Meet Nick Cartwright, running for State Senate in District 18 of Arkansas.
If elected to this position, Nick would be in charge of making important decisions for his community like allocating funds to public schools, roads, and other community services. Nick let us know that whoever holds this position sets the agenda for the community- that’s why it’s so important that someone who truly cares about the people around them holds this seat.
Here’s a little background on Nick. In his 28 years, he has worked with non-profits and even has experience in the policy world. We found out something uniquely awesome during our interview with Nick—he has been a local city council member in his hometown since he was just 22 years old! His motivation for getting involved in local government comes from his desire to help his hometown live out its full potential. Seeing previous leaders not stepping up to the plate pushed him to want to create positive change for the people of Rose Bud, Arkansas. His decision to run for State Senate was not spurred by a single moment but rather by his constant desire to help others live better lives. Nick’s parents are both veterans and he has a political science background from his studies in school!
Nick gave us three main topics that he thinks are the most important to address in his community. First, he is an advocate for fair taxes. He let us know that in his community they saw large tax cuts that went to wealthy people and corporations and left working class people out of the equation. He has even seen his own family members burdened by unfair taxes. That’s why he is in favor of a progressive tax code that takes care of working class families who need support the most. Second, his community needs more job opportunities. Small businesses have a hard time staying open but he thinks that’s exactly what the people in his district need more of. We didn’t know this, but Nick let us know that in rural areas public schools are huge employers for the community. That’s why he wants to make sure schools are funded. That brings us into his final topic: Education. Nick has a policy background in education and is a huge supporter of providing resources to public schools. After all, they educate 90% of students. He told us that schools are central hubs in rural communities and without them, the community will not be able to prosper.
This is what a successful future looks like to Nick—everyone’s basic needs are met. People do not worry about housing, food, jobs, clean water, or education. People are free to do what they want and they are supported enough to go after what they want to fulfill their lives.
Here’s something Nick loves about Arkansas—It has tons of forests, lakes, and outdoor activities like hiking, camping, and kayaking. Arkansas is called the natural state and Nick wants to use this title to motivate his state to become a leader in climate action in the country. He sees the opportunity to turn the positivity surrounding the outdoors into positivity about climate change—and we think that’s a pretty clever idea.
Nick is a lover of sports, the great outdoors, and spending time with friends and family. (And his mini dachshund named George, of course!).