ASSEMBLY DISTRICT 42

Assembly District 42 candidates Republican Carole Donald and Democrat Harry Mortenson live in the same district, yet their lives have never crossed paths. Well, that's if one doesn't consider the Nov. 4 ballot.

"I know she is a lady and a Republican,'' Mortenson said.

"I heard he's a very nice man, a moderate Democrat,'' Donald said. "A lot of the residents I've heard from have never seen or heard from him. That's not a good thing.''

The candidates don't share the same views of their district.

If elected, Mortenson said, his focus would be mainly on state issues because "my district doesn't have too many problems compared to the state or other districts.''

"When there are terrible swings in our economy ... and we have to cut our budget, those issues trickle down to my district,'' he said.

Donald, on the other hand, contends her district has several issues, starting with crime.

While on the campaign trail, Donald said, she often came upon homes with bars on windows and front doors. At some homes, there were big dogs in the front yard, she said.

When she rang the doorbell or knocked, people seemed reluctant to respond.

"This is sad. People in my district are afraid to open their doors because of crime,'' she said.

If elected, Donald said, she is going to work on increasing police presence in her district and creating more neighborhood watch groups.

Her statewide priorities would be to keep property and state income taxes down, better the state's education system and deal with illegal immigration issues.

"I think we need to start holding employers who employ them liable,'' she said.

Mortenson, who doesn't necessarily favor tax increases, thinks it is a solution to economic woes. But, he said, the state also needs to ensure certain programs are not being duplicated.

If the only solution is to tax, Mortenson said, then it should be a broad-based business tax.

"I hate taxes,'' he said. "I wish we didn't have to put taxes in, but the point is, we're at the bottom of the barrel.

"We're worst in education, health care, the amount of money spent per capita per student,'' he said. "We want to diversify our economy and bring businesses in, but we also need to look at our poverty-stricken social services' system.''

Both candidates said they oppose cutting state workers, such as teachers, to save money.

Contact reporter Annette Wells at awells@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0283.