David E. Zuckerman is an American politician who is currently serving as the 84th lieutenant governor of Vermont since 2023. He previously served two terms as the 82nd lieutenant governor of Vermont, from 2017 to 2021. A member of the Vermont Progressive Party, he previously served in the Vermont House of Representatives for seven terms (1997–2011), and the Vermont Senate for two (2013–2017). In 2020, Zuckerman was a candidate for governor of Vermont. He ran with the support of both the Progressive Party and the Democratic Party, but lost to incumbent governor Phil Scott in the general election.
Vaccination and religion have interrelations of varying kinds. No major religion prohibits vaccinations, and some consider it an obligation because of the potential to save lives. However, some people cite religious adherence as a basis for opting to forego vaccinating themselves or their children. Many such objections are pretextual: in Australia, anti-vaccinationists founded the Church of Conscious Living, a "fake church", leading to religious exemptions being removed in that country, and one US pastor was reported to offer vaccine exemptions in exchange for online membership of his church.
A vaccination policy is a health policy adopted in order to prevent the spread of infectious disease. These policies are generally put into place by state or local governments, but may also be set by private facilities, such as workplaces or schools. Many policies have been developed and implemented since vaccines were first made widely available.
Health may refer to "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity.", according to the World Health Organization (WHO). 78.7 was the average life expectancy for individuals at birth in 2017. The highest cause of death for United States citizens is heart disease. Sexually transmitted infections impact the health of approximately 19 million yearly. The two most commonly reported infections include chlamydia and gonorrhea. The United States is currently challenged by the COVID-19 pandemic, and is 19th in the world in COVID-19 vaccination rates. All 50 states in the U.S. require immunizations for children in order to enroll in public school, but various exemptions are available by state. Immunizations are often compulsory for military enlistment in the United States.
Same-sex marriage has been legally recognized in Maine since December 29, 2012. A bill for the legalization of same-sex marriages was approved by voters, 53–47 percent, on November 6, 2012, as Maine, Maryland and Washington became the first U.S. states to legalize same-sex marriage by popular vote. Election results were certified by the Maine Secretary of State's office and the Governor of Maine, Paul LePage, on November 29.
Timothy Michael Donnelly is an American Republican politician who was a member of the California State Assembly, representing the 59th and 33rd districts. Before his election to the Assembly in November 2010, Donnelly was a small businessman. He resides in Twin Peaks, California. On January 22, 2013, Donnelly announced his intention to seek the Republican nomination for Governor of California in the 2014 election. He placed third in the open primary, behind incumbent governor Jerry Brown and investment banker Neel Kashkari, who contested the election in November 2014.
Maine Question 1 was a voter referendum conducted in Maine in the United States in 2009 that rejected a law legalizing same-sex marriage in the state. The measure passed 53–47% on November 3, 2009.
Maine Question 1 was a voter referendum on an initiated state statute that occurred on November 6, 2012. The referendum was held to determine whether or not to legalize same-sex marriage. The referendum passed with a 53-47% vote legalizing same-sex marriage in Maine.
Nancy K. Barto is an American politician and a former Republican member of the Arizona State Senate from 2021 to 2023. She previously served in the Arizona House of Representatives from 2019 to 2021 and the Arizona Senate representing District 15 from 2013 to 2019. Barto served consecutively in the Arizona State Legislature from January 2007 until January 10, 2011, in the Arizona House of Representatives District 7 seat, then in the Arizona Senate in the District 7 seat from January 10, 2011, until January 14, 2013.
California Senate Bill 277 (SB277) is a California law that removed personal belief as a reason for an exemption from the vaccination requirements for entry to private or public elementary or secondary schools in California, as well as day care centers. The final version of the bill was enacted by the California Legislature in 2015 and was signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown on June 30, 2015.
Maine Question 1 was a people's veto referendum that appeared on the June 12, 2018 statewide ballot. It sought to reject a law passed by the Maine Legislature that suspended the implementation of ranked-choice voting, authorized by Maine voters in a previous referendum, for use in Maine elections until and if an amendment to the Maine Constitution is passed to expressly permit it; failing that, the law would be automatically repealed in 2021. It qualified because supporters of the original referendum collected the necessary number of signatures from registered Maine voters. This vote coincided with primary elections in which party nominees for governor, U.S. Senate, U.S. House, and the Maine Legislature were chosen through RCV to run in general elections on November 6.
Maine Question 4, formally An Act to Raise the Minimum Wage, is a citizen-initiated referendum question that appeared on the Maine November 8, 2016 statewide ballot. It sought to increase Maine's minimum wage from $7.50 per hour to $12 an hour by 2020, as well as increasing the minimum wage for tipped employees gradually to the same level by 2024. It would also index increases after 2024 to inflation. As the Maine Legislature and Governor Paul LePage declined to enact the proposal as written, it appeared on the ballot along with elections for President of the United States, Maine's two U.S. House seats, the Legislature, other statewide ballot questions, and various local elections. Efforts to place a competing, more moderate proposal alongside the citizen-initiated bill were unsuccessful.
Maine Question 3, formally An Act to Require Background Checks for Gun Sales, was a citizen-initiated referendum question that appeared on the Maine November 8, 2016 statewide ballot. It sought to require a background check for virtually all gun transfers in Maine, with some exceptions. As the Maine Legislature and Governor Paul LePage declined to enact the proposal as written, it appeared on the ballot along with elections for President of the United States, Maine's two United States House seats, the Maine Legislature, other statewide ballot questions, and various local elections.
The 2020 Maine Democratic presidential primary took place on March 3, 2020, as one of 15 contests scheduled on Super Tuesday in the Democratic Party primaries for the 2020 presidential election, following the South Carolina primary the weekend before. The Maine primary, the first in the state since 2000, was a closed primary, meaning that only registered Democrats could vote in this primary, but unenrolled voters were permitted to enroll in a party at the polls with same day registration. The state awarded 32 delegates towards the 2020 Democratic National Convention, 24 of which were pledged delegates allocated based on the results of the primary. The primary election coincided with a people's veto referendum to reject changes to Maine's vaccination laws.
Vaccination policy of the United States is the subset of U.S. federal health policy that deals with immunization against infectious disease. It is decided at various levels of the government, including the individual states. This policy has been developed over the approximately two centuries since the invention of vaccination with the purpose of eradicating disease from the U.S. population, or creating a herd immunity. Policies intended to encourage vaccination impact numerous areas of law, including regulation of vaccine safety, funding of vaccination programs, vaccine mandates, adverse event reporting requirements, and compensation for injuries asserted to be associated with vaccination.
Laurel Dawson Munsell Libby is an American activist, Republican politician and interior designer from Maine. She is the representative for Maine House District 64, representing Minot and part of Auburn. She was elected to the Maine House in November 2020.
Louis Luchini is an American Democratic politician and former professional long-distance runner from Maine. Luchini served in the Maine Senate representing District 7, Hancock County from 2018 to 2022. Luchini was born and raised in Ellsworth, Maine and began running competitively in middle school. He was a state champion runner at Ellsworth High School and continued to Stanford University where he earned a degree in human biology and was an all-American runner. Luchini graduated from Stanford in 2004 and signed a contract with Nike to run professionally, also participating in the U.S. Olympic Trials in 2004 and 2008. He returned to Maine in 2009, joined the cross-country coaching staff at Ellsworth High School and ran for the Maine House of Representatives in 2010. Luchini served four terms in the Maine House before running successfully for the Senate in 2018. In 2020, Luchini was re-elected to Senate District 7 for a second two-year term. In January 2022, he resigned from the Senate to accept a job in the U.S. Small Business Administration.
Ohio Advocates for Medical Freedom (OAMF) is one of the main anti-vaccination organizations in Ohio. A non-profit group, it frequently lobbies politicians to favor legislative action designed to weaken Ohio's vaccination coverage.
Heidi Hilgartner Sampson is an American politician and anti-vaccine activist. A member of the Republican Party, she has served as a member of the Maine House of Representatives since 2016, representing the 136th district since 2022.
A religious exemption is a legal privilege that exempts members of a certain religion from a law, regulation, or requirement. Religious exemptions are often justified as a protection of religious freedom, and proponents of religious exemptions argue that complying with a law against one's faith is a greater harm than complying against a law that one otherwise disagrees with due to a fear of divine judgment. Opponents of religious exemptions argue that they mandate unequal treatment and undermine the rule of law.
