Name as it appears on the ballot: Matt Hughes
Age: 31
Party affiliation: Democrat
Campaign website: www.matthughesnc.com
Occupation & employer: Finance Manager, BluePrint NC
Years lived in North Carolina: 31 (and a lifelong resident of Orange County)
1. What in your background qualifies you to represent the people of North Carolina effectively? What would you cite as your three biggest career accomplishments?
As a lifelong resident of Orange County, my district has played an essential role in developing the person that I am today. Growing up, I struggled with a severe speech impediment. Fortunately, the schools in Orange County provided me with the resources to help me overcome my barriers, and to attend a top ranked public university. I am running for office because I believe that all North Carolinians deserve the same opportunities to succeed, and I want to invest in my district to help support people like myself, who come from diverse and economically disadvantaged backgrounds. I believe that my unique experiences and leadership will go a long way to make me the best legislator I can be for Orange and Caswell Counties.
My range of experiences include serving as Hillsborough Town Commissioner (presently serving as Mayor Pro-Tempore), appointment by Governor Roy Cooper to the Human Relations Commission for the State of North Carolina, as well as serving on the boards of the Hillsborough Tourism Development Authority and the Orange County Partnership for Young Children. All of these experiences reinforce my understanding of the (oftentimes negative) impact of the General Assembly on the areas of local government control, education, infrastructure, affordable housing, the economy, and tourism.
There is also my lived experience as a gay, black man in the South. Growing up and today I don’t have nearly as many privileges as those who are straight, cisgender, or white. Yet, I know that when I’m in positions of responsibility that I must work to bring the change we seek with a centering of Black and Brown voices on issues that disproportionately affect them but where we lack representation.
As a Town Commissioner, I believe my top accomplishments has been: delivering critical support to small businesses and those in need during the COVID-19 pandemic via ARPA funds and local assistance; pushing forward the creation of as Task Force for Reimagining Public Safety after George Floyd’s murder; moving our plans for the Hillsborough Amtrak station forward; and passing the state’s first non-discrimination ordinance post-HB2.
2. What do you believe to be the three most pressing issues facing the next General Assembly? What steps do you believe the state should take to address them?
Education- Our district has two school districts with pressing capital needs as well as an inability to recruit and retain teachers due to burnout, the pandemic, salaries, and more. I will work within the NCGA to pass a statewide bond referendum for school capital projects, raise teacher pay to the national average, and provide additional salary support for rural counties and those with low property values to invest in teachers.
Broadband- This issue has been an issue in my district since Bill Faison represented this district in the mid 2000’s. ARPA and additional support from the General Assembly goes a long way to implement broadband, especially rural broadband. I want to take it a step further and ensure that the internet is treated as a utility and that equitable access to broadband is an economic justice issue and an economic driver.
Medicaid Expansion- So much of my district does not have access to health insurance nor do they have access to healthcare providers, especially in the more rural areas. As a legislator, I will fight for and support Medicaid expansion in the House and work to send the legislation to Governor Cooper for his signature.
3. To what extent do you support municipalities exerting local control over issues such as regulating greenhouse gas emissions, criminal justice reforms and police oversight, and passing development-regulating ordinances?
As a municipal officeholder I understand just how restrictive North Carolina’s General Assembly has been when it comes to local control. My constituents and those in other progressive communities are tired of waiting for Raleigh and Washington to finally address these issues. I support giving more home rule to local governments to be able to combat the climate emergency, give local law enforcement agencies more discretion on things like regulatory stops, create police oversight boards, and use land-use and development ordinances to address issues like affordable housing. Our local governments are often cited by conservatives as the level that governs best because it’s closest to the people. It’s time that we treat our counties and municipalities as such and give them more tools to combat the issues that people living at the local level are seeking action on.
4. Do you support raising North Carolina’s minimum wage, and if so by how much? If not, what other initiatives would you take to support low-income families in North Carolina?
No one should have to work forty or more hours a week and still struggle to pay for housing or feed their family. North Carolinians need jobs that will help them afford to live in their communities and provide for their families. I will promote legislation to ensure that North Carolinians are able to provide for themselves and their families. For example, I support raising the minimum wage to at least $15 an hour though I would support an even higher wage for areas where the cost of living is higher. As part of the minimum wage increase, I would propose to tie future increases to increases in inflation. Wages will never increase, but will certainly automatically increase like in our current economy.
For me it is not either-or, but both-and because this dualistic thinking leaves out so many people who even with higher wages need additional assistance from their government. North Carolina deserves a people’s budget that invests in education, healthcare, the environment, and affordable housing. Rather than funding the needs of the people of North Carolina, the Republicans in Raleigh have sought to give away large tax cuts to corporations and their wealthy donors at the expense of the poor and middle class. I will fight to preserve and increase funding for education, healthcare, affordable housing, environmental protection, and other social safety items like reinstatement of the Earned Income Tax Credit (which was originally proposed at the federal level by Ronald Reagan, which demonstrates how far Republicans have drifted from previous positions). I will fight against giving tax cuts to the wealthy and well connected at the expense of the people of this state.
5. With rent, property taxes, and home sale prices all rising, what, if anything, should the state legislature do to address this growing affordability crisis?
On the Hillsborough Town Board, I have been an advocate for affordable housing, and I plan to continue this advocacy in the North Carolina State House. Affordable housing is housing that is designed to be affordable and accessible to all people with the goal of permanent affordability in 99 year cycles. As a state legislator, I will promote and advocate for legislation that increases access to affordable housing in my district and across the state, including providing financing to local governments and nonprofits to build, purchase or maintain affordable units and to give local governments more power to mandate affordable units in pending development.
6. Do you believe that the state government has an obligation to prevent the impacts of climate change? If so, please state three specific policies you support to address climate change.
Yes, I believe the state government has an obligation to prevent the impacts of climate change. I also believed this as a Town Commissioner as I have always focused on the importance of protecting our environment. That has included passing a resolution and further supporting the e ort to make our town government operations a net-zero emitter of carbon. In fact, this plan calls for transitioning to 80% clean, renewable energy for town operations by 2030 and 100% by 2050.
The most pressing environmental justice issue is who is impacted by severe weather. It’s no longer just hurricanes, but even strong storms like the one in Hillsborough just a few years ago that after 15 minutes of a torrential downpour washed away a bridge owned by the Town, that are impacting our state and its people. These storms disproportionately affect poor people and people of color. Climate change must be the focus of protecting vulnerable communities, their homes, and their livelihoods. As a result we need to invest
in more infrastructure and to build resilience into how we do infrastructure planning so that these communities are protected. With affordable housing being harder and harder to find due to rising land costs, housing costs, and the costs to build, folks wanting to own a home may be more and more enticed to build in flood plains and other areas that make them vulnerable to extreme weather.
Beyond simply protecting our infrastructure and people, we must make fundamental changes in how our economy functions. We need to shift from a predominantly carbon-based economy to a green economy that includes investing more in solar and wind energy, electric vehicles, and other investments that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and create good paying jobs that cannot be outsourced.
When we construct new public buildings such as schools, we must require them to be LEED certified to ensure maximum energy efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
7. Would you support an independent process for drawing new legislative and congressional districts?
It is a fact that democracy is under attack by legislative Republicans, who have attempted to bring unconstitutional gerrymandering, restrictive voter ID laws, and partisan local elections. I believe that we must push back against these efforts that harm our democracy. The only way to fight back is to win the majority, hold them accountable in court, and take to the streets. As a representative, I support making Election Day a holiday or require employers to give PTO to employees to vote, implement automatic voter registration, implement an independent redistricting commission, restore the voting rights of those convicted of felonies, curb the influence of corporate lobbyists, reauthorize and expand public financing of elections, restore tax check off funding to political parties, and make judicial elections nonpartisan again. This is one of the biggest issues we do not talk about, but our democracy is so fragile and I will be its fiercest defender in every legislative session. And when the legislature attempts to roll back voting rights and democracy, I will be joining thousands in the streets to hold them accountable.
8. Does the General Assembly have a constitutional obligation to comply with the state Supreme Court order in the Leandro case to fully fund public schools and give every child in North Carolina a sound basic education?
We must fully fund Leandro, which has been an issue for most of my life, so all students have access to high quality education and opportunity. I know firsthand how important early childhood education is to North Carolina. Had it not been for Governor Hunt’s innovative program on this front, I may not be where I am today. North Carolina has a high demand for pre-k programs, but not enough funding to pay teachers well or provide enough seats in Pre-K classrooms. That’s why I support universal pre-k programs so that kids enter kindergarten ready to learn while also reducing poverty and providing support services. Part of this basic funding also has to be satisfying our $13.5 billion in urgent school building needs. We will need a state bond referendum to adequately satisfy these needs because we know that local governments often lack the tax base to support these repairs.
9. The U.S. Supreme Court may issue a ruling this summer that guts, or even overturns, Roe v. Wade. As a state lawmaker, would you support legislation that limits or prohibits abortion in North Carolina, or punishes/criminalizes abortion providers or patients?
Reproductive justice is a core part of my platform because I support an individual’s right to choose. It is important to note that abortion is undoubtedly an essential component of healthcare, and I will fight for the full range of reproductive rights. Should Roe v Wade be overturned, I will work to codify Roe into state law so that abortion is not limited, prohibited, punished or criminalized for providers or patients as we’re seeing in Texas and several other states.
10. Should North Carolina expand Medicaid? Where do you stand on increasing the number of slots for the Innovations Waiver for special needs individuals?
Growing up, my family relied on Medicaid and when I was 18 I was then denied access because of North Carolina’s stringent requirements for adults (despite not having income), I absolutely support expanding Medicaid in North Carolina. And I remain cautiously optimistic we might have support for expansion 12 years after the passage of the Affordable Care Act. While I support expansion of Medicaid, I do not support requirements for residents to sign up for Medicaid expansion, such as work requirements. I do support the Innovations Waivers and I also support robust oversight of the program after issues we’ve had with providers, like Cardinal Innovations, to deliver their commitments under such a program after the absolute greed and ultimate demise of Cardinal Innovations, the state’s first LME-MCO. If done right, this could provide additional support and empowerment for patients while keeping costs in check for the State.
11. Do you support reforming North Carolina’s marijuana laws? Do you support full legalization? Please explain your position.
I believe that Cannabis prohibition has damaged so many lives in North Carolina and across the country. I favor legalizing recreational and medicinal cannabis use and setting up a regulatory structure similar to the ABC Commission to regulate the licensing of dispensaries and tax the purchase of cannabis. In fact, we’ve seen economic booms in states that have legalized cannabis to varying degrees. So from an economic perspective, since the GOP has cut taxes and therefore weakened our revenue streams, legalizing cannabis could help our state’s economy tremendously. Additionally, I support extending amnesty for any resident who has been convicted of cannabis possession in our state.
12. Are there any issues this questionnaire has not addressed that you would like to address?
The moment we find ourselves requires a new generation of leadership. A generation that is unafraid to lead boldly and dare greatly in order to challenge the status quo. This moment will require us to have elected leaders who do not simply understand the issues their constituents face in an academic or theoretical sense, but are living the same experiences as their constituents on issues like affordable housing, jobs that pay well, accessible healthcare, student debt, and the climate crisis. I believe the biggest difference in this race boils down to who is best equipped to tackle these issues because they are living them each and every day.
