Central Bucks Today

Jeanine McGee is a strong supporter of school choice, having taught in Catholic schools for 22 years.

The Bucks County resident is also a staunch opponent of abortion and, as a candidate for the Pennsylvania Legislature, vows to support a "heartbeat bill" that would ban abortion once a heartbeat is detected. 

McGee, a Republican, is running to unseat the Democratic incumbent for District 140, John Galloway. 

She also favors a bill to eliminate school property taxes in Pennsylvania, enabling parents to use those dollars for private education if they choose.

"It's so important to keep prayer in schools and to educate children on how important it is to have God first in their families, and then everything else follows," McGee told Central Bucks Today in an interview.

She would not support a political candidate who opposes school choice.

Democratic nominee Joe Biden has expressed opposition to federal funding for for-profit charter schools, U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos told Fox News.

"Parents are demanding more choices today as their schools across the country are not serving them and the needs of their students," DeVos said, Fox News reported in September. "So the demand for school choice and giving parents the control for their kids' future is continuing to grow. And it's a really important point in time."

McGee has seen the benefits of Catholic education first-hand as a teacher. She believes having competition is also healthy for public schools.

"We need to have the best learning environment for students to succeed in all that they do they do," she said. 

Parents who send their children to Catholic Schools, McGee said, are paying twice for education — private school tuition and property taxes.

Eliminating school property taxes would not only free up money for private school tuition but would help senior citizens, McGee said. Her mother is working on outreach to seniors based on that bill.

"It would help everybody," she said.