State Senate District 7 represents most of New Hanover County, with the exception of a small carve-out in downtown Wilmington, which is part of District 8 (which covers Brunswick and Columbus counties).
The candidates’ responses are presented without edits (except for formatting). Below are the responses from Democratic challenger Dr. David Hill.
What is your stance on abortion — and what, if any, changes would you make to existing state law which bans abortion after 12 weeks, with exceptions for fetal abnormalities, health of the mother, and rape/incest?
We all deserve the freedom to make our own medical decisions and to get the care we need when he need it. Unfortunately, my opponent told this community he would oppose an extreme abortion ban but then caved to extremists and voted six times to ban abortion. I work with OB-GYNs every day and have seen how this ban is harming women and putting lives at risk.
I’m running to defend reproductive freedom because the women of North Carolina deserve the freedom to make their own healthcare decisions — including abortion, IVF, and birth control — without interference from the government.
What steps will you take to help create more affordable housing in your role in the legislature?
No matter where you live in New Hanover County, whether you rent or own, the cost of housing is through the roof. The General Assembly, along with our local government, must work to lower housing costs.
I’m going to Raleigh to tackle the housing affordability crisis with every tool at our disposal, including securing funds to increase New Hanover County’s housing stock so that families can buy a home and put down roots and young people can afford to live and work in New Hanover County.
How will you address homelessness in your role in state government?
The contributing factors to homelessness are many, and any solution to getting people into housing is going to take multiple approaches. I strongly support funding organizations like the Good Shepherd Center and Coastal Horizons to deal with acute homelessness (shelter, food, etc.) and some of the underlying causes including mental health issues and substance abuse.
However, we must also address one of the overlooked yet obvious answers to reducing homelessness: lowering the cost of housing and raising wages. We must solve the housing affordability crisis and ensure our local economy can support the people who live and work in New Hanover County.
What’s your stance on funding public education? Specifically, what changes, if any, would you support for per-pupil funding, the private school voucher program, and accepting federal funding?
Public education is essential to ensuring that every child has the opportunity to reach their full potential. But while public schools suffer, hundreds of millions of our tax dollars flow to charter schools and exclusive, unaccountable (often religious) private schools.
This is unconscionable at a time when North Carolina is ranked 38th in the nation for teacher pay — with an average teacher salary almost $13,000 below the national average — and per-pupil spending recently ranked 48th in the nation.
We must fully fund our public schools, give teachers a real inflation-adjusted pay raise, and use every tool at our disposal to ensure that the 1.4 million students in public schools receive a high-quality education.
What changes, if any, would you make to funding for transportation infrastructure (roads, bridges, etc) and public transportation (like WAVE)?
Ensuring that we continue to prioritize and fund quality roads, bridges, ports, and other transportation infrastructure is essential to our quality of life and our region's economy. As funding sources like the motor fuels tax decrease and transportation infrastructure grows in tandem with our population, we need a comprehensive plan to fund transportation infrastructure into the future that doesn’t increase the cost burden on hardworking North Carolinians.
Would you support an independent commission to draw legislative boundaries? Why or why not?
Absolutely. North Carolina is evenly divided statewide among Republicans and Democrats, yet we have a supermajority of one party in both the House and the Senate. That makes no sense.
Republicans have used gerrymandering — including right here in New Hanover County — to consolidate power, leading to near total one-party rule in our state. They have used their power to pass an extreme abortion ban, roll back common sense gun safety measures, and defund our public schools. We need independent districts so that the voters choose their politicians and not the other way around.
Would you work to repeal the state law that says you are your public records' custodian? If not, why do you think you should be exempt from the public records laws that apply to so many other local and state officials?
I believe in the utmost transparency in government and would support measures that increase transparency in Raleigh instead of limiting it.
How would you support economic development in the Cape Fear region (and what kind of development would you like to see)?
We all deserve the opportunity to work hard and succeed, but that’s getting harder to do in today’s economy. As a doctor speaking with patients and now as a candidate, I hear from people every day who are struggling to make ends meet.
We can and will do more to boost our local economy, lower costs, and put more money in the pockets of residents. My economic priorities include helping small businesses thrive by cutting red tape and investing in their success, solving the housing affordability crisis and high cost of homeowners insurance, and lowering taxes on hardworking families.
Would you like to see state taxes go up, down, or hold steady?
I believe that everyone should pay their fair share and that hardworking North Carolinians shouldn’t be unduly burdened by taxes while wealthy corporations benefit from tax cuts. Ensuring that people and businesses can reinvest in our community and our state is essential.
One proposal I am passionate about is reinstating the Earned Income Tax Credit to help working families burdened by inflation. We used to have a state Earned Income Tax Credit, and when the Federal Government utilized these credits during the pandemic, we nearly eliminated childhood poverty in North Carolina.
What other issues are you hoping to focus on?
As someone who has dedicated my life to caring for children and families in New Hanover County, ensuring access to high quality and affordable health care for our community will be one of my top priorities. I see kids with everything from the common cold to brain cancer. But do you want to know the biggest challenge many of my patients face? Just being able to afford the care my colleagues and I provide.
Like most things, the cost of healthcare is rising, and we need to look at ways to lower those costs for families. It took us way too long — 10 years — but we finally expanded Medicaid and now we need to look at additional solutions to lower the cost of healthcare like lowering prescription drug prices and routine services, ensuring that families and hardworking people aren’t being exploited by insurance companies, and funding low-cost community health clinics like the one I work at Downtown.