BACKEN, VINCENT

Meet the Candidate

Running For:
State Senate
District:
1
Political Affiliation:
Republican

Survey

Response Legend

  • SSStrongly Supports
  • SSupports
  • OOpposes
  • SOStrongly Opposes
  • *Comment
  • −Declined to respond
  • †Declined to respond, Position based on citation

Question Response Comments/Notes
1. Public School Funding in Montana is at an inadequate level. O
2. Parents should have greater freedom to choose how and where their children are educated, including options such as education savings accounts, tax credits, vouchers, or other school-choice mechanisms. SS
3. Parents should be allowed to homeschool their children without additional state regulation SS
4. Curricula based on Critical Race Theory (CRT) should be prohibited in Montana public schools SS
5. Comprehensive sex education should be taught in public elementary schools, beginning as early as kindergarten. SO* Parents have the right to review all material the school is teaching and the process of how they are graded.Parents have the right to require drug tests of the teachers and a full background check.
6. Montana’s income taxes are too high. S
7. Montana’s property taxes are too high S
8. Montana’s corporate taxes are too high SS* State and local spending needs to be brought under controlTitle 53 and 20 need to be amended .A stronger enforcement and accountability legislation needs to be adopted and directed at elected officials of the municpalities and county officials .MCA 2-2-144 should be amended to add a transparency , accountability component. My work on the Government study commission has strengthen my resolve to work hard on this import legislative amendment
9. The Second Amendment protects the right of law-abiding citizens to own firearms for self-defense. SS
10. Montanans should not be discriminated against or treated differently based on their vaccination status. SS
11. Climate change is a serious problem that requires increased government regulation. SO
12. Environmental regulations in Montana are currently too restrictive. SS* I have intimate knowledge of good and bad science in the ocean science field .My time as operating owner of the research ship WhitHolly taught me not to accept that human impact has negative effects on the climate. Researches manipulate the data and or ignore findings if the data does not indicate humans negative influence on climate .
13. Abortion should be illegal at all stages of pregnancy. SS
14. Abortion should be legal only in the early stages of pregnancy and restricted after a specific point, except when necessary to save the life of the mother. O
15. Abortion should remain legal at all stages of pregnancy, without restriction. SO
16. Individuals and organizations should be allowed to opt out of abortion-related mandates, if those mandates violate their religious or moral convictions. SS
17. Physician-assisted suicide should be legal in Montana. SO
18. Biological males who identify as transgender should be allowed to compete in women’s and girl's athletic competitions. SO
19. Medical procedures intended to change a minor’s sex or gender should be prohibited. SS
20. Same-sex couples should be permitted to adopt children. SO
21. State and local nondiscrimination laws should be expanded to include sexual orientation and gender identity in the same manner as race, religion, and national origin. SO
22. Montana’s marriage laws should be revised to reflect the U.S. Supreme Court’s legalization of same-sex marriage. SO
23. Objective moral truths exist and should inform laws and public policy, rather than shifting cultural preferences. SS
24. Government should be limited in scope, with most decisions best made by individuals, families, and local communities rather than centralized authorities. SS
25. Homosexuals and transgender people should be allowed to adopt children: SO
26. Personal responsibility and self-governance are more effective at solving social problems than expanded government programs: SS
27. Parents—not government institutions—are the primary authority responsible for the education and moral formation of their children: SS