would not be allowed to return home! Career politicians are more interested in getting re-elected than making controversial votes to provide dignity to these people. Shame on Congress.
Committee Pocan for Congress
Campaign Email info@pocanforcongress.com
Campaign Phone 608-286-1073
Campaign Mailing Address PO Box 327
Madison, WI 53701
Campaign Twitter Handle @MarkPocan
Education University of Wisconsin–Madison
Personal Pronouns He / Him
My priority next term is to continue fighting for working families by lowering costs, protecting health care and reproductive freedom, defending democracy, and ensuring government works for everyone, not just the wealthy and well-connected. As a senior member of the House Appropriations Committee, I help direct federal investments to Wisconsin communities for infrastructure, housing, education, and economic development. As Co-Chair Emeritus of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, I have worked to build coalitions and advance policies that strengthen workers' rights, expand access to health care, and protect civil rights. I will continue being an independent voice for Wisconsin families and taxpayers.
I support policies that put more money in workers' pockets and lower everyday costs. I’ll fight for policies such as protecting Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid, lowering prescription drug prices, expanding affordable housing, strengthening unions and collective bargaining rights, and increasing competition to curb corporate price gouging. It also includes being a check on Trump’s arbitrary tariffs that are making life more expensive for everyone. Finally, reinstating the Affordable Care Act tax credits will help millions afford the healthcare they deserve while we work towards a Medicare-for-all system. Economic growth should benefit working families, not just large corporations and the wealthiest Americans.
I support strengthening and modernizing the Voting Rights Act, protecting access to early and absentee voting, and ensuring eligible voters can register and cast ballots without unnecessary barriers. That starts with undoing what the Supreme Court did in Shelby County v. Holder and Louisiana v. Callais. I also helped lead a bill to create a Constitutional amendment to guarantee the right to vote. I oppose voter suppression efforts that make it harder for seniors, students, people with disabilities, military members, and working families to vote. Our democracy is strongest when every eligible voter can participate freely and fairly.
I believe healthcare is a human right. I will continue fighting to protect and expand access to affordable healthcare by defending Medicare, Medicaid, and the Affordable Care Act, lowering prescription drug costs, and fighting for Medicare for All. I strongly support protecting reproductive freedom, including access to contraception, IVF, and abortion, and oppose all efforts to restrict those rights. Every Wisconsinite should be able to make their own health care decisions and receive quality care regardless of income, geography, background, or what certain politicians and judges say.
I support comprehensive immigration reform that strengthens border security while treating people with dignity and respect. This includes creating a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, protecting Dreamers, improving the asylum process, and reducing backlogs in immigration courts. I oppose family separation and support humane treatment for migrants and refugees. What ICE and CBP have been doing is wrong. I am firmly opposed to all the ICE and CBP illegal activities, and will continue to fight to significantly curtail their unchecked authority. We can maintain national security by modernizing our immigration system, focusing enforcement efforts on genuine public safety threats, and addressing the root causes driving migration.