BUTTE COUNTY, Calif. — Update
Republican Representative and incumbent Doug LaMalfa faced off against Democratic party candidate Audrey Denney for California's 1st Congressional District.
This race is what's known as an election rematch: the same two candidates fought for the seat in 2018 with LaMalfa securing the seat with 55% of the vote.
The district makes up a good chunk of the northern portion of the state and includes 11 counties: Butte, Lassen, Modoc, Plumas, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, and Tehama and parts of Glenn, Nevada and Placer.
Original story:
Here is where these candidates stand on some of the biggest issues facing the California district today:
Environment/Energy
LaMalfa
The incumbent candidate says he would not focus on renewable power like the trend of the rest of the state, but promotes an "all-of-the-above energy approach." LaMalfa focuses in on what he calls domestic energy — such as natural gas, hydropower, oil, and biomass — and says he would support these industries by removing restrictions, expediting the permitting process, and streamlining duplicative environmental reviews.
Denney
Denney supports the Green New Deal, a proposal geared toward fighting climate change with "green" jobs in renewable and clean energy sectors. According to her official election website, Denney says, "I want to the be a policymaker who crafts pragmatic policies that support the vision of the Green New Deal — tailored to benefit the people and the communities of California's first district."
Wildfire Prevention
LaMalfa
Forest management is a big part of LaMalfa's proposed wildfire prevention strategy. LaMalfa says he would look to policies that allow local forest professionals the flexibility to access state forests and thin them, such as his bill, the Electricity Reliability and Forest Protection Act, which was recently signed into law.
Denney
The Democratic candidate agrees that forest management is a big deal when it comes to preventing wildfires. One of her top priorities under fire prevention on her website is to "increase public-private partnership in forest management through stewardship contracts, which reduce the cost of forest management, and boost local economies," which is somewhat similar to LaMalfa's stance.
Health Care
LaMalfa
LaMalfa says he supports repealing Obamacare and replacing it with reforms that "lower the cost of care and put patients back in charge of their health care decisions." The incumbent candidate argues that issues with the Affordable Care Act are exacerbated in rural areas where "workforce shortages continue to be an obstacle in accessing timely care."
Denney
Denney points to Medicare as an area that she would protect and expand if elected. The candidate also proposes decreased prescription drug costs. She says she supports preventive care, and would seek to improve access to quality medical care, mental health services, and addiction recovery.
Education
LaMalfa
The Republican incumbent specifically points to parents having different options in their child's education as a priority. LaMalfa says that parents should have the opportunity to send their children to a high-quality charter or private school, or chose home-schooling, and that this increased competition would "strengthen the accountability of our public schools." LaMalfa does not propose increased spending for public schools, differing from his opponent. However, he does say on his website that he is "concerned over the rapidly increasing cost of tuition" in higher education.
Denney
Denney is a former educator at Chico State, and says she supports legislation that invests in teachers and schools and develops partnerships with the private sector to enhance career and technological education. One of her top priorities includes, "strengthening the pipeline of the teaching workforce, including incentivizing teaching as a career through student loan forgiveness programs, mentoring, and continuing education."
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