2025 NJ Legislative Candidate Survey

Your Name *

First

Last

Your Email *

Phone Number *

District # *

Position You Are Running For: *

Campaign Manager Information

Please indicate which statement is closer to your own view and more consistent with your legislative philosophy.

We realize that neither choice may perfectly express your position. Please feel free to use the space provided to clarify, expand or otherwise articulate your perspective.

Note: For the purpose of this survey, child(ren) refers to persons under 18.

1. *

A) It is a legislator’s duty to protect the health of the people, even at the expense of their freedom.
B) It is the government’s responsibility to protect the freedom of the people, even at the expense of the inherent risks to health that freedom implies.

1. Comments (Optional)

2. *

A) It is the government’s responsibility to implement the will of the majority. Those in the minority must either conform to this will or else deal with the consequences.
B) It is the government’s responsibility to safeguard the rights of the minority and respect the will of the individual by carving out reasonable protections and exceptions within the framework of the implementation of the will of the majority.

2. Comments (Optional)

3. *

A) Health is best described as freedom from sickness. To achieve this freedom we must avoid pathogens and people who harbor them. We can’t be healthy if we are sick or at risk of becoming sick.
B) Health is best described as the ability to process the full range of human experience successfully. This includes getting sick and becoming well again. We can’t be healthy if we are not free to do each according to our nature.

3. Comments (Optional)

4. *

A) Public health is defined by medical experts. The government must adhere to expert recommendations when creating public health policy and establishing it within the law.
B) Medical expertise is an essential resource for government officials when considering public health policy and law, but it is only one factor. The government must respect the ability of each human being to determine what health means for them and how to achieve it.

4. Comments (Optional)

5. *

A) Government officials should assume that medical experts are both accurate and honest. Medical experts are almost always correct and they are concerned first and foremost with helping people.
B) While medical experts have specialized knowledge, they are prone to error, bias and self-interest just like anyone else. An effective leader must be a savvy consumer of information, especially when asked to accept its truth on the basis of authority.

5. Comments (Optional)

6. *

A) Public health authorities create population level recommendations which will always cause harm to some individuals. Our lawmakers must provide protections for these individuals when crafting legislation concerning public health policy.
B) Public health authorities always consider and provide sufficient protections for those who may be harmed by the implementation of their policies. Lawmakers have no business changing the parameters of the protections provided by public health authorities.

6. Comments (Optional)

7. *

A) Public health authorities and elected officials share a responsibility to keep everyone healthy and safe. The people expect this and have implied their consent for certain medical decisions to be made on their behalf.
B) Public health authorities and elected officials share a responsibility to create and preserve conditions which support people as they make their own decisions as to their health and safety.

7. Comments (Optional)

8. *

A) It is a parent’s job to make the correct decisions when caring for the health of their children. In doing so, they should rely strictly on facts provided by medical experts in accordance with the recommendations of public health authorities.
B) It is a parent’s job to make the best decisions they can for their children by relying on faith, reason and the intimate understanding of their child that only parents possess. In matters of medical decision making, these resources should be brought into consultation with a trusted healthcare practitioner when appropriate.

8. Comments (Optional)

9. *

A) Children have a right to be protected from illness. It is the government’s responsibility to provide this protection whenever possible. It is the role of parents to support the government’s efforts to protect all children.
B) Children have a right to exist in a healthy environment. It is up to parents to create and modify environments in a healthy manner on their behalf. It is the government’s responsibility to support parents in this duty by providing diverse resources and ensuring that a variety of options exist for all families.

9. Comments (Optional)

10. *

A) When a parent places their child in a public school, they imply their consent for the school and/or state to make certain decisions as to their child’s health. The school and/or state has a responsibility to care for the health of its students.
B) When a parent places their child in a public school, they do not imply their consent for the school and/or state to make any medical decisions for their child. The only exceptions are in the provision of routine care expressly consented to by the parents and the facilitation of urgent medical care when necessary in an emergency.

10. Comments (Optional)

11. *

A) Children should have the right to consent to medical interventions such as vaccination, regardless of their parent’s intent in this regard. While children do not have the capacity to make important medical decisions generally, it is fine as long as they are making the right choice.
B) Children do not have the capacity to make medical decisions. It is the responsibility of parents to make such decisions on their behalf. The government should never disregard and/or bypass parental authority.

11. Comments (Optional)

12. *

A) The COVID pandemic was an unprecedented challenge at every level. While some mistakes were made, it is generally true that the decisions of government and public health authorities were made in good faith and were appropriate based upon what was known at the time. The next pandemic will surely be better handled because our public health experts have learned from their mistakes.
B) While the COVID pandemic was a unique and difficult challenge, the response of our government and public health authorities was a disaster which must never be repeated. The extreme mitigation measures put in place were injurious to both health and freedom. Any future epidemic must be met with a smarter, more sophisticated approach which respects and balances each of these essential conditions of life.

12. Comments (Optional)

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Please read the following questions and answer YES or NO.

13.

One of the lessons of the pandemic is the profound harm which comes from social isolation. It is definitively linked to a wide range of poor health outcomes and an increased suicide risk, especially among our youth.

Nevertheless, there are some government and public health officials who would ban children from school and from school sponsored social activity based solely upon their vaccination status.

13. Would you oppose any effort to exclude children from school and/or social activity based upon their vaccination status? *

13. Comments (Optional)

14. Are there ANY circumstances under which you would EVER support or allow any version of a "vaccine passport" system to exist in New Jersey, where vaccine status would determine the right of individuals to enter establishments, travel freely and/or have access to the full range of public and private goods and services in this state? *

14. Comments (Optional)

15. It is undisputed that those suffering from serious illness or injury fare better with the presence of a loved one or other supportive advocate during a hospitalization. Nevertheless, many hospitals and long term care institutions restrict or prohibit visitation and human contact despite the harmful effect of such policies.

Would you support a "No patient Left Alone"Act, which would guarantee patients the right to a family member/supporter during their hospitalization, prioritizing intensive care, elderly/disabled and long term care patients? *

15. Comments (Optional)

16. Laws which dictate how medical care is to be applied and to whom are among the most consequential processes of government. Diligence and rigor in the formulation of such laws must be matched with clarity and transparency as to the source and the basis of their content.

Would you support a requirement that the medical experts responsible for providing the scientific basis for such legislation be publicly identified along with the specific evidence relied upon? *

16. Comments (Optional)

17. Among developed nations, the United States has the lowest life expectancy at birth, the highest rates for avoidable or treatable conditions, the highest maternal and infant mortality and among the highest suicide rates.

While there is a new national momentum for a return to the robust health of previous generations, there is no reason for New Jersey to wait for changes at the federal level in order to heal and thrive.

As a lawmaker, would you support a legislative initiative to develop a comprehensive plan with the goal of empowering the people of New Jersey to become the healthiest men, women and children in the nation? *

17. Comments (Optional)

18. The principles of medical freedom and parental rights (as considered here) are founded upon the wisest of traditions and are consistent with the most sophisticated stages of science and reason. They are easy to agree with and even to voice support for under most circumstances.

In times of crisis, however, fear dominates the public discourse and opportunistic interests seek the use the leverage thus provided. This is when it can become difficult to withstand the pressure to conform to what seems to be the weight of consensus.

18. Do you have the strength as a leader to stand for these principles on behalf of all of us, even when it seems dangerous and you are made to feel alone in your stand? *

18. Comments (Optional)