Neighborhood/area of residence
Townsend
Education
B.A. History, Master's in Public Administration, Master's in International Relations
Work Experience
Former Federal Employee at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Safe Return to School Support Coordinator at the Colonial School District, Fulbright Scholar in South Africa, Peace Corps Volunteer in Rwanda
Community Involvement
Housing and Community Advocate
Delaware is increasingly becoming a playground for the wealthy, for corporations, and for big development. 50% of Delawareans are cost-burdened by rent and housing expenses; property taxes are going up, open space is disappearing, and Delawareans cannot afford healthcare expenses. As a democratic socialist, it is imperative that we start by putting the people’s needs first. That means taking steps such as:
- Increasing the minimum wage to a living wage
- Enacting rent stabilization
- Reducing energy prices by passing rate freezes
- Investing in our social infrastructure by proving direct relief, for communities and making the rich pay for it
- Deliver universal childcare
- Creating a Prescription Drug Affordability Board
As a former analyst at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, housing and homelessness is my number one issue. The proposals that I would like to see in legislation would include:
-Implementing rent stabilization (including lot rent)
-Stopping Wall Street investors from buying up neighborhood homes and outbidding local families.
-Preventing companies from using AI to inflate the cost of rent
-End the criminalization of homelessness
- Provide direct rental assistance
- Building more permanent supportive and taking a housing first approach to centralized care
-Ensuring that any new housing and/or rental units that are built by developers are permanently affordable
-Creating an Office of the Tenant Advocate
As legislation lags behind, the ease of guns flowing throughout the country are having an adverse impact on the safety and well-being of our neighborhoods and communities. Universal background checks, mandatory waiting periods, and an assault weapons ban, as well as passing safe storage laws are key features in addressing gun violence. At the end of the day, we have to reckon with the outsized role gun violence has wrought from the gaps in our policymaking. We need to pass gun control laws and hold those looking to exploit those gaps within our system accountable. Offering up legislation regarding gun control only adds clarity in the raises the standards of reliable and responsible gun ownership.
There are multiple steps that Delaware should take to provide quality healthcare and reduce the power that hospital corporations have over our lives. A big step to rectifying these medical injustices would include implementing a single-payer healthcare plan. A single-payer healthcare plan would eliminate private insurance, allow the government to take aggressive action against rising prescriptions, and ensure universal coverage throughout the state. With hospital systems, more needs to be done to ensure Delawareans are paying the same price for care, no matter the location; and limiting hospital rates. Delaware should also create a prescription drug affordability board, cap the cost of insulin at $35, and forgive medical debt.
Strongly disagree
Disagree
Neither agree nor disagree
Agree
Strongly agree
Campaign Phone
302-508-0929
Neighborhood/area of residence
Leipsic
Work Experience
American Home Mortgage, Wells Fargo, Advocate, Lobbyist, Senator
Community Involvement
Food Bank of Delaware, Delaware Futures, DAPI, Delaware Standardbred Breeders' Fund, World Trade Center of Delaware, National League of Women Legislators,
Delaware’s biggest challenges are affordable housing, the rising cost of living, public safety, and access to quality education and health care. We need to make it easier to build housing, strengthen our workforce, protect taxpayers, and ensure state government delivers real results for working families. Housing is a major issue because Delaware leaders have identified it as a top concern, and the state also faces pressure from rising health care and other core costs.
I would support a housing-first strategy that expands affordable housing, supportive housing, and rapid rehousing while strengthening prevention services, eviction diversion, and behavioral health supports. Delaware’s homelessness count more than doubled in 2022, and the state’s own collaborative goals now focus on cutting homelessness in half, which shows we need both immediate shelter and long-term housing solutions. I would also back reforms to speed up permitting, increase funding for housing production, and expand tenant protections.
I am supportive of common-sense gun safety measures, including safe storage laws and other steps that keep firearms out of the wrong hands. Delaware already prohibits assault weapons and has laws addressing unsafe storage, and I would support strengthening enforcement and reasonable measures that reduce gun violence while respecting lawful ownership. Safe storage is especially important to prevent child access, theft, and avoidable tragedies.
Over the long term, Delaware should keep focusing on lowering costs through primary care, value-based payment, stronger oversight of hospital spending, and better prevention. The state has already moved to rein in hospital cost growth and increase affordability, and those efforts should continue so families can get care earlier and avoid higher-cost emergencies later. We should also protect access, invest in the health care workforce, and make sure affordability gains reach patients, not just the system.
Strongly disagree
Disagree
Neither agree nor disagree
Agree
Strongly agree
