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Dana Balter, a former Syracuse University professor, is running against three-time incumbent Rep. John Katko (R-Camillus) to represent New York’s 24th Congressional district. 

Balter, who was a professor in SU’s Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, launched her 2020 campaign in April 2019 after narrowly losing her first campaign to Katko by about 5 percentage points in 2018. Katko, a former federal prosecutor, is running for his fourth term in Congress. 

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With Election Day two weeks away, here are the candidates’ stances on some key issues:

Health care

A primary component of Balter’s platform is expanding access to affordable and high-quality health care. If elected, Balter has said she will fight to protect the Affordable Care Act, which provides about 20 million Americans with health insurance. Balter has also said she ultimately wants to implement universal health care.

Balter’s platform supports lowering out-of-pocket costs for health insurance and protecting people with preexisting conditions so insurance companies can’t charge them higher premiums or deny them coverage. Balter also seeks to safeguard women’s access to reproductive health care, including well-visits, cancer screenings and safe abortion services.

Katko has pushed Congress to find an alternative to the ACA but has opposed efforts to repeal the ACA that don’t include a replacement plan. Katko wants the alternative to keep requirements that protect people with preexisting conditions and allow children to remain on the policy of a parent until age 26, according to syracuse.com.  He opposes universal health care.

Police reform and criminal justice 

Katko voted against the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, which includes measures to increase accountability for police officer misconduct, enhance transparency and data collection on officer discipline, and eliminate discriminatory policing practices. The legislation would also ban chokeholds and no-knock warrants. The bill passed in the House and was introduced in the Senate in June.

Katko also co-sponsored the Justice Act, a narrower alternative for police reform that Republicans introduced in the House and the Senate in June. The proposal would not place a federal ban on chokeholds or other uses of force. 

Balter has proposed providing mental health and job training services in prisons, ending mandatory minimum sentences and three-strikes laws, and ending the use of private prisons and detention centers. 

She also supports the demilitarization of police departments, legalizing marijuana and expunging past marijuana-related convictions “to begin to repair the decade of damage done to communities of color.”

Katko opposes legalizing marijuana and expunging all criminal records of those with marijuana convictions, Syracuse.com reported.

Balter’s platform advocates for reinstating environmental protections that President Donald Trump’s administration has rolled back and instituting a carbon emissions tax. Balter has said that putting a price on carbon emissions will reduce demand for fossil fuels and spur investment in renewable energy. 

 Balter also wants to modernize the energy grid to allow more communities to access renewable energy sources and promote sustainable farming practices. Balter would implement tax incentives and grants for farmers’ adoption of sustainable practices.

Katko’s environmental platform includes supporting the use of modern extraction methods, such as fracking, to increase U.S. production of fossil fuels, while continuing to research clean energy options, according to his campaign site. 

President Trump

In January, Katko endorsed President Donald Trump’s reelection, citing the president’s economic and trade policies. During the 2016 presidential race, Katko had called for Trump to drop out of the race following controversial comments Trump made about women.

Katko’s endorsement of Trump’s 2020 campaign sparked backlash from local activists, including some who organized a rally outside Katko’s office in February, which Balter attended.

In a debate with Balter on Monday, Katko said he has spoken out against the president’s rhetoric and will continue to do so. Katko has also criticized the president’s efforts to cut food stamps and use Defense Department funds to build a border wall, according to syracuse.com. 

In August, Joe Biden, the Democratic presidential nominee and a Syracuse University College of Law alumnus, endorsed Balter’s congressional election bid. Biden said in the statement that he “strongly endorses” Balter for Congress because she understands the current struggles of working families in central and western New York. 

Campaign finance reform 

Both Balter and Katko have advocated for campaign finance reform laws.

Both Balter and Katko support an amendment that would nullify the 2010 Supreme Court decision on Citizens United v. FEC. The 5-4 ruling allowed corporations, nonprofits and special interest groups unlimited spending on elections.

Last year, Katko worked with Democrats to introduce a constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United, according to syracuse.com. The amendment would allow Congress and state governments to regulate and set limits on the raising and spending of money by candidates in elections.

Balter also wants to institute a small-donor matching program, implement a five-year ban on former members of Congress and executive branch officials becoming lobbyists and a six-year ban on lobbyists joining a congressional staff that they previously lobbied.

Published on October 19, 2020 at 11:51 pm

Contact Madison: mntyler@syr.edu