Lauren Smith
Republican | Mississippi
Candidate Profile
Conservative
BIOGRAPHY
Name
Lauren Smith
Party
Republican
Election Year
2023
Election
Primary
Race
State Senate, Dist. 6
Incumbent
No
Links
EDUCATION
University of Mississippi, Oxford, BS, 2013
WORK & MILITARY
Candidate did not provide
AFFILIATIONS
Candidate did not provide
POLITICAL OFFICES HELD
Candidate did not provide
POLITICAL OFFICES SOUGHT
Candidate did not provide
Race
ENDORSEMENTS
CONSERVATIVE (1)
Mississippi Freedom Caucus
OTHER (1)
Mississippi Parents for Vaccine Rights (MPVR)
REPORTED BY CANDIDATE (2)
Mississippi Freedom Caucus
Mississippi Parent for Vaccine Rights
SELECTED CONTRIBUTIONS
CONSERVATIVE
GIVEN BY CANDIDATE (0)
RECEIVED BY CANDIDATE (2)
Dana Criswell (2023)
Vance Cox (2023)
OTHER INFORMATION
Lauren Smith completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2023.
This podcast interviews Lauren Smith about her 2023 campaign.
QUESTIONNAIRE
RIGHT TO LIFE
Under what circumstances should abortion be allowed?
Never. Life is sacred. Every child is made in the image of God, and he has a plan for every one of them.
I support 'aid in dying' laws which legalize assisted suicide and euthanasia.
Strongly Disagree
Abortion providers, including Planned Parenthood, should not receive funds from federal, state, or local governments (including Title X grants and Medicaid funding).
Strongly Agree
ECONOMY
What changes, if any, should be made to the tax code?
For the State tax code, we need to eliminate the state income tax, eliminate the grocery tax, and the inventory tax. These are punitive taxes that do nothing but punish success. For federal, we need to go back to a "Reaganomics" model that would battle the fed's destructive economic model with inflation.
What government spending would you reduce in order to balance the budget?
Dial back growth of government: expanding Medicaid, paying off nursing student loans, building municipal entertainment attractions, and create study groups to analyze antiquated habits of state agencies where frivolous mismanagement is rampant.
RELIGIOUS LIBERTY
Individuals and businesses should be required to provide services even if it would violate their moral and/or religious beliefs.
Strongly Disagree
It isn't the government's role to play referee in the free market. A private business owner can decide what goes against his moral convictions and what doesn't. That means the free market gets to decide what is successful and what isn't. Government's role is to protect and preserve liberty of the individual. It has no business mingling in the private sector.
Under what circumstances should government close churches?
It should never happen. What happened in 2020 should never happen again. Our right to worship is to NEVER be infringed upon by the government.
HEALTHCARE
What most closely matches your view on healthcare? A) Healthcare for all should be guaranteed and funded by the government with no private healthcare options (includes "universal healthcare," "Medicare for all," etc.); B) Healthcare insurance funded by the government should be available for all who want it, along with private healthcare options; C) Medicaid and Medicare should remain available, but the government should reform healthcare to maximize private health insurance options; D) Taxpayer funded health care should be abolished in all forms, and Medicaid and Medicare should be defunded.
C. Dramatic reform and change is needed for Medicaid as they cannot even service the population they have now. However, we shouldn't have a system that entices more to become dependent upon the government. Churches/Charities are the welfare answer.
Under what circumstances (if any) should a government, school, or employer be allowed to require vaccinations?
Never. It is an Indvidual's choice and theirs alone.
NATIONAL SECURITY
What should the United States do to help eradicate the threat of Islamic terrorism?
Send the clear message that no terrorism will be tolerated under any circumstances. Re-assert our military dominance as the superpower of the nations and that we will use any force necessary to protect our country, our service members in the armed forces, or any US territories. Let it be very clear that America and her citizen's safety has zero tolerance for threating or aggressive posturing in any way.
IMMIGRATION
The U.S. should do more to physically secure the southern border.
Strongly Agree
This current administration is ruining our country with the infiltration of illegal immigration across our borders. The cartel is running the southwestern US as sex and human trafficking is at an all time high. Drugs crossing over at an unprecedented rate and crimes rising in our communities that our law enforcement can't compensate for as they already have been battling social wars for years now accounting for the low participation rates we see now.
Who should be allowed to immigrate to the U.S. and under what circumstances?
Anyone that goes through the proper channels to do it correctly and lawfully should be able to immigrate. Becoming a contributing and productive citizen to society must be essential to ensure we do not continue growing the welfare state in our nation.
EDUCATION
The state should prioritize education funding by allowing dollars to follow the child instead of focusing on programs and administrators.
Strongly Agree
School choice must be at the forefront of the next legislative session. We have failing school districts that are allocated more money than top performing ones in the state. That is not how it should be at all. The money should follow the child so that it creates a sense of competition between the school districts. This way children aren't horrifically trapped in failing schools because of their zip code.
If you support giving parents more educational options, please list all of the following options that apply and in priority order: A) A universal Education Savings Account (ESA) program; B) An ESA program for low-income children only; C) Expanding tax credits for businesses to give to private schools; D) Expanding public charter schools; E) Allowing homeschoolers to take classes at the local public school.
C, D, & E,
What most closely matches your view on pornography? A) I agree with the American Library Association that any person of any age should have access to any book; B) Library collections, displays and events should be curated using age-appropriate guidelines, similar to what we do for movies (G, PG, R, etc.); C) Mississippi libraries should follow state laws that prevent pornography from being accessible to minors.
None of these. Pornography has NO place in any schools for our children to see. State laws now are still too loose, and porn is still rampantly found in libraries to this day
VALUES
What most closely matches your view on marriage? A) Anything goes; B) Marriage between one man and one woman should be promoted and encouraged; C) A divorce should be hard to get; D) Marriage is important, but no-fault divorce should be allowed.
B
Judeo-Christian values establish a framework of morality that is necessary for our system of limited government.
Strongly Agree
I support adding gender identity as a specially protected class in non-discrimination laws.
Strongly Disagree
Marriage is a God-ordained, sacred and legal union of one man and one woman. No government has the authority to alter this definition.
Strongly Agree
I agree with Critical Race Theory (CRT) which asserts that the institutions in the United States are fundamentally racist.
Strongly Disagree
It has absolutely no place in any part of society,
Briefly describe your spiritual beliefs and values.
God is the only truth and true north. Acceptance of him as your Lord and savior is the only way to obtain eternal life. He gave us his word to abide by. It is our job to spread the gospel of Christ and to be salt and light that he has called us to be. The Bibe is our road map and the moral compass by which our morals are derived.
ELECTIONS AND VOTING
People should be able to vote without photo identification.
Strongly Disagree
What most closely matches your view on ballot measures? A) Ballot measures should be able to amend the constitution with few, if any, restrictions; B) Ballot measures should only be able to propose changes to laws when signatures are collected from people all across the state; C) The current process of allowing the Legislature to propose constitutional amendments will result in the best outcomes.
B
EQUALITY
Reparations should be given to people on the basis of race.
Strongly Disagree
Is racism a threat to domestic security in the United States? Why or why not?
It wouldn't be if we didn't have the radical left driving the narrative that the country is out to get any person of any race. However, the time we are living in where the media controls the mindset of so many, it can be inflaming and creating a racial divide in this country with forms of it circulating such as CRT. We are all God's children. It matters not the color of your skin. A man's heart will be wicked if he chooses it to be.
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT
Which comes closest to your view? A) Stricter environmental laws and regulations cost too many jobs and hurt the economy. B) Stricter environmental laws and regulations are worth the cost.
A
ABOUT YOU
What do you think is the general purpose of government?
To preserve and protect the liberty of the individual. Preserving the constitution.
When you consider your views on a wide range of issues from economic and social matters to foreign policy and religious liberty, which of the following best describes you overall?
Very Conservative
Please provide publicly available information, including interviews and media reports, validating your answer to the previous question (other than your website).
I have op-ed's that have been published in the Tupelo Daily Journal about my stances on Medicaid expansion. I also have numerous videos, radio interviews, podcasts, and social media posts available on Facebook, iTunes, PodBean, and WYAB archives.
Have you ever been convicted of a felony or been penalized in either civil or criminal court for sexual misconduct? If so, please explain.
No
What else would you like voters to know about you, including your legislative priorities?
It is absolutely imperative that we take our nation back. But it begins right here in our backyard. If we cannot secure our state from turning into a blue state, which it is headed in that direction very quickly, then we will be completely blue in the next decade. I believe we are at a paradigm shift right now with these primary elections for our state. If we don't get the current legislative leadership changed, then we will surely see our conservative beliefs as a state continue to deteriorate.
CRIMINAL JUSTICE & PUBLIC SAFETY
Police officers should be personally immune from prosecution for conduct consistent with departmental policy (qualified immunity) while on duty.
Agree
As long as the departmental policy is not in conflict with the constitution, civil rights of the citizen are abided by, and they are adhering to the oath they took when they were sworn into their position.
I support redirecting funds from police departments to mental health and community programs.
Strongly Disagree
Strong law enforcement is essential to a thriving country. We are a nation of law. And we cannot defund the one thing standing in the way of anarchy.
2ND AMENDMENT
What restrictions on gun ownership are needed to protect public safety?
Convicted felons of violent crimes should not get to exercise their right to the 2A. As they relinquished that when they chose to cause harm to others and act outside the law. A law-abiding citizen has the right to bear arms and protect their family and property with no restrictions.
Victims of gun violence should be able to sue firearms dealers and manufacturers.
Strongly Disagree
