Brad Fox

Democrat

Candidate’s Links:

Office Sought: Representative – District 33
Age: 68
Occupation: Teacher, retired school principal
Education: M.S. Educational Leadership, California State University, East Bay
Family: Two daughters in college, one at Maine Maritime Academy, one at York University.
Hometown: South Portland (NYC)

Political experience

Councilor, South Portland City Council
Council Member, Shattuck Avenue Center Council, Consumers Cooperative of Berkeley, CA
Board Member, Downtown Berkeley Association, Berkeley, CA
Board Member, Berkeley Community Media, Berkeley, CA
Commissioner, Community Health Advisory Committee, Berkeley, CA

Why are you running for office?

I’ll work hard on the issues that South Portland residents care about: quality education, protecting our environment and our health and safety, and keeping our property tax burden low. We need to create the space for innovative businesses and industries with new technologies to develop here in Maine.

I support the ballot measures to establish a 3 percent tax on household income over $200,000 to support our schools, to require specific background checks for gun sales and transfers, to increase the minimum wage to $12 per hour by 2020, and to establish statewide ranked-choice voting. I intend to advocate for them. I also want to bring back last session’s solar bill, which is vitally important to Maine’s energy future. I’ve supported South Portland’s move toward solar with our proposed solar energy farm.

I’m life-long progressive Democrat who supported Bernie Sanders and now fully supports Hillary Clinton for president. I won’t mince words here, as many politicians do. Donald Trump is an irrational, bigoted, pathological liar who must never become president. The people of South Portland must also be protected from Governor LePage who displays some of the same qualities as Trump. The governor should resign or be removed from office,

I’ve been endorsed by the Sierra Club, the Maine People’s Alliance, the Maine Education Association, and the Maine State Employees Association, Local 1989 / SEIU. More endorsements are forthcoming.

• Income Tax: Gov. LePage would like to lower Maine’s income tax rate and eventually eliminate it, by increasing the state’s sales tax and expanding it across a broader range of goods and services. Do you support this proposal?
  • NoThis measure would be a disaster for Maine homeowners whose property taxes would skyrocket. The income tax is a progressive tax where everyone pays their fair share. If you’re rich you can afford to pay a little more. Property taxes shift the burden to the middle class and the poor and elderly who can’t afford them.
• Background Checks: Do you support background checks for privately sold firearms in Maine?
  • YesAbsolutely yes! We need to keep guns out of the hands of disturbed individuals and terrorists.
• Minimum Wage: In light of the ballot question facing voters this fall, do you support raising the state’s minimum wage from $7.50 to $12 an hour by 2020?
  • YesI’m a long-time advocate for raising the minimum wage and have brought the issue before the South Portland City Council. All Mainer’s need to earn a living wage and by enacting this law we will lower our tax burden for welfare and other social services. Henry Ford knew that by raising wages employees would be able to afford to buy the cars that they produced at his factory.
• Marijuana: Do you support legalization of marijuana for recreational use?
  • Yes
    I’m probably one of the only people running for office who has had students arrested for marijuana. But as a school principal, I had to keep all drugs and alcohol out of my school. But that doesn’t mean I liked helping get kids a police record that sometimes followed them for life. The people of South Portland voted to legalize marijuana for recreational use several years ago. I will support my town’s position, although I wish the initiative’s minimum age was 25.
• Addiction/Overdoses: Do you believe the state is doing enough in response to the rise in heroin/opiate addiction and overdoses? If not, what else should be done?
  • Not at all. We need to increase our treatment programs for heroin/opiate addiction. It has reached crisis levels throughout the state. We certainly see the problem right here in South Portland. Our police chief told me it’s the worst he’s seen in his entire career.