Heather Mizeur has Plans for the Eastern Shore
Heather Mizeur, the Democratic candidate in Maryland Congressional District 1, won a decisive primary victory, gaining nearly 70% of the vote and winning all 11 counties. She now faces the task of defeating incumbent Andrew P. Harris, a far-right Republican who has held the seat since 2011.
Mizeur’s career in public service began in 1994, when she left college to work for Democratic representatives in Washington. After five years with a national organization working to expand health care for the uninsured, she joined John Kerry’s 2004 presidential campaign as Maryland state director, with a strong voice in his healthcare policy. Her first elected office was as a Takoma Park city council member, followed by election to the Maryland House of Delegates, a seat she held for eight years. In 2014, she ran for governor of Maryland, but lost the Democratic primary to Anthony G. Brown. Now she’s ready for a new challenge.
On her campaign website, Mizeur lays out her vision for the First District: “In Congress, I’ll build on that record by lowering the cost of living, bringing better jobs to our communities, centering farmers in our environmental protection strategies, and expanding health care access and coverage.”
Mizeur’s 10-point economic plan for the district begins with reducing inflation and finding tax relief for middle-class families and small businesses. Other points include increasing manufacturing and construction on the Shore, increasing marketing opportunities for agriculture, strengthening commercial fishing and aquaculture, and recognizing the role of arts and culture in promoting tourism.
She is especially interested in finding ways to help farmers deal with the effects of climate change — in fact, to become a productive part of the solution to climate change. Her plan, “Agri-Climate Solutions for Maryland’s Eastern Shore,” draws partly on her experience growing up on her family’s farms in Illinois and operating her own organic farm in Kent County for nearly 10 years. It includes plans for a national initiative to address the health of soil, finding ways to convert chicken litter — a significant byproduct of the Shore’s poultry industry — into biofuel and potting soil, and making sure that crop insurance remains affordable.
She presented her health care position in a campaign mailing before the primary, promising to protect abortion access from “unprecedented attacks” after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. She wants to expand access to affordable health care, with the goal of making it universal. She also wants to keep rural hospitals and clinics open while attracting more doctors and other providers to the First District.
As Mizeur says on her website, “For too long, the First District has lacked a representative who listens, who shows up, and who delivers on the issues that matter to families on the Eastern Shore and Harford and Baltimore counties. I have spent my career in public service listening to people’s concerns, bringing people together, and getting the job done.” With the voters’ help, she will have a chance to do exactly that.
Peter Heck is a Chestertown-based writer and editor, who spent 10 years at the Kent County News and three more with the Chestertown Spy. He is the author of 10 novels and co-author of four plays, a book reviewer for Asimov’s and Kirkus Reviews, and an incorrigible guitarist.
Common Sense for the Eastern Shore
