House District 042

Democratic candidate Stan Scott is a military veteran who moved to Virginia after retiring from the Army in 2002. He went to George Washington University, pursuing doctoral work in international relations and public policy. Scott now resides in Mechanicsville and has been a member of the Hanover Democratic Committee for over ten years.

Scott believes in healthcare accessibility and supports Medicaid Expansion. In his campaign, he has prioritized completely closing the healthcare gap that still remains. Scott urges investment in universal pre-kindergarten and equal funding for all schools. He wants to increase teacher pay, make college tuition more affordable, and better fund community colleges. He supports commonsense gun violence prevention measures, including closing the gun show loophole. Scott also supports clean energy and wants to force polluting utility monopolies to pay for the damage they do.

Incumbent Republican Senator Ryan McDougle voted against expanding Medicaid to 400,000 Virignians. He opposes gun violence prevention measures and has voted to expand gun rights in Virginia. Senator McDougle is anti-choice. He voted for legislation that scapegoats immigrants and opposed state ratification of the ERA. He voted against legislation that would prohibit discrimination in housing based on gender identity and sexual orientation.

Scott is the progressive choice in this race.

Incumbent Senator Lionell Spruill is a lifelong Virginian and Democrat. He was born in Norfolk and received an Honorary Doctorate from Norfolk University. Senator Spruill was a member of several civic leagues in the state, which led to his appointment as Chairman of the Chesapeake City Council in 1988. He was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates in 1994 and the state Senate in 2016.

Senator Spruill is pro-choice and has voted against personhood bills and mandatory ultrasounds before abortion. He supports legislation like the Virginia Energy Plan that would have put a 15 year pause on offshore oil drilling and encouraged clean energy options. Senator Spruill voted to expand Medicaid in Virginia and supports raising wages for Virginia families. He passed legislation to close Jim Crow loopholes in Virginia law that exempted some professions from the state minimum wage.

His opponent, Jeff Staples, is running as an independent. Staples supports ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment and expanding healthcare access. He does not have a clear stance on immigration, reproductive health, economic opportunity, or other progressive issues.

Senator Spruill is the progressive choice in this race.

Incumbent Democratic Delegate Kathy Tran was elected to the House of Delegates in 2017. She is one of the 15 progressive candidates who were elected that year. Tran and her parents came to the United States as refugees from Vietnam when she was a child. Delegate Tran and her husband, Matt, live in West Springfield with their four children, Daven, Charlotte, Quinn, and Elise.

Tran is a strong progressive champion who supports access to abortion, gun violence prevention, immigrant rights, clean renewable energy, and investments in public education. She sponsored a bill to ban assault weapons in the commonwealth.

Republican candidate Steve Adragna is running against Delegate Tran. He believes the government should be as small as possible and that taxes should not be used to create a safety net for the most vulnerable members of our communities. Adragna does not support access to abortion. He would not have supported expanding Medicaid and does not believe that the government should be responsible for finding solutions to our health care crisis.

Delegate Tran has been a strong champion for Virginia families and is the progressive choice in this race.