My name is Pramilla Malick. I’m a candidate for New York State Senate from the 42nd district, which includes all of Sullivan County and parts of Delaware, Orange and Ulster counties. I’m not a politician; I’m a homemaker and a mother of four.

I never intended to get involved in politics, but when the health and safety of my family and my neighbors were threatened by plans to build a dangerous and polluting gas compressor station in the middle of our residential neighborhood, I felt I had no choice but to speak up and fight back. That was six years ago, and my life hasn’t been the same since. We lost the battle to keep the Minisink compressor station out of our community, but the experience was a real eye-opener for me. I saw how large corporations are able to override the interests of ordinary citizens by buying political influence.

For me, the battle to protect our community from fossil-fuel infrastructure is ongoing. Recently I’ve been leading the fight to prevent the construction of a giant fracked-gas power plant in Wawayanda, Orange County. This costly behemoth is bound to lock us into decades more of fossil fuel consumption at a time when we need to transition quickly to sustainable energy if we hope to avoid the worst impacts of climate change.

My opponent, Sen. John Bonacic, is on the other side of this issue. He’s publicly supported the power plant, claiming it’s good for the local economy. It’s certainly been good for the Bonacic family. The senator’s son has been working for the project sponsor for years.

I’d like the opportunity to debate this issue with Sen. Bonacic, and a lot of other issues as well. I believe voters are entitled to a full and frank discussion of the concerns that affect their day-to-day lives and their children’s future. They’re also entitled to a choice when they go to the polls on Election Day.

Apparently Bonacic disagrees; he’d rather be the only candidate on the ballot in November. Then he won’t have to defend his record or debate the issues with anyone. Not content with just the Republican, Conservative, and Independence lines on the ballot, he’s also trying to get his name on the Democratic line by asking Democrats to write in his name in the primary. If he succeeds, this will be the third election in a row where he’s amassed hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions without having to spend a single penny facing a political opponent.

The voters of the 42nd District deserve better. They deserve a real discussion of the challenges we face, not an obstructionist senator who refuses to take a stand on the issues that matter. For the past two years, the Assembly has passed the New York Health Act, which would provide all New Yorkers with a single-payer health plan and save consumers billions of dollars a year. Sen. Bonacic hasn’t taken a position on this important bill, and the Senate has refused to put it to a vote. The senator has also been missing in action when it comes to real ethics reform in Albany and reforming the state’s election laws, which prevented hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers from voting in this year’s presidential primary.

As your Democratic candidate I will address all these issues and work to ensure that New York State doesn’t shirk its responsibility to forcefully combat climate change or address the needs of everyday citizens. If you believe as I do that people, not PACs, should set public policy, then write in my name, Pramilla Malick, on the Democratic ballot of September 13.