Marcy Kaptur

Fighting for all Ohioans to have a fair playing field as they seek economic and health security.

Strengthening our economy is Marcy Kaptur’s top priority. Unfair trade agreements, corporate politicians, Wall Street recklessness, and tax breaks for large corporations that ship our jobs to China and Mexico have decimated America’s middle-class, especially in Northwest Ohio. Marcy isn’t afraid to stand up to Democrats in Congress to defend Ohio. She is fighting to bring jobs home, take away tax breaks from companies that ship jobs overseas, and for tariffs that protect Ohio-based factories and companies.

Marcy believes in secure borders and legal immigration. She has voted to improve and expand border security, to hire more than 10,000 border agents, and to enable military presence at the border if needed. Marcy believes in deploying cutting-edge technology to monitor crossings, and has voted to deliver resources necessary to our Customs and Border Patrol agents. Just as the answer is not separating children from parents at the border, Marcy knows an orderly approach that prioritizes the security of the United States must be put in place. She’s voted to lock up drug traffickers bringing fentanyl into our communities. She’s fought for comprehensive immigration reform, and the 2024 plan negotiated in the Senate by Republican James Lankford. Marcy knows that this issue is not a Democrat or Republican problem, it’s an American problem that would be solved if we work together.

As chair of the Energy and Water subcommittee on Appropriations, Marcy believes we need an “all of the above” energy policy. Whether it’s solar, wind, geo-thermal, or biofuels, our region can lead us into a 21st century energy future not dependent on foreign oil or renewable manufacturers, while also fostering American energy independence and bringing down emissions to combat climate change. Additionally, we need a new mindset that recognizes that our homes are an important part of our nation’s infrastructure. Marcy is a champion of weatherization programs that increase home energy efficiency and bring down costs for citizens who need it most. A one-size-fits all approach to housing will not work – some communities need new housing to bring down the cost of homeownership. Others have housing stock that must be rehabilitated after years of neglect following the 2008 financial crisis. Marcy is a leader in efforts to increase the supply of affordable housing, while reducing the dangers of lead in legacy homes. She has introduced the Restoring Communities Left Behind Act to invest in both urban and rural communities that have seen disinvestment over the years.

A woman’s health decisions must be between a woman and her doctor, not out-of-touch lawmakers. Marcy opposes a national abortion ban, especially a ban that would not make exceptions for rape, incest or life of the mother. Marcy knows that the criminalization of reproductive healthcare must be fought in every instance.

Marcy has been a passionate supporter of American agriculture her entire life. She knows the value of rich soil, and values the knowledge and wisdom of self-sustaining communities. This passion has manifested itself in a commitment to policies that support small farmers, lead to environmental best practices, and create economic opportunities in a changing world. The road to a healthy Lake Erie is not paved with the punishment of family farmers struggling to get by. Solutions to help families maintain farming traditions, as well as prevent the consolidation of farms and spread of absentee owners who aren’t invested in our communities must be found through consensus. Additionally, supporting urban agriculture and the rehabilitation of urban ecosystems and natural resources is an urgent priority for the 21st century.

Marcy Kaptur is a strong supporter of modern defense systems and equipment for our armed forces and supports Northern Ohio’s legacy as a leader in the nation’s defense industrial base. She has spearheaded major federal investments at Ohio’s defense bases including northern Ohio’s National Guard and Reserve assets such as the 180 TFW and Ottawa County’s Camp Perry. These investments resulted in our Guard bases ranking among the most modern, energy efficient bases in the U.S. Marcy is a strong believer that Congress, and not the president alone, must have a voice in defense actions. She voted against authorizing President Bush’s Iraq war powers. We must engage with allies to advance liberty and improve quality of life around the world.

Campaign spending has skyrocketed in the years following the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision. Billionaires and corporations are now free to pump millions of dollars into our elections without accountability. Without campaign finance reform, Democracy is at risk. Marcy Kaptur knows we must reign in special interests and has supported legislation to repeal Citizens United, to limit spending in elections, and to improve access to the ballot for candidates. Our elections cannot be up for sale to the highest bidder. Liberty requires safeguards on the influence of money in governance and elections.

The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative brings vital funding to protect our most precious natural resources, but much work remains to be done. When the initiative was threatened to be zeroed out, Marcy worked in a bipartisan manner to restore it – and the promise of clean, fresh water for our region. The fight to stop harmful algal blooms and invasive species could not be more important to our region. Whether it’s the water we drink, our fishing and tourism industries, or the importance of preserving the beauty of our coast, the stakes of a healthy Lake Erie are clear.

Strengthening our economy is Marcy Kaptur’s top priority. Unfair trade agreements, corporate politicians, Wall Street recklessness, and tax breaks for large corporations that ship our jobs to China and Mexico have decimated America’s middle-class, especially in Northwest Ohio. Marcy isn’t afraid to stand up to Democrats in Congress to defend Ohio. She is fighting to bring jobs home, take away tax breaks from companies that ship jobs overseas, and for tariffs that protect Ohio-based factories and companies.Marcy believes that if you’re willing to work hard, then you shouldn’t need a four-year college degree to get a good-paying job. That’s why she is a strong supporter of job training and technical skills programs, and secured funding for a local training program to prepare workers to get good-paying jobs in the changing economy that don’t require collegedegrees.Marcy believes we must have an economy that works for working people at all ages. She has fought to protect Social Security and Medicare from cuts and privatization, because working people have spent years paying into the system and they deserve to be covered. She has and will continue to fight to lower the costs of healthcare, prescription drugs, and groceries, while working to create high-wage jobs and make life easier for all.

Women's Reproductive Rights

Marcy is a champion for the Midwest in Congress. She is focused on getting big money out of politics, holding Wall Street accountable, ensuring access to health care for all, reducing the costs of prescription drugs, ensuring affordable quality education for all who seek it, and restoring our Great Lakes economy and environment.

Eliminate tax breaks for companies that move jobs overseas and use tariffs to protect Ohio factories and companies.

• Preserve the two explicit trade and tax mechanisms without adopting claims about past trade agreements.

Support job-training and technical-skills programs that prepare workers for good-paying jobs not requiring a four-year degree.

• Preserve the training mechanisms and non-degree workforce objective.

Oppose cuts to or privatization of Social Security and Medicare.

• Preserve both programs and the two explicit forms of opposition.

Work to reduce health-care, prescription-drug, and grocery costs.

• Preserve the three affordability targets without inventing a mechanism.

Voted to improve border security and hire more than 10,000 border agents.

• Preserve the completed vote and stated staffing magnitude.

Voted to provide surveillance technology and operational resources to Customs and Border Protection.

• Preserve the completed vote and named resource categories.

Support military presence at the southern border when operationally needed.

• Preserve the conditional military-support position without inventing deployment authority.

Oppose separating children from their parents as a routine border-enforcement policy.

• Preserve the explicit opposition without adding exceptions.

Voted for measures intended to incarcerate fentanyl traffickers.

• Preserve the completed vote and intended enforcement result without inventing a bill number.

Support comprehensive immigration reform, including the bipartisan Senate plan negotiated in 2024.

• Preserve the reform direction and identified Senate framework.

Support an all-of-the-above energy strategy including solar, wind, geothermal, and biofuels to strengthen energy independence and reduce emissions.

• Preserve the four named resources and the campaign's stated objectives.

Support weatherization programs that improve home energy efficiency and reduce household energy costs.

• Preserve the program mechanism and two stated purposes.

Use community-specific housing strategies that add new homes where supply is scarce and rehabilitate neglected housing stock where needed.

• Preserve both locally contingent housing mechanisms.

Support the Restoring Communities Left Behind Act to invest in disinvested urban and rural communities, expand affordable housing, and reduce lead hazards in older homes.

• Preserve the named bill and its stated housing and lead-safety purposes.

Oppose a national abortion ban and protect reproductive health decisions between a patient and doctor.

• Preserve both the opposition and decision-making principle; exclude personal rhetoric.

Support policies benefiting small farmers, environmental best practices, and agricultural economic opportunity.

• Preserve the beneficiary and policy standards without inventing subsidies.

Pursue consensus-based solutions that help families maintain farming traditions and reduce farm consolidation and absentee ownership.

• Preserve the stated process and outcomes without inventing ownership caps.

Support urban agriculture and rehabilitation of urban ecosystems and natural resources.

• Preserve both the agriculture and restoration commitments.

Helped pass the PACT Act, expanding federal benefits and services for veterans.

• Preserve the completed legislative record without repeating campaign superlatives.

Secured federal funding for new Veterans Affairs clinics in northern Ohio.

• Preserve the completed funding record without inventing amounts or locations.

Helped prevent closure of Toledo's 180th Fighter Wing and secure federal support for new facilities and an expanded mission.

• Preserve the campaign-attributed base record and its three components.

Led a long-term congressional effort that resulted in construction of the National World War II Memorial.

• Preserve the completed public memorial record without campaign praise.

Support modern defense systems and equipment and continued investment in northern Ohio's defense industrial base.

• Preserve the modernization and regional industrial-base commitments.

Maintain a substantive congressional role, rather than unilateral presidential control, in decisions involving military action.

• Preserve the separation-of-powers principle and exclude historical argument.

Work with United States allies to advance liberty and improve quality of life internationally.

• Preserve the alliance-based foreign-policy direction without inventing treaties.

Worked across party lines to restore funding for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative when elimination was proposed.

• Preserve the completed funding-restoration record.

Prioritize efforts to stop harmful algal blooms and invasive species affecting Lake Erie and the Great Lakes.

• Preserve the two environmental threats without inventing a regulatory method.

Support the Return to Prudent Banking Act to restore Glass-Steagall separation between commercial and investment banking.

• Preserve the named legislation and structural banking mechanism.

Strengthen the justice system's capacity to hold people and institutions accountable for financial crimes.

• Preserve the enforcement objective without inventing penalties.

Proposed and supported the Financial Crisis Investigation Act, which authorized hiring 1,000 agents and forensic experts to investigate financial crimes.

• Preserve the named bill, staffing authorization, and proposal/support status.

Supported legislation intended to reverse the Citizens United campaign-finance decision.

Support limits on election spending.

• Preserve the broad spending-limit commitment without inventing thresholds.

Support measures that improve candidates' access to election ballots.

• Preserve the beneficiary and election-administration objective.

Supports restoring Affordable Care Act tax credits.

Supports restoring ACA credits to make health coverage more affordable.

Supports fully funding Medicare and Medicaid public services.