Hi John,

 

The Freethought Equality Fund, the members PAC of the Center for Freethought Equality, has endorsed four Vermont and Maine candidates who are members of our community and clear favorites to win in the general election -- Barbara Rachelson, Robin Scheu, Lois Galgay Reckitt, and Lynne Williams. Rachelson, Scheu, and Reckitt are running for re-election, and Williams is running for an open Democratic seat -- see their bios below. We are thrilled to have these elected officials, and soon-to-be an elected official, represent the nontheist community. You can see all our 2020 endorsed candidates here. 

 

 

You can learn more about Barbara Rachelson's re-election campaign here - she is not seeking campaign donations. 

 

You can learn more about Robin Scheu's re-election campaign here and make a donation to her campaign here.

 

You can learn more about Lois Galgay Reckitt here - she is not seeking campaign donations.

 

You can learn more about Lynne Williams' campaign here - she is not seeking campaign donations. 

 

Barbara Rachelson is running for re-election to the Vermont State House in Burlington’s Chittenden-6-6 District. Rachelson is a social worker and has a lengthy track record working for social change. She has over 40 years’ experience working in nonprofit organizations, including over 30 years running them. She is on the board of the national organization, Human Rights for Kids and recently finished up her term on the ACLU of Vermont’s board. Her time in social work has made her one of the foremost advocates for the protection of children and vulnerable adults in the Vermont legislature, where she has introduced numerous bills on the subject. In her next term, Rachelson will use her experience as a legislator and advocate to help build a more forward-looking economy, decrease Vermont’s high childhood poverty rates, enact sensible gun legislation, protect Vermont’s vast natural environment, reform our criminal justice system,and protect Vermonter’s privacy rights, as new technologies chip away at them. Rachelson identifies as a nonreligious Jew.

 

Robin Scheu is running for re-election to the Vermont State House in the Addison-1 District. A nearly three-decade resident of Middlebury, Scheu has been an involved member of her community in environmental, education, charitable, and business capacities. As a state legislator, Scheu is focused on a more progressive, inclusive Vermont in which people from all backgrounds and income levels can succeed. Scheu will fight so that all Vermonters can make a “livable wage, receive high-quality affordable health care, get a great education, live in a clean, healthy environment, and retire with security.” To achieve these goals, she plans to implement statewide paid family and medical leave, improve water quality and limit fossil fuels, the creation of safe and affordable housing for working families and seniors, and fund and improve early childhood and public education. She also will work to ensure that all legislation considers racial justice as we work to dismantle structural and institutionalracism. Scheu is a Unitarian Universalist and a humanist.

 

Lois Galgay Reckitt is running for re-election to the Maine State House in District 31. Reckitt is highly regarded in Maine for her extensive and longtime work in criminal justice reform, and previously served as executive director of Family Crisis Services in Cumberland County. She is the recipient of numerous awards for her advocacy on behalf of marginalized Mainers, and was inducted into the Maine Women’s Hall of Fame in 1997. In the legislature, Reckitt is a prominent voice for gender equality and affordable health care, which she views as essential to a more progressive and successful Maine. She will also continue her fight for criminal justice reform at this crucial time. Reckitt is agnostic.

 

Lynne Williams is running for election to the Maine State House in District 135. A filmmaker and current Bar Harbor Harbor Committee chair, Williams is passionate about supporting Maine’s towns and cities through her work. She is a longtime progressive and plans to introduce Medicare for All, remedies to rising income inequality, and significant climate-change action. She is passionate about expanding public transportation in rural Maine, as both a climate change and economic measure. Williams is highly sensitive to the erosion of civil rights and liberties, as she has represented protestors pro-bono for decades, and will ensure that Mainers have the right to free speech and political dissent. Williams is agnostic. 

 

 

 

Sincerely,

Ron Millar

PAC Coordinator

 

This message is for the sole use of members of the Center for Freethought Equality. The mission of the Freethought Equality Fund (FEF) is to achieve equality for the nontheist community by increasing the number of open humanists and atheists, and allies, in public office at all levels of government. The FEF is affiliated with the Center for Freethought Equality, which is the advocacy and political arm of the American Humanist Association. Donations to the Center for Freethought Equality, Freethought Equality Fund and our endorsed candidates are voluntary and are not tax deductible.