Are you looking for a nonpartisan voter guide to the Kay Hagan vs. Thom Tillis Senate race? One that will give you an unbiased, no-spin comparison of candidate positions on key issues? That's what our Campus Election Engagement Project guide will give you! We are a national nonpartisan initiative working with college and university administrators, faculty, and student leaders to increase student participation in America's elections. For the 2014 elections we have created and distributed voter guides to campuses in more than 20 states so they can provide their communities with accurate information for informed voting. Because these guides have been so well received and are useful for all voting citizens who want to be better informed, we are also posting them here.
We developed our guides by analyzing information from trusted resources such as www.votesmart.org, www.ontheissues.org, www.ballotpedia.com, www.politifact.com, www.factcheck.org, www.vote411.org and from candidate websites, public debates and interviews, and statements in major media outlets. We also showed them to groups like campus Young Republicans and Young Democrats at the schools we work with to verify their fairness and lack of bias.
So here are the issue-by-issue stands for Kay Hagan and Thom Tillis, with additional links at the bottom for each candidate if you'd like to dig deeper. (You can also find North Carolina's Governor guide here.)
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Budget: Did you support raising the Federal debt ceiling with no strings attached?
Hagan: Yes
Tillis: No
Budget: Do you support a Constitutional Balanced Budget Amendment?
Hagan: Yes-Backed Udall amendment with limitations on top bracket tax breaks (Summary of Mark Udall's Balanced Budget Amendment proposal)
Tillis: Yes
Campaign Finance: Do you support the DISCLOSE Act, which would require key funders of political ads to put their names on those ads?
Hagan: Yes
Tillis: Unknown
Campaign Finance: Do you support the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision, which allowed unlimited independent political expenditures by corporations and unions?
Hagan: No
Tillis: Unknown
Economy: Do you support raising the minimum wage?
Hagan: Yes
Tillis: No
Economy: Do you support extending unemployment benefits beyond 26 weeks?
Hagan: Yes
Tillis: No
Economy: Do you support the Dodd-Frank Act, which established the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and sought to increase regulation of Wall Street corporations and other financial institutions?
Hagan: Yes
Tillis: Unknown
Economy: Do you support federal spending as a means of promoting economic growth?
Hagan: Yes
Tillis: No
Education: Do you support refinancing of student loans at lower rates, paid for by increasing taxes on income over a million dollars?
Hagan: Yes
Tillis: Didn't take a stand, but concerned about bill's impact on national debt (Thom Tillis's comments on the Bank on Students bill)
Environment: Do you support North Carolina's new more restrictive election laws? (Ends same day registration, pre-registration of 16 & 17-year-olds, counting of votes cast in the wrong precinct, ability for polls to stay open later if lines are too long, bans paid registration drives, and initiates voter ID in 2016 that excludes student IDs)
Hagan: No
Tillis: Yes--Was Speaker of the House when passed
Environment: Do you believe that human activity is a major factor contributing to climate change?
Hagan: Yes
Tillis: No
Environment: Do you support government action to limit the levels of greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere?
Hagan: Yes
Tillis: No
Environment: Do you support government mandates and/or subsidies for renewable energy?
Hagan: Yes
Tillis: Yes
Gay Marriage: Do you support gay marriage?
Hagan: Yes
Tillis: No
Gun Control: Do you support enacting more restrictive gun control legislation?
Hagan: Supports expanded background checks; opposes assault weapons ban and limits on gun magazine size
Tillis: No
Healthcare: Do you support repealing the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare?
Hagan: No
Tillis: Yes
Healthcare: Did you support shutting down the federal government in order to defund Obamacare in 2013?
Hagan: No
Tillis: Yes
Immigration: Do you support the D.R.E.A.M. Act, which would allow children brought into the country illegally to achieve legal status if they've graduated from high school, have a clean legal record, and attend college or serve in the military?
Hagan: Didn't in 2010, saying she preferred a comprehensive plan
Tillis: Unknown
Immigration: Do you support the comprehensive immigration plan passed by the Senate in 2013, which includes a pathway to citizenship and increased funding for border security?
Hagan: Yes
Tillis: No
Iraq: Should the US recommit troops to Iraq to combat the rise in insurgency?
Hagan: Ambiguous. Supports Obama's ISIS plan - said should have armed moderate Syrian rebels earlier.
Tillis: Ambiguous. Criticizes Obama for not acting earlier on ISIS.
Marijuana: Do you support efforts to decriminalize and/or legalize marijuana?
Hagan: No
Tillis: Supports low-THC extract for childhood epilepsy, opposes other medical marijuana
Social Issues: Should abortion be highly restricted?
Hagan: No
Tillis: Yes
Social Issues: Should employers be able to withhold contraceptive coverage from employees if they disagree with it morally?
Hagan: No
Tillis: Yes
Social Issues: Should Planned Parenthood receive public funds for non-abortion health services?
Hagan: Yes
Tillis: No
Social Security: Do you support partial privatization of Social Security?
Hagan: No
Tillis: Unknown
Taxes: Have you signed the Americans for Tax Reform Pledge to oppose any tax increases to raise revenue? (The answer to this question is taken from the database of signatories of the Taxpayer Protection Pledge, created by Americans for Tax Reform. Signers to the pledge promise to oppose "any and all tax increases" meant to generate additional revenue.)
Hagan: No
Tillis: Yes
Taxes: Would you increase taxes on corporations and/or high-income individuals to pay for public services?
Hagan: Yes
Tillis: No. See above
Learn more about the candidates:
Hagan: Kay Hagan Vote Smart pages and Kay Hagan On the Issues page
Tillis: Thom Tillis Vote Smart pages
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Other senate candidates include Sean Haugh (Libertarian). Due to limited space, we can't include his positions, but invite you to check out his website.