Jamie Pedersen: He'll Fight For What's Right • Our Future Depends on Public Education My mom, dad, aunt, uncle, cousins and partner have all dedicated their lives to teaching in our state's public schools. For them to succeed, our state must commit to fully fund education and provide the innovation necessary to help our next generation. That means lowering class sizes, providing all-day kindergarten and making pre-school affordable for everyone. Since I was elected, I have visited every public school in the 43rd District and have worked closely with the Seattle Public Schools on providing them the support they need in Olympia. Having four kids headed for Stevens Elementary, Washington Middle School, and Garfield High School gives new meaning to the term "paramount duty"! • Improve Transportation and the Environment The 43rd District is ground zero for our transportation infrastructure challenges. I am proud to have helped pass the plan to replace the SR 99 Viaduct with a deep-bore tunnel and am working hard on a solution for SR 520 that optimizes transit use. I have also been watching closely as Sound Transit begins construction of the light rail tunnel through the heart of our district. I believe that the state should give counties more and better tools to support buses and light rail. And, as a bike commuter for over fourteen years, I have been working on bicycle safety issues as well. • It's Time to Solve our Health Care Problems Twenty-five years ago, Ronald Reagan tried to close the hospital on Beacon Hill serving veterans and the poor. He failed, but eight years ago, PacMed was again on the verge of shutting its doors. I was brought in to help make sure that didn't happen. Today, PacMed is thriving, expanding its charity care. From that work I learned how badly our health care system needs healing. I am hopeful that the federal health care reform effort will be successful, but in the meantime we must work to make sure that every person in Washington has access to quality, affordable health care. • Everyone Deserves the Same Rights As a gay man, I have faced discrimination. As a civil rights attorney, I have helped people about to lose the family home, a loved one's inheritance or custody of children because gay men and lesbians aren't treated equally under the law. But we can't protect our community one family at a time. I am proud to be hard at work on changing the law so that all families are valued and respected.