FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Sam Fettig
(o) 651-414-2863
(c) 612-741-0662
sam.fettig@mnnurses.org
Lauren Nielsen
(o) 651-414-2862
(c) 651-376-9709
lauren.nielsen@mnnurses.org
Candidates pledge to support Keeping Nurses at the Bedside Act, put patients and healthcare workers before profits
(St. Paul) – June 17, 2022 – Nurses of the Minnesota Nurses Association today announced seven new endorsements for the 2022 election cycle for candidates in open races for the Minnesota Legislature. These endorsements, like those previously announced by MNA, are based on screening interviews and recommendations of member nurses based on candidates’ pledged support for MNA priority issues. All endorsed candidates have affirmed their commitment to support the Keeping Nurses at the Bedside Act; oppose the Outsourcing Care Compact; and defend workers’ collective bargaining rights and oppose so-called “right-to-work” laws.
The candidates in open races endorsed by MNA nurses today for their commitment to these priority issues are Susan Pha (SD 38); Judy Seeberger (SD 41); Nicole Mitchell (SD 47); Matt Norris (HD 32B); Larry Kraft (HD 46A); Samantha Sencer-Mura (HD 63A); and Leigh Finke (HD 66A).
About the MNA Endorsed Candidates
Nurses appreciated that Pha pledged to listen to nurses “to understand issues from us as experts,” and to stand with nurses to hold hospital executives accountable to fair contracts with nurses, and to address issues with nurse staffing and access to healthcare in Minnesota.
Seeberger, a union member, pledged to be a voice for MNA nurses in the Senate on staffing and other bedside issues, “not just a round of applause.” Nurses appreciated Seeberger’s willingness to listen and learn from nurses in the screening on the topic of the Outsourcing Care Compact.
MNA members appreciated that Mitchell, whose sister is a nurse, clearly understood the need for staffing legislation. Mitchell also pledged to stand with nurses in their efforts to hold hospital executives accountable to put patients before profits.
Norris impressed nurses with his advocacy for frontline workers and his understanding of MNA members’ priority issues, including safe staffing levels and opposition to the Compact. Norris stressed the importance of working with nurses on essential healthcare issues if elected.
Nurses appreciated Kraft’s conviction that nurses, as the experts at the bedside, must be at the table when staffing levels and safe patient assignments are decided. Kraft, whose mother is a retired nurse, demonstrated a clear understanding and commitment to key MNA priorities.
Sencer-Mura impressed nurses by her willingness to “learn from nurses and to use her platform to elevate our issues” such as nurse staffing levels, especially as nurse priorities relate to access to healthcare for people of color and marginalized communities.
Nurses appreciated that Finke voiced a strong support for MNA priorities and for defending collective bargaining rights for organized labor. Nurses especially appreciated that Finke understood the connection between staffing and nurses leaving the profession due to moral injury and the conditions created by hospital executives.
Nurses Care, Nurses Vote
In working to support MNA-endorsed candidates, nurses will encourage fellow members and the voting public to support those who will uphold their commitment to put healthcare workers and patients before the profit-seeking ways policies of healthcare executives. Nurse efforts to elect endorsed candidates through phone- and text-banking, door-knocking, digital advertisements and more will focus on candidate support for MNA priorities like the Keeping Nurses at the Bedside Act and other pledged positions.
MNA endorsement recommendations are based on the record of candidates, as well as candidate questionnaires and interviews conducted by nurse members with candidates when necessary; these recommendations are then approved by the MNA Political Committee and Board of Directors, an elected body of nurse members. Nurses continue to interview candidates, and additional endorsements in state races will be announced on a rolling basis in the coming months. Additional information on the MNA endorsement process and on endorsed candidates can be found at nursescarenursesvote.com.
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