House – Tony Vargas - NE-2

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Democrat running in district comprising Omaha, its suburbs, and rural outskirts
Video clips:

- “My Dad”

Tony’s background

Tony was born in the USA; his parents had immigrated from Peru. Tony was the first generation of his family to graduate from college. He served as a public-school teacher (receiving “Most Outstanding Teacher” and “Teacher of the Year” awards) and was an AmeriCorps fellow through Teach for America. He then became a member of the Omaha Public Schools Board.

Tony’s service as State Senator

In 2016 Tony was elected to the Nebraska Legislature – the first outright elected Latino legislator in Nebraska. As a state senator, Tony has successfully passed legislation to strengthen public schools, improve access to health care, encourage technology and innovation, and improve consumer protections. Tony has been a leader in the fight to lower the cost of health care and prescription drugs, cut red tape for small businesses so that they can grow, and protect consumers against predatory payday lenders. In 2019, Tony was elected by his peers to the position of Vice Chair of the Executive Board, the nine-member executive arm of the Legislature. In 2021 Tony was re-elected by his peers to the position of Vice Chair of the Executive Board. Tony currently serves not only as a state senator but also as chair of the Legislature's Planning Committee, the long-term strategic planning committee for the Nebraska Legislature.

Tony’s father, Virgilio Antonio Vargas, died in April 2020 from COVID-19 at the beginning of the global pandemic. In a statement, Tony said: "This is deeply personal for me. I don’t want another family to go through what we are experiencing right now." He urged all community leaders to take every precaution to protect public health, especially for "the workers on our front lines, including healthcare professionals and food processing and meatpacking plant workers."

Tony’s opponent

Tony is running against incumbent Republican Congressman Don Bacon. Bacon describes himself as “Very Conservative” and said “My parents and four grandparents were Goldwater fans and I was raised reading National Review”.

Bacon voted in line with President Trump’s position 89.4% of the time. Bacon voted against creating a commission to investigate the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol.

Bacon currently co-sponsors a bill to criminalize and ban all abortions nationwide, even in cases of rape, incest, and when the life of the mother is at risk. In October 2022 Bacon expressed support for Herschel Walker's candidacy in Georgia, after reports that Walker faced allegations that he paid for a girlfriend’s abortion.

Bacon voted to gut protections for Americans with pre-existing conditions and backed Trump’s lawsuit to fully repeal the Affordable Care Act.

Bacon has a terrible environmental record – a 17% lifetime score from League of Conservation Voters. After receiving $40,000 in donations from chemical manufacturers, Bacon voted against the PFAS Action Act (comprehensive legislation setting national drinking water standards).

In 2019 Bacon voted against reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act.

In every vote to impeach President Trump, Bacon voted against impeachment.

In 2020 it was reported that Bacon had used funds for legislative and constituent services to pay a political consultant, a potential ethics violation.

Tony’s priorities if elected to Congress

Tony’s priorities in Congress would include:

Healthcare: “We must act to lower the cost of prescription drugs; everyone deserves access to quality, affordable healthcare.”
Reproductive freedom: “I believe the decisions a woman makes for her body, and her family are deeply personal and politicians have no place telling her what she can and cannot do. In Congress, I’ll vote to preserve the ability of Nebraska women to make the reproductive health decisions that are best for them.”
Protecting our democracy: “Politicians should not be trying to put artificial barriers between eligible voters and the ballot. When they do that, it is an attack on our democracy, belittling what it means to have the right to vote. We have to protect every eligible voters’ ability to vote, while keeping our elections secure. We can do both these things, without disenfranchising voters.”
Economy & jobs: “My parents immigrated to the U.S. and worked hard and sacrificed so my brothers and I could get an education and decide what we wanted for our lives. It’s become harder for families to do what my parents were able to do. Let’s create better paying jobs, pass more middle class and child tax cuts, lower the cost of healthcare and prescription drugs, ensure affordable child care, and guarantee paid family leave to workers. Part of the solution is also doing all we can to help Nebraska companies create Nebraskan goods and Nebraskan jobs, with family-sustaining wages. That includes a fair tax system that puts small businesses on an equal playing field with multinational corporations, and trade policies that level the playing field for our agricultural and manufacturing industries here in Nebraska, and allow our producers to compete and sell their products across the globe. And we need to hold China accountable for cheating the system.”

Praise for Tony

Bob Kerrey, Former Nebraska Governor and U.S. Senator, said: “I am enthusiastically supporting Tony Vargas. Not only do I believe he can win, I believe he should.”

When the League of Conservation Voters endorsed Tony, it said:“Climate-fueled disasters are already taking a toll on Nebraska communities and we need leaders like Tony Vargas in Congress who will stand up to big polluters. We are thrilled to endorse Tony Vargas for Congress because we know he will continue to be a leader for a just and equitable transition to a clean energy future, environmental justice for all communities and growing sustainable jobs in Nebraska.”

The Voter Protection Project (the largest national PAC focused on electing voting rights champions) endorsed Tony. In response, Tony said: “As a state senator, I have been a strong advocate for legislation that protects the right to vote and keeps our elections secure. I am proud to be supported by the Voter Protection Project and look forward to working with them to win this seat so I can work to strengthen voting rights and protect our democracy.”

When the Omaha World-Herald endorsed Tony in his primary race for this seat in April 2022, it stated: “We favor candidates who can work with other lawmakers, even across party lines. We see value in a proven ability to cut through partisan gridlock and find ways to move our state and country forward. Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District is purple...It has a diverse population: urban and rural, made up of different races, genders, cultures and economic classes. Whoever is elected to represent this district in Washington needs to be a voice for each of those residents, not just the ones who share the same party affiliation. For these reasons, the Omaha World-Herald Editorial Board endorses Tony Vargas as the Democratic nominee for the 2nd District race.”

Call to action

We need to do whatever we can to help Tony win this toss-up race. Congressman Sean Patrick Maloney, Chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, said: “Over the past six years, Don Bacon has completely lost touch with Nebraskans — siding with his extremist GOP bosses and special interest donors over the hardworking folks he’s supposed to represent. Meanwhile Tony Vargas has spent his career helping working families get ahead, leading the fight to expand Medicaid, support small businesses, and lower costs for Nebraskans. Bacon has consistently placed Nebraskans last, and that’s why they’ll elect Tony Vargas this November.”