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Betsy Coffia, Running for Running for Michigan State House of Representatives, District 103

2024 Election Pride Source Candidate Survey Response

The 2024 Pride Source Media Voters Guide Candidate Survey sought the responses from Michigan candidates running for office in the Nov. 5 election. We asked candidates to respond to key issues impacting the Michigan LGBTQ+ community and about their visions for the future. Visit vote411.org to learn more about the candidates and issues on your ballot.

Candidate: Betsy Coffia

Running for Michigan State House of Representatives, District 103



Incumbent? Yes

Campaign Contact Info

Courtney Wiggins campaign Manager: (313) 732-7966; Candidate Betsy Coffia: (410) 934-9931
betsycoffia.com 

[email protected]

Facebook: betsycoffia

Twitter/X: BetsyCoffia

Candidate background

Education:


BSW, Ferris State University

Professional experience:

Former newspaper editor, former Head Start social worker, 2-term county commissioner, current state lawmaker.

What is your affiliation with the LGBTQ+ community?

Ally. 

Tell us about your top priorities and how you plan to achieve those goals. 

My region is experiencing severe access issues for housing and mental health care in particular and those are and will continue to be top priorities to serve LGBTQ+ and other constituents who are impacted. A key vote in my first term I was proud to take was to expand the Elliott Larsen Civil Rights act so that LGBTQ+ Michiganders are protected from discrimination in seeking both housing and employment. I am a New Deal Democrat with deep rural working class roots and grew up in a family that worked hard but struggled to access basics like healthcare, dental care etc. I have and will always prioritize economic justice and advocate for policies that embody the Paul Wellstone statement "We all do better when we all do better."  And I will work to address discrimination and bigotry in policy actions such as our vote to ban conversion therapy in Michigan this term and to elimintate the gay panic defense, so that ALL my constituents feel welcomed, safe and able to thrive no matter who they are, who they love, how they identify, their race, gender, zip code or bank balance.

Why are you the best candidate for this position?

See above. I am a rep from a seat that we flipped red to blue, the only one of 110 House seats to do so in 2022. We helped clinch a single seat majority and deliver the first Democratic trifecta in nearly 40 years. It is vital to hold this swing seat and continue with a Dem majority to advance a Michigan where we all  are welcome and we all can thrive.

How do you plan to represent and advocate for the needs of LGBTQ+ community members?

I shared a bit in my previous answers but I find it important to listen to and follow the lead of directly impacted community members; I have a strong relationship with my region's LGBTQ+ advocacy organization Up North PRIDE and I am fortunate to serve with the largest ever LGBTQ+ House delegation ever in Michigan and seek to follow their lead in legislation addressing LGBTQ+ concerns. 

State your position on transgender rights and how your office would work to protect this vulnerable population — particularly Black trans women, who are overrepresented in stats related to violence, the judicial system, homelessness, substance abuse and other serious issues.

LGBTQ+ rights are human rights and I have and will advocate and govern in a way that treats my trans and non binary constituents with respect and equity and works to address systemic injustices, particularly for members of the LGBTQ+ community who are also members of the BIPOC community.  

Homelessness among LGBTQ+ youth and young adults is a persistent issue in Michigan. How would your office make a positive impact for young LGBTQ+ people facing housing insecurity? 

As I shared in my opening statement I am very focused on addressing my region's crisis of access for housing and I work closely with Up North Pride and with the Coalition to End Homelessness who are focusing on ending youth homelessness, engaging vulnerable youth including LGBTQ+ youth who are at especially high risk. I have secured multiple policy changes and budget allocations that benefit my region directly and assist with expanding both funding and access to housing *and I fully recognize there is much more to do and the job isn't done until all our residents are safely housed.

State your position on abortion and other issues related to women’s reproductive health.

I have a strong record supporting reproductive freedom and voted to repeal Michigan's draconian 1931 abortion ban and voted in support of the legislature's Reproductive Health Act which removes Right To Life's past measures to restrict access to necessary abortion care with spurious regulations like door way width etc. which especially harms access for people needing care in rural regions like mine.

How do you feel about drag queens?

Fun and I could definitely learn from their style and fashion sense! 

On Marriage Equality: After the overturning of Roe v Wade, many question if the U.S. Supreme Court will revisit their 2015 Obergefell v. Hodges decision. Would you support any legislation that undermines the rights of same-sex couples to marry? (Yes or No — feel free to elaborate)

No.

On K-12 School Curriculum: States such as Florida have passed legislation preventing teachers, counselors and coaches from discussing sexual orientation and gender identity with their students, dubbed "Don't Say Gay" bills. Other states have passed legislation requiring LGBTQ+ inclusion in K-12 curricula, often determined by the local school district to determine how to effectively integrate learning materials throughout.

Michigan currently has neither a ban nor a requirement. Would you support legislation requiring Michigan schools to teach about LGBTQ+ people and identities in history and social sciences? (Yes or No — feel free to elaborate)

Yes.

How would your office help people struggling financially?

I grew up in a family that always struggled paycheck to paycheck despite how hard we work, so this is especially imporatnt to me. My State House team and I regularly do casework advocating in partnership with people who are dealing with economic hardship; we recently spent nearly 8 months battling an effort to force sale of a disabled man in his 60s home to pay for an $11k Medicaid bill charged after the death of his mother of dementia. He had saved the state hundreds of thousands of dollars by moving in with his mother and father as they both were in failing health, as their 24-7 caregiver for several years until they died at home. This was a nonsensical charge for Medicaid services we learned were never rendered and would have rendered him homeless in a housing market where rent is median $1800 a month and home prices are median half a million dollars. My team and I work hard to advocate for the most vulnerable of our constituents in casework like this, as well as policy and budget advocacy like expanding the Earned Income Tax Credit for lower income working families from 6% to 30% of federal to put more money back in people's pockets, and voting to make breakfast and lunch no cost for all K-12 students in Michigan, among other measures. 

Anything else you’d like to share with our readers?

Thank you for the opportunity to share with you.

Visit vote411.org and michiganvoting.org to learn about the candidates and issues on your ballot and to make a voting plan.



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