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Candidate Q&A – U.S. House District 5

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Candidate Q&A – U.S. House District 5

Kenny Ray holds a vote sign during a voter registration rally and vaccination clinic hosted by DeKalb County District 5 Commissioner Mereda Davis Johnson at the DeKalb County Voter Registration & Elections Office in greater Decatur on Friday, April 1, 2022. Photo by Dean Hesse.
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Decaturish and Tucker Observer sent candidate Q&As to all candidates in our readership area running for state and federal office. The Q&As were sent to United States House District 5 candidates Nikema Williams (D, incumbent) and Christian Zimm (R). The answers have not been edited.

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Rep. Nikema Williams

Candidate name and party affiliation:

Nikema Williams

Candidate website:

NikemaforCongress.com

What is your occupation?

Member of Congress

What neighborhood do you call home?

Princeton Lakes in Atlanta

Why are you running for this position?

I am running for re-election to build further upon my commitment to represent Georgia’s Fifth District in Congress, out loud and on purpose. In Congress, I will continue to fight to ensure the promise of America for all. In Congress and previously in the State Legislature, I have fought for working families and those most marginalized, especially when it comes to our voting rights and reproductive freedom. My work on the Financial Services and Transportation and Infrastructure Committees has further strengthened my position to fight for what the people of the Fifth District need to not merely survive, but thrive. I am also well equipped to do this work as the first Black woman to Chair the Democratic Party of Georgia, where I lead the fight statewide to expand access to the vote and opportunity for Georgians. I know what is needed and how to fight for a more prosperous Georgia and I look forward to continuing to do this work.

What are your top three priorities if you are elected?

Ensuring the right to vote and everyone having their voices heard in our democracy is my priority. In 2022, I worked to pass the Freedom to Vote: John R. Lewis Act and will continue to fight until it becomes law. I also authored key voting rights legislation; the Voters on the Move Registration Act, Expanding the VOTE Act, Youth Voting Rights Act, and Sustaining Our Democracy Act to make to make it easier for people to register and exercise their right to vote. To further uplift the voices of the marginalized, I focus on ensuring opportunity, autonomy, and power through education and healthcare. Access to affordable quality education is a critical part of advancing marginalized communities, it means investing in universal pre-K and HBCUs. I am a cosponsor of the IGNITE HBCU Excellence Act and worked to secure HBCU funding in FY22 appropriations and the Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act. Georgia Republican leadership has failed marginalized Georgians by not expanding Medicaid and denying affordable healthcare to those who need it most. I support of Medicare for All, universal paid leave, and full reproductive freedom for all to ensure healthcare and care are rights that are not dependent on your bank account or ZIP code.

If elected, how will you work with members of the opposite party to accomplish your goals?

When it makes sense, I work with members of the opposite party because the main priority is to get positive policies enacted for my constituents. I am grounded in my values and won’t compromise the purpose of legislation, but in Congress, you learn that there are instances where Democrats and Republicans can find common ground for the people.

How will you work with the leadership of DeKalb County to accomplish their legislative goals?

I am glad to share that we currently and will continue to work with Dekalb County – engaging directly with leadership, the community and regularly sharing funding opportunities to ensure the needs of residents and the locality is met.

What is your reaction to the closure of Atlanta Medical Center and how would you work to improve healthcare access for all Georgians?

Suddenly closing Atlanta Medical Center jeopardizes the well-being of their patients and our entire community and puts the livelihoods of the hospital’s employees at risk. Refusing to expand Medicaid has placed an enormous financial burden on hospitals that leaves patients suffering the most, and this is ultimately a failure of Republican leadership here in Georgia. I will continue to fight for strong reimbursements to health providers as well as universal health coverage and Medicare for All. This term, I held a town hall to discuss increased healthcare benefits with experts and constituents and I will continue this work in Congress.

If you are elected, would you favor further regulating technology companies like Amazon and Facebook? If so, what new regulations would you like to see? If not, why not?

Congress has a critical job to write the rules of the road as the road is being built, and that is especially true as technology continues to evolve. I support robust conversations in Congress to ensure the laws regulating technology companies are keeping up with modern-day realities and following with evidence-based legislation.

If you are elected, how would you work with your colleagues to address inflation?

I will continue building on the success of the Inflation Reduction by continuing to reduce the costs that everyday Americans face – especially the cost of care. I introduced the CEDS Act to take a commonsense first step forward and I will continue this work if re-elected.

Should the U.S. Congress pass a law that guarantees a right to have an abortion?

Yes

Do you support decriminalizing marijuana at the federal level? Why or why not?

Yes, in fact, I support full legalization of cannabis. However, this is only step one toward criminal justice reform and racial justice – one of many. Black and brown people have suffered from our federal marijuana policies and are disproportionately jailed and arrested for marijuana-related offenses. The MORE Act will help right some of these injustices while reinvesting in communities that were harmed by our misguided federal marijuana laws. The House of Representatives did its job. Now, I am pushing to encourage my colleagues in the Senate to quickly act to pass this bipartisan legislation. We must undo the damage from our failed war on drugs.

If you are elected, do you promise to conduct yourself in an ethical and transparent manner? How would you work to promote ethics and transparency in government?

I always center the most marginalized in my decisions and challenge my colleagues to do the same. If re-elected, I promise to continue this ethical and transparent stance. I serve on the Modernization of Congress Committee, where I remind everyone that people like me, a Black woman named Nikema, are here and there have to be changes in government to recognize the diversity and increase equity.

Christian Zimm

Candidate name and party affiliation:

Christian Zimm, Republican

Candidate website:

www.christianzimm.com

What is your occupation?

Attorney

What neighborhood do you call home?

Buckhead

Why are you running for this position?

My top priority is to reduce crime in Metro Atlanta which has been increasing over the past few years. We must fully fund our police departments, hire more police officers, pay them more, invest in more 911 operators so that citizens aren’t getting voicemail, and show our appreciation for law enforcement again. My opponent doesn’t acknowledge crime is even an issue and supports defunding the police.

What are your top three priorities if you are elected?

1) Reduce crime in Metro Atlanta by fully funding our police, hiring more officers and 911 operators, and respecting our police again

2) Reducing inflation since these higher prices are hitting average working people in the district and squeezing their budgets

3) Invest more into our crumbling infrastructure

If elected, how will you work with members of the opposite party to accomplish your goals?

I simply want to make our community a safer place for everyone, I don’t care about political party. If we agree that crime is a problem and needs to be addressed, I will work with whomever to find common ground in order to make Metro Atlanta safer.

How will you work with the leadership of DeKalb County to accomplish their legislative goals?

The leadership of Dekalb County and I have a great relationship as many of them are my friends. I lived in Decatur for six years and have developed deep relationships with many people in the community. We will put our differences aside to ensure that all of Dekalb County is a better community.

What is your reaction to the closure of Atlanta Medical Center and how would you work to improve healthcare access for all Georgians?

The closure of the Atlanta Medical Center is detrimental to our already stressed healthcare system in Metro Atlanta. Our current leaders did nothing to prevent this from happening. AMC’s closure proves that hospitals must be run like businesses and not charities; and as a result of AMC losing hundreds of millions of dollars over the last years, its closure will now cost citizens another important source of healthcare. The VA Hospital in Dekalb is another poorly run system costly our veterans. First, these hospitals must change to be run like businesses not charities to stay open and, second, our government leaders must support them properly.

If you are elected, would you favor further regulating technology companies like Amazon and Facebook? If so, what new regulations would you like to see? If not, why not?

Tech companies pose the biggest threat to free speech. Companies like Facebook, Twitter, and others have progressed to become the beacons of speech and they are constantly censoring certain forms of speech on their platforms. Misinformation and obvious fake news should not be allowed; however, these tech companies should not be oppressing users’ first amendment right to freedom of speech. I would support investigations, and potentially very strong legislation, to ensure that these tech companies are not censoring free speech on their platforms.

If you are elected, how would you work with your colleagues to address inflation?

First, we must not pass laws that contribute to the deficit such as eliminating student loan debt. It’s purely principle that individuals who take out loans must pay them back, regardless of the kind of loan. My opponent and her husband have over $250,000.00 of student loan debt, and by her supporting the elimination of her own debt and that of others is directly contributing to the higher inflation. We cannot continue to forgo the debt that we owe and spend more money than we bring in. We need more common sense.

Should the U.S. Congress pass a law that guarantees a right to have an abortion?

With the overturning of Roe v. Wade, the issue of abortion is now left to the states to decide.

Do you support decriminalizing marijuana at the federal level? Why or why not?

I do believe marijuana should be decriminalized, but this issue should be left to the states. I believe in federal legislation that incentivizes states to decriminalize marijuana.

If you are elected, do you promise to conduct yourself in an ethical and transparent manner? How would you work to promote ethics and transparency in government?

Yes. I absolutely believe those in positions of power must be open, transparent, and conduct themselves in an ethical way. I will work to promote ethics and transparency through disclosing any potential conflicts of interests with my constituents prior to a vote. If there is a clear conflict, I will not vote on that subject. This is in sharp contrast to my opponent, who has not disclosed her and her husband owe over $250,000.00 in student loan debt and is not only campaigning to eliminate her own debt but is also promoting to vote to do so.

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