Shelane Etchison, candidate for US House District 9 in NC, answers our questions
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Candidates for US House District 9
Republican Rep. Richard Hudson is being challenged by Democrat Nigel Bristow and independent Shelane Etchison. District 9 covers Alamance, Hoke, Moore, Randolph and parts of Chatham, Cumberland and Guilford.. Get to know the 2024 candidates with our voter guide.
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To help inform voters in the Nov. 5, 2024, election, this candidate questionnaire is available to be republished by local publications in North Carolina without any cost. Please consider subscribing to The News & Observer to help make this coverage possible.
Name: Shelane Etchison
District/seat: Congressional District 9
Political party: Unaffiliated
Age as of Nov. 5, 2024: 38
Campaign website: https://etchisonforcongress.com/
Current occupation: Congressional candidate
Professional experience: I’m a former Army officer, serving over 11 years in both Special Operations and Military Police. For most of my career I was based at Fort Bragg/Liberty, NC and completed tours in Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, in addition to serving with diplomatic and intelligence agencies throughout the Middle East. I’ve consulted in the security sector and on economic development projects providing government backed small business loans to new entrepreneurs.
Education: B.A. University of Central Florida; MBA - Harvard Business School; MPP - Harvard Kennedy School
Please list any notable government or civic involvement. My government experience includes working with the U.S. State Department and various intelligence agencies, as well as serving as an economic development consultant for the Prime Minister of Iraqi Kurdistan. Civically, I contribute by substituting at Moore County public schools and actively volunteer in youth leadership and character development programs. Additionally, I am involved in Afghan refugee resettlement efforts for Afghans and their families who worked alongside U.S. forces.
What would be your top priority if elected?
My top priority is electoral reforms to fix our system and ensure elected representatives work for the people. I will focus on ending gerrymandering, banning corporate money in politics, supporting term limits, and rank-choice voting. These reforms mitigate partisan gridlock and special interests so our Congress can tackle key issues like cost of living, health outcomes, growing debt and immigration reform.
How would you describe the state of the economy and what would you do to improve it?
While unemployment rates may be low, the state of our economy for everyday North Carolinians reflects burdensome rising costs in housing, health care, groceries and child care. To improve this, I support strong antitrust enforcement to limit industry consolidation, supporting child tax credits, improving price transparency in health care and increasing the housing supply with builder incentives.
What should Congress do to ensure that it meets its deadline to fund the government?
To meet the budget deadline, I support a “no budget, no pay” policy — that is, if Congress fails to pass a budget, members will forgo personal pay until one is passed. Congress must stop playing political games with government shutdowns and foster bipartisan cooperation to enforce both fiscal responsibility and create a budget that serves the people.
Will you certify the results of the presidential election?
Yes.
Is there an issue on which you disagree with your party? What is your position on that issue?
I’m running unaffiliated because both parties have failed to tackle key issues, such as our debt, immigration reform, curbing gun violence and fixing our health care system. I specifically disagree with Republicans not protecting the right to an abortion at the federal level, and for Democrats, the Afghanistan withdrawal. We should have maintained a small contingent of diplomatic, intelligence and military personnel to avoid a complete Taliban takeover of country and equipment.
This story was originally published October 3, 2024 at 3:46 PM.
