Dan Forest's Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)
Key
Official Position: Candidate addressed this issue directly by taking the Political Courage Test.
Inferred Position: Candidate refused to address this issue, but Vote Smart inferred this issue based on the candidate's public record, including statements, voting record, and special interest group endorsements.
Unknown Position: Candidate refused to address this issue, or we could not infer an answer for this candidate despite exhaustive research of their public record.
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Other or Expanded Principles & Legislative Priorities are entered exactly as candidates submit them. Vote Smart does not edit for misspelled words, punctuation or grammar.
Dan Forest has provided voters with clear stances on key issues by responding to the 2020 Political Courage Test.
North Carolina Gubernatorial Election 2020 Political Courage Test
| Pro-life | a) Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation? | ||
| No | b) Do you support legalizing abortion when the pregnancy resulted from incest or rape? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support the prohibition of public funds for organizations that perform abortions? | ||
| Abortion should be allowed only in the very rare case of something like an ectopic pregnancy, where the life of the mother is in serious danger. | |||
| No | a) In order to balance the budget, do you support reducing state employee salaries AND/OR pensions? | ||
| No | b) In order to balance the budget, do you support an income tax increase on any tax bracket? | ||
| I'm proud that North Carolina has been able to balance its budget for the past decade without tax increases and without reducing employee salaries and pensions. The Forest administration will keep promises the state has made to state employees and retirees. | |||
| No | a) Do you support a limit on campaign contributions to state candidates? | ||
| No | b) Do you support the regulation of indirect campaign contributions from corporations and unions? | ||
| No | c) Do you support the use of an independent AND/OR bipartisan commission for redistricting? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support requiring a government-issued photo identification in order to vote at the polls? | ||
| No | e) Do you support automatic voter registration? | ||
| Yes | f) Do you support the removal of foreign citizens from state voting rolls? | ||
| While we support eliminating limits on political contributions, we support quicker and more transparent reporting requirements. | |||
| Yes | a) Do you support capital punishment for certain crimes? | ||
| No | b) Should an individual under 18 accused of a violent crime be prosecuted as an adult? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support the enforcement of federal immigration laws by state and local police? | ||
| No | d) Do you support the use of private prisons in North Carolina? | ||
| No | e) Do you support mandatory minimum sentences for non-violent drug offenders? | ||
| No | f) Do you support the prosecution of hate crimes as felonies? | ||
| Yes | g) Do you support requiring state and local law enforcement to publicly disclose use-of-force data reports? | ||
| We support our hard-working corrections officers. | |||
| No | a) Do you support state government spending as a means of promoting economic growth? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support lowering state income taxes as a means of promoting economic growth? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support reducing government regulations on the private sector? | ||
| Yes | d) Do you support requiring welfare applicants to pass a drug test in order to receive benefits? | ||
| No | e) Do you support an increase of the minimum wage of North Carolina? | ||
| No | f) Do you support requiring employers to provide paid family leave? | ||
| Yes | g) Do you support providing financial relief to businesses AND/OR corporations negatively impacted by the state of national emergency for COVID-19? | ||
| h) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| No | a) Do you support adopting federal education standards in North Carolina? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support state funding for charter schools? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support increasing teacher salaries AND/OR benefits in North Carolina? | ||
| No | d) Should immigrants unlawfully present in the United States who graduate from North Carolina high schools be eligible for in-state tuition at public universities? | ||
| There is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all approach to education, so we should encourage options that meet the needs of students. Whatever it takes so that all students get the education they need. | |||
| No | a) Do you support state funding for the development of renewable energy (e.g. solar, wind, geo-thermal)? | ||
| Yes | b) Do you support government regulations of greenhouse gas emissions? | ||
| Yes | c) Do you support increasing state funding for clean drinking water initiatives? | ||
| d) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| No | a) Do you generally support gun-control legislation? | ||
| No | b) Should background checks be required on gun sales between private citizens at gun shows? | ||
| Yes | c) Should teachers be allowed to bring guns into the classroom after passing gun safety training? | ||
| No | d) Should a license be required for gun ownership? | ||
| The Second Amendment secures all the rights enshrined in our Constitution. | |||
| Yes | a) Should the state government increase funding for treatment facilities to combat opioid abuse? | ||
| No | b) Do you support Medicaid expansion through North Carolina's health care programs? | ||
| No | c) Do you support requiring individuals to purchase health care insurance? | ||
| No | d) Do you support legislation that grants citizens the right to choose to die through euthanasia? | ||
| No | e) Do you support eliminating religious exemptions for vaccinations? | ||
| No | f) Do you support requiring businesses to provide paid medical leave during public health crises, such as COVID-19? | ||
| g) Other or expanded principles: | |||
| No | a) Do you support the inclusion of sexual orientation in North Carolina's anti-discrimination laws? | ||
| No | b) Do you support the inclusion of gender identity in North Carolina's anti-discrimination laws? | ||
| No | c) Do you support greater efforts by North Carolina state government in closing the pay gap between men and women? | ||
| No | d) Do you support local governments having the authority, without review by state authorities, to remove certain memorials or monuments from public property? | ||
| The free market does a remarkable job handling most of these issues. On monuments, North Carolina law requires state authorities to review removal requests and the law should be followed. | |||
| Creating One North Carolina. Too many politicians spend their time stoking fear and division. North Carolina must reject identity politics. We must not forget that we all have much more in common than we have differences. Preparing for the modern economy. We must have an education plan that connects what students are learning to the demands of the market. Bridging the urban-rural divide. Our urban and rural areas have their own unique value and need each other to succeed. Smart investments will provide the infrastructure to make it as easy to do business in Macon County as in Mecklenburg. | |||
| Creating jobs. So many of society's ills can be cured by a good job. All parts of our state must have the infrastructure to land job opportunities and people need the training and skills to fill them. Putting students first. For too long, our education system has prioritized the system over the student. We must protect school choice so all students have access to a good education regardless of ZIP code. Protecting law and order. The government's first priority should be the security of the people. We must keep violent criminals off our streets and behind bars where they belong. |
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