John Kelly

John Kelly served in the U.S. Army from 1977 to 1995. He earned a high school diploma from Marian High School and a bachelor's degree from Norwich University in 1976. His career experience includes working as a farmer.[1]

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I live on a farm South of Pekin ND. I served in the US Army as a field artillery officer for 9 yrs. and served in the active reserves for another 7 yrs. While in the reserves I farmed my mother-in-law's farm. I have worked in retail for 15 yrs. and also 12 yrs as a CNA (Certified Nursing Assistant). I have been retired for 4 yrs. I am married for 43 yrs and have lived in North Dakota for over 40 yrs.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

The reason I am running for the North Dakota Senate for District 29 in the first place is I want to see that every public-school student in grades K-12 has access to free breakfasts and free lunches. My opponent voted this down last legislative session. The bill passed in the House by 55 to 38 a margin. It failed in the Senate by two votes had he voted for the bill it would have caused a tie, and the president of the senate would have voted to pass the bill.I am a proud member of the North Dakota Farmers Union for over 40 yrs. Every legislative session in those 40 yrs we have fought to keep the Corporate Farming Law a very strong law to prevent corporate farming in North Dakota. That law has been weakened to allow outstate individuals to graze cattle in North Dakota. I want to strengthen the Corporate Farming Law to the way it was before.Another issue of mine is funding rural hospitals and health systems. Due to the recent cut to Medicaid rural hospitals are having a hard time keeping the doors open. Something needs to be done to offset these cuts.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

The areas of public policy I am passionate about are public education, agriculture, and rural health care.