City of Richmond

About the Race

This election occurs on November 3, 2020, and shares a ballot with the US presidential election. Current Senator Mark Warner (D), who has also served as the governor of Virginia, will be running against Daniel Gade, a retired Army Lt. Colonel who worked in the Trump administration.

About the State

Every eligible Virginia voter may cast a ballot in the US Senate election. Virginia saw an incredibly high turnout in 2016, with 72% of registered voters turning out to vote, more than 15% higher than the average US voter turnout. Virginia usually sees more than 70% of registered voters turn out for presidential election years.

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Incumbent Democrat Senator Mark Warner has represented Virginia as United States Senator since 2008. Before his election to the Senate, he served as Virginia’s Governor from 2002 to 2006. In the Senate, Warner is the Vice Chairman of the Intelligence Committee, and he also serves on several other committees.

Warner is known for his service on the Intelligence Committee in investigating and condemning Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. He is also a fierce advocate for protecting the country’s electoral process. Warner sponsored legislation that was supported by representatives on both sides of the aisle to prevent foreign meddling in elections and promote greater transparency in online political advertising. In 2020, Warner voted to convict President Donald Trump and remove him from office at the end of the Senate impeachment trial.

In 2019, Warner joined other senators in introducing the Voting Rights Advancement Act to restore and strengthen the original 1965 Voting Rights Act. In 2020, he called on the Senate to pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Act, but Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell failed to bring it up for a vote.

Sen. Warner voted against the nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court. He opposed a federal abortion ban and believes that abortion is a constitutionally-protected right.

Warner wants to invest in infrastructure projects to create jobs and boost the economy. During his time in the Senate, Warner has pushed for increased federal spending on transit, water improvement projects, and airports in the Commonwealth. In 2020, Warner championed the Great Outdoors Act to bring federal relief to the country’s national park system, which would bring over 10,000 jobs to Virginia alone.

Warner joined other Senators in lambasting the Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle the Affordable Care Act. During the coronavirus pandemic, he has pushed for more funding for testing supplies and PPE while also supporting the expansion of Medicaid and Medicare coverage to more Americans. Warner has pushed for increased broadband access so more people can use the Internet during the pandemic to work from home and attend school.

Warner’s opponent, Daniel Gade, is a U.S. Army veteran and professor at American University. Gade supports cutting taxes, reducing the size of government, promoting economic deregulation with free market policies. He believes that the U.S. economy should re-open as quickly as possible during the pandemic. Gade has said he approves of President Trump’s performance so far.

Due to his record of service supporting abortion rights, healthcare access, the environment, and protecting our democracy, Senator Mark Warner is the more progressive choice to represent Virginia in the U.S. Senate.

About the Race

Richmond’s mayoral election is held on November 3, 2020, in conjunction with the U.S. presidential election. Progressive activist Alexsis Rodgers is running against fellow progressive candidate Justin Griffin, as well as incumbent Mayor Levar Stoney, Tracey McLean, and 2nd District City Council representative Kim Gray.

About the District

Richmond is an independent city and the Commonwealth’s capital. It lies on the fall line of the James River between Chesterfield and Henrico counties. Richmond City’s population is roughly 200,000, although the greater metro area has a population of over 1 million. The city trends Democratic, with Hillary Clinton winning over 75% of the vote in 2016.

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Alexsis Rodgers is the current state director of Care in Action, a policy and advocacy group for Virginia’s female domestic workers. Rodgers previously served as the communications director for Virginia’s League of Planned Parenthood. She is the board chair of Emerge Virginia, an organization that trains Democratic women to run for office in Virginia.

Rodgers has a demonstrated commitment to progressive values. During her time with Planned Parenthood, she worked to expand Medicaid and increase access to birth control throughout the Commonwealth. With Care in Action, she was instrumental in making Virginia the first southern state to create labor protections for domestic workers by leading advocacy efforts on the Virginia Domestic Workers Bill of Rights.

In addition to her advocacy, Rodgers also has experience working with elected leadership. She served as the policy director in Virginia’s Lieutenant Governor’s office, where she did extensive work on reproductive justice, behavioral health, and early childhood education.

Rodgers’ platform focuses on ensuring that all Richmond residents have access to safe, affordable housing, reducing the size and scope of policing, finding innovative ways to fully fund Richmond’s public schools, and keeping the government of Richmond accountable to its residents.

Rodgers has been openly critical of the Richmond Police Department’s response to protests in the wake of George Floyd’s murder.

Mayor Levar Stoney, the incumbent, was elected in 2016. His most widely-criticized effort as leader of the city involved attempting to force through the Navy Hill Development project, a massive redevelopment plan for the Navy Hill district which was spearheaded and led by Dominion Energy CEO Tom Farrell. He was opposed by grassroots organizations for the project’s lack of transparency in spite of the fact that it used taxpayer-funded subsidies. Stoney faced criticism for not reacting quickly enough to Richmond Police Department’s excessive use against protesters in the wake of George Floyd’s death and for being indecisive about removing Confederate monuments from the city. Stoney dealt with backlash for not properly vetting the replacement of the Richmond police chief, who was removed in 2020 over his handling of protests.

Also vying for mayor is 2nd District City Council Member Kim Gray. Her platform only goes into specific detail on public safety and education. It does not address systemic racial disparities or injustices in regard to either issue. Gray does not share Rodgers’ demonstrated commitment to progressive values, once comparing Black Lives Matter protesters to terrorists. She voted against a proposed study on shifting resources away from the Richmond Police Department but voted in favor of a civilian oversight board and Marcus Alert system, which would have mental health professionals respond to crises instead of police.

Candidate Justin Griffin is a progressive activist who launched the “No Coliseum” campaign against the Navy Hill development. He has extensive experience working with small businesses and has been a leading voice in the demand for transparency from Richmond’s government. Griffin is also running on a robust platform of progressive reform. However, he has less experience working in government and less progressive goals than Rodgers.

Candidate Tracey McLean is a local Richmond author and the CEO of Adyme publishing. She is also a cast member of a CW reality TV show, The Real Babymamas of VA. McLean’s platform focuses on unity and transparency, but is less defined and detailed than Rodgers’. McLean does not share Rodgers’ extensive history of commitment to progressive values and advocacy, although she does support a proposal by local activists to transform parking lots in Shockoe Bottom into a slave memorial park.

The sixth contender for Richmond mayor is economist Michael Gilbert. He is running his campaign on three pillars: economic development and public education, policing and criminal justice reform, and improving community, health, and social services. He supports the creation of a civilian review board with subpoena power, the implementation of a 'Marcus Alert' system, ending qualified immunity for police, and imposing mandatory implicit bias testing of all current and potential officers. While Gilbert does have a progressive platform, his campaign has failed to gain traction in the community and he hasn’t raised any money for his effort. 

Due to her unrelenting commitment to progressive values and detailed progressive platform, Alexsis Rodgers is the most progressive choice in this race.

About the Race

The election for the City Council representative for Richmond’s 1st District takes place on November 3, 2020, as part of the general election. Newcomer Mike Gray is running against incumbent Andreas Addison, who voted for the Navy Hill development project, and Michael Dickinson, a local strip club owner running on a pro-Trump platform.

About the District

Richmond is an independent city and the Commonwealth’s capital. It lies on the fall line of the James River between Chesterfield and Henrico counties. Richmond City’s population is roughly 200,000, although the greater metro area has a population of over 1 million. With more than 25,000 residents, Richmond’s 1st District encompasses the city’s West End along the James River and Richmond’s historic Boulevard. The 1st District trends Democratic, with Rep. Don McEachin (D) winning over 55% of the vote during the 2018 congressional election.

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A native of the 1st District, Mike Gray is a local Richmond business owner, managing his public relations firm, Gray Ryan Communications. He has served on many boards in the Richmond area, including as Government Affairs Chair for the Richmond Business Council, Commissioner for the Richmond Regional Planning District Commission, and External Affairs Committee for the Better Housing Coalition. Currently, he sits on the Board of Directors for Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden, is a member of the Board for the Public Relations Society of America Richmond Chapter’s Foundation, and Advisory Board member for the Urban Land Institute Virginia District. Gray was also central in organizing the Monument Avenue Park Civic Association.

Gray is running for City Council on three central pillars: improving education, expanding access to affordable housing, and rebuilding Richmond’s infrastructure. He believes that the City Council should create a Housing Czar committee to develop and recommend specific policy solutions to Richmond’s current affordable housing crisis, like preventing evictions. He also wants to increase resources in the Maggie Walker Land Trust and push policies that will ensure increased and equitable access to affordable housing.

To rebuild infrastructure, he wants to partner with VA Tech to analyze Richmond’s water supply and delivery system, bring in outside consultants to conduct a thorough analysis of the city’s infrastructure, and turn certain roads over to the Virginia Department of Transportation for maintenance and repair.

Finally, he wishes to improve the quality of education in Richmond by allocating a minimum of 25% of city funds to Richmond Public Schools for the next 20 years. He also wants to begin researching the time and funding necessary to provide public preschool and daycare programs for children under the age of five. He also wishes to find other funding sources to provide more money to Richmond Public Schools and to follow Henrico County’s model to eliminate education standards that are no longer serving students well.

Gray is running against incumbent Andreas Addison. Addison voted in favor of Mayor Stoney’s Navy Hill development project, which was led by Dominion Energy CEO Tom Farrell and opposed by local progressive activists due to a lack of transparency. While Addison voted in favor of implementing the Marcus Alert System and creating a Civilian Review Board, he also voted against a proposal to study methods to shift resources away from the police. He has supported implementing a participatory budget system.

Gray’s other opponent, Micheal Dickinson, is a local strip club owner. Dickinson has previously been involved with the criminal justice system for drug use. He is running on a pro-Trump and pro-police platform. He has said the current mayor and city council “only care about appeasing the BLM mob” and attended events hosted by the Family Foundation, a religious rights advocacy group that vocally opposes LGBTQ+ and reproductive rights.

Due to his support for affordable housing and his commitment to improving public schools, Mike Gray is the most progressive choice in this race.

About the Race

The election for Richmond’s 1st District School Board representative is held on November 3, 2020, in conjunction with the U.S. Presidential election. Former Obama campaign staffer, incumbent Liz Doerr, is running unopposed in this race.

About the District

Richmond is an independent city and the Commonwealth’s capital. It lies on the fall line of the James River between Chesterfield and Henrico counties. Richmond City’s population is roughly 200,000, although the greater metro area has a population of over 1 million. With over 25,000 residents, Richmond’s 1st District encompasses the city’s West End and along the James River and Richmond’s historic Boulevard. The 1st District trends Democratic, with Rep. Don McEachin (D) winning over 55% of the vote during the 2018 congressional election.

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Liz Doerr is the incumbent representing the 1st District on the City of Richmond School Board and works as a finance professional. She has worked as a community organizer for several Democratic campaigns, including Virginia’s field director for President Barack Obama’s Organizing For America in 2010. President Obama endorsed Doerr in her first school board campaign in 2016. She was elected Vice-Chair of the Richmond School Board in 2019.

During her time on the school board, Doerr has supported increasing the use of solar power in Richmond public schools and science-based policies in reaction to COVID-19. She has also voiced support for matters of racial justice. Doerr supports police reform and removing police officers serving as school resource officers from Richmond Public Schools to address the school to prison pipeline.

Doerr was supportive of the school board’s decision to implement full virtual learning for the fall semester of the 2020-2021 school year.

Doerr is running unopposed in this race.

Due to her support for green energy initiatives, racial justice issues, and science-based approaches to COVID-19, Liz Doerr is the most progressive choice.

About the Race

The election for the City Council representative of Richmond’s 2nd District is on November 3, 2020, in conjunction with the U.S. presidential election. Tavarris Spinks is running as an openly progressive candidate in the 2nd District against Katherine Jordan. Incumbent Kim Gray is not running for re-election.

About the District

Richmond is an independent city and the Commonwealth’s capital. It lies on the fall line of the James River between Chesterfield and Henrico counties. Richmond City’s population is roughly 200,000, although the greater metro area has a population of over 1 million. The 2nd District trends Democratic, with Rep. Don McEachin (D) winning over 80% of the vote during the 2018 congressional election.

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Tavarris Spinks is a fifth-generation Richmonder who became active in Richmond politics when he was still in college. While attending Virginia Commonwealth University, he served as president of their Young Democrats and also worked for local Democratic committees. He later served as Virginia’s Young Democrat Council Chair. In 2019, he was named Young Democrat of the Year. In 2011, Spinks, along with other Black Virginia voters, filed a lawsuit against Virginia’s gerrymandered House of Delegates district maps, which led to a redrawing of the maps in 2017. He spent twelve years at Boleman Law Firm working as a bankruptcy specialist. He currently works as a project manager in the healthcare sector, overseeing the development of care management software designed to help Medicaid patients access care.

Spinks’ platform has five core components: using taxpayer money wisely, promoting government transparency and accountability, fighting for quality public education, fixing broken infrastructure, and reimagining approaches to public safety.

In the interest of responsible spending and transparency, Spinks will only support open and transparent processes for large scale projects in the city, as well as reviews of city budgets with an eye towards savings and proper resource allocation. He also wishes to streamline services for individuals and businesses, particularly in permits and public utilities.

Spinks’ commitment to racial justice is apparent in his approach to police reform and public safety. He wishes to remove law enforcement officers from Richmond Public Schools, establish a civilian review board with subpoena power, and launch an independent investigation into officers involved in attacks on unarmed civilians.

Spinks’ opponent is local activist Katherine Jordan, who has been a consistent advocate for increased funding to Richmond Public Schools. She has also served as the president of the Fan District Association. She was on the Richmond Green City Commission for four years, and spearheaded the Netzero 2050 Resolution, which was adopted by the City Council in June of this year. She is progressive on education and the environment issues, but has not taken as progressive of a stance on police reform.

Also on the ballot for the 2nd District City Council race is Ashley Jefferson. No information can be found on her candidacy, however. Due to lack of information, we cannot say that Jefferson is the most progressive choice in this race.

Due to his views on racial equality, education policy, and police reform, Tavarris Spinks is the more progressive choice in this race.

About the Race

Richmond’s 3rd District representative for City Council will be elected on November 3, 2020, during the general election. There are two progressive candidates running in the 3rd district. Progressive newcomers Willie Hilliard and Ann-Frances Lambert are running against Elaine Summerfield. Incumbent Chris Hilbert is not seeking re-election.

About the District

Richmond is an independent city and the Commonwealth’s capital. It lies on the fall line of the James River between Chesterfield and Henrico counties. Richmond City’s population is roughly 200,000, although the greater metro area has a population of over 1 million. The 3rd District trends Democratic, with Rep. Don McEachin (D) winning over 75% of the vote during the 2018 congressional election.

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Willie Hilliard is the current President of Brookland Park Area Association. He has extensive experience with children and education issues. He serves as the Vice-Chair of the Northside Coalition for Children as well as on the Advisory Board for the Richmond Metropolitan Day School, the Advisory Council for 6PIC. He is also a Board Member of Friends of John Marshall Alumni Group and part of the Richmond 300 Housing Work Group.

Hilliard’s progressive platform focuses on community policing and police reform, affordable housing, education, and economic development.

He believes that policing as it currently exists in Richmond does not work and will work to create the police force that the city deserves so that everyone in the city can feel safe.

Hilliard wants to ensure that all families in Richmond have access to safe, affordable housing, and will see that communities of all races and economic levels can thrive.

In terms of education, Hilliard will advocate for the fair distribution of resources to all schools, regardless of their neighborhood or the income level of their students.

Hilliard believes that economic development is best served by supporting Richmond’s small businesses and allowing them to grow. He also believes that City Council should work to ensure that economic growth within the city benefits all of its residents as equally as possible.

Ann-Frances Lambert, Hilliard’s opponent, is very progressive on racial justice issues but has not put forward a comprehensive platform for her City Council run. Additionally, she has not directly addressed issues of affordable housing, education, and economic development, which are key components of Hilliard’s campaign through any other public statements.

Hilliard’s other opponent, Elaine Summerfield, is progressive on conservation, education, and affordable housing. However, she has been silent on issues of racial justice in regards to policing, therefore, we cannot be sure that she would make equally progressive choices as Hilliard on those issues. Furthermore, her platform is vague and does not directly address inequalities that exist in the city due to matters of race and income.

Given his views on racial justice, education, and economic development, Willie Hilliard is the most progressive choice for Richmond's 3rd District.

About the Race

Richmond School Board’s 3rd District representative will be elected on November 3, 2020, as part of the general election. There are two progressive candidates running in the 3rd district. Incumbent activist, Kenya Gibson, is running for re-election against newcomer Sabrina Gross.

About the District

Richmond is an independent city and the Commonwealth’s capital. It lies on the fall line of the James River between Chesterfield and Henrico counties. Richmond City’s population is roughly 200,000, although the greater metro area has a population of over 1 million. The 3rd District trends Democratic, with Rep. Don McEachin (D) winning over 75% of the vote during the 2018 congressional election.

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School Board Member Kenya Gibson is a working mother who has served on the School Board since 2016. Since moving to Richmond in 2006 and serving as the vice president of the Linwood Holton Elementary PTA before her election to the Richmond School Board, Gibson has been a grassroots advocate for education funding and equality.

Gibson is outspoken about racial equality issues in education and advocates against referrals to police on student behavioral issues in schools, which disproportionately target Black, Latinx, and disabled students, preferring to replace police officers with professionals trained to handle student issues.

Her platform focuses on continuing the work she has done to improve Richmond’s schools in the last four years. She is also committed to finding ways to expand recruitment and retain teachers of color, focusing on Black male educators. Gibson wishes to safely transition back into school buildings as soon as it is safe to do so during the COVD-19 pandemic. Gibson voted to implement full virtual instruction during the Fall 2020 semester due to safety concerns over COVID-19 and the fact that not all Richmond public schools have full-time nurses.

Gibson’s opponent, Sabrina Gross, is running on a platform of transparency and community engagement. She has voiced support for comprehensive childcare measures during COVID-19, including a universal basic income during the pandemic. In the interest of equality, Gross believes the school board should implement Universal Design for Learning principles in all Richmond public schools. She will work to dismantle the school-to-prison pipeline by reconstructing school discipline practices. Gross does not have Gibson’s experience or record of promoting progressive change.

Given her history of grassroots advocacy, her support for issues of racial equality in education, and her deep understanding of the problems facing Richmond schools, Kenya Gibson is the most progressive choice in this race.

About the Race

The election of Richmond’s 4th District representative for City Council takes place on November 3, 2020 during the general election. Incumbent Councilwoman Kristen Larson is running unopposed for re-election.

About the District

Richmond is an independent city and the Commonwealth’s capital. It lies on the fall line of the James River between Chesterfield and Henrico counties. Richmond City’s population is roughly 200,000, although the greater metro area has a population of over 1 million. The 4th District trends Democratic, with Rep. Don McEachin (D) winning over 70% of the vote during the 2018 congressional election.

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Councilwoman Kristen Larson began her community engagement in Richmond by serving on the board at her son’s school, the Patrick Henry School of Science and Arts. In 2012, she was recognized by Style Magazine on its “Top 40 under 40” list. She was also part of the City of Richmond Early Childhood Action Team. She was elected to represent the 4th District on Richmond’s School Board in 2012 and was elected to City Council in 2016, winning a five-way race. Larson is the Chair of the Education and Health Committee and serves on the Finance Committee.

During her time on the School Board, Larson helped develop a plan to fix school infrastructure issues and finish long-overdue improvements to bring Richmond Public Schools in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Larson voted against removing Confederate monuments in January of 2020 because she thought removing them was not worth the cost. After the protests in response to George Floyd’s murder, Larson voted to remove Confederate monuments from Richmond. She voted to implement the Marcus Alert System and create a Civilian Review Board for police. However, she also voted against a proposal to study options regarding defunding the Richmond Police Department. In her statement rejecting the defunding proposal, she cited what she called “dangerous and unacceptable” protests in Richmond.

Due to a lack of transparency, Larson opposed Levar Stoney’s proposed Navy Hill development deal, led by Dominion Energy CEO Tom Farrell, and opposed by local progressive activists.

Larson is running unopposed in this race.

Kristen Larson is the progressive choice for this race.

About the Race

The election for the 4th District representative for the Richmond School Board takes place on November 3, 2020, during the general election. Teacher and activist, Deanna Fierro, is running against incumbent Jonathan Young.

About the District

Richmond is an independent city and the Commonwealth’s capital. It lies on the fall line of the James River between Chesterfield and Henrico counties. Richmond City’s population is roughly 200,000, although the greater metro area has a population of over 1 million. The 4th District trends Democratic, with Rep. Don McEachin (D) winning over 70% of the vote during the 2018 congressional election.

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Deanna Fierro is a Virginia public school teacher who recently earned her master's degree in Education Leadership from VCU. Fierro has also advocated for students and educators throughout the state, helping to organize the 2019 RedforEd March in Richmond to urge legislators to increase public school funding. She has also served as her district’s zoning representative to the school board, where she advocated for a facilities plan that would help decrease overcrowding in classrooms. She has also filed a federal complaint on behalf of Richmond's English as a Second Language (ESL) students because of the lack of funding and resources.

Fierro’s platform has three central pillars: retaining educators, attracting families to the Richmond school system, and building communities. She believes that retaining educators will lead to significant improvements in the quality of education at Richmond public schools. In order to retain more teachers, Fierro believes it is essential Richmond establish collective bargaining for educators, develop a plan to collect their input before implementing policies that change day-to-day school operations, and create a system for collecting exit interviews so administrators can identify retention issues.

She believes that families and communities will be best served by increasing equity in Richmond’s schools and make learning equally accessible to all students in the city, particularly for students who have special needs or are not proficient in English. Fierro wishes to address these issues by creating a community engagement plan that allows families to have input on school decision making, develop strategies to close education gaps caused by systemic disparities, and identify a process to uplift underserved student populations.

Fierro’s opponent is incumbent Jonathan Young, who proposed open enrollment for all students at all Richmond schools as a replacement for rezoning proposals in 2019. His plan also involved closing five Richmond schools, despite the issues Richmond schools already faced with overcrowding.

Given her commitment to improving education for ESL students, her support for educator collective bargaining, and her innovative approach to equity in education, Deanna Fierro is the most progressive choice in this race.

About the Race

The election of Richmond’s 5th District representative for City Council is held on November 3, 2020, in conjunction with the U.S. presidential election. The incumbent, Councilwoman Stephanie Lynch, is an open progressive running for her first full term on the council against Jer’mykeal McCoy.

About the District

Richmond is an independent city and the Commonwealth’s capital. It lies on the fall line of the James River between Chesterfield and Henrico counties. Richmond City’s population is roughly 200,000, although the greater metro area has a population of over 1 million. Richmond’s 5th District is located in the southwest part of the city. The 5th District trends Democratic, with Rep. Don McEachin (D) winning over 85% of the vote during the 2018 congressional election.

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Stephanie Lynch is running for her first full term on Richmond City Council after winning a special election in 2019. She received her Master’s Degree in Social Work Administration and Policy Practice from VCU. After graduation, she was hired at Virginia’s Department of Social Services. Throughout her career, she worked to help implement the Affordable Care Act and fought for Medicaid expansion. She led the effort to start the Addiction and Recovery Treatment Services (ARTS) program, which now serves over 20,000 people. She has also worked for GoodNeighbor, one of Virginia’s largest mental health and disability services providers for disadvantaged communities.

During her short time on City Council, Lynch stepped up to help lead efforts to reform policing practices, helping draft a proposal to study defunding the Richmond Police Department. She is one of two Richmond City Council members to vote to study defunding the police, along with Mike Jones.

Lynch is running for the seat as a Democrat on an openly progressive platform. Her primary issues include transparency, spending Richmond’s tax dollars fairly, working with the Richmond School Board to create more equitable schools, ensuring green and inclusive development in the city, and supporting measures to decrease gun violence and trauma.

She believes the city must be accountable for its promises on education. She will work to create a culture of support for teachers, students, and families. This includes re-committing to the teacher and staff pay raises agreed upon in the budget approved before the COVID-19 pandemic. Lynch plans to establish an empowered teacher oversight committee with input on curriculum and purchasing decisions.

Lynch will support Richmond’s new Pilot Eviction Diversion Program, designed to decrease evictions in the city. She also wants to expand the Housing Affordability Trust Fund. She believes that by working with state legislators, the City Council can extend the rights and resources available to tenants in Richmond.

In addition to her progressive platform, Lynch also uses her social media accounts to voice her support progressive ideas and policies and to expose injustices within the system, such as explaining discrepancies in funding between the prosecutor and public defender’s offices, replacing school resource officers, and reforming drug courts.

Stephanie Lynch’s opponent, Jer’Mykeal McCoy is also running on an openly progressive platform, which includes expanding and fully funding COVID-19 testing efforts, improving the GRTC, and increasing funding for Richmond Public Schools. McCoy’s platform is far less detailed than Lynch’s and does not address police brutality or affordable housing as directly. McCoy’s background is primarily in business and professional development, rather than directly working on progressive issues. Given Lynch’s extensive experience in social work and activism, she has demonstrated a more consistent commitment to progressive issues than her opponent.

Also running for the 5th District City Council seat is activist Nicholas Da Silva, who is running his campaign on housing affordability, police accountability, food and transportation justice, funding of the city’s schools, and economic empowerment. He wants to give renters more rights in the city to resist eviction and mistreatment by landlords. He plans to reduce traffic by making public transportation free for every resident in the city. Da Silva wants to make the city’s police more accountable by making their statistics available for the public to see and foster community trust. Da Silva is a progressive, but Lynch’s experience in City Council gives her an edge in the race.

The third challenger to Lynch is Mamie Taylor, who formerly represented Richmond’s 5th District on the School Board from 2012 to 2016. Taylor is running her campaign on quality governance, transparency, and equity.  She promises to promote transparency and clarity, tax reform, economic opportunities, better infrastructure for city streets, public schools, fair housing, better oversight of government spending, and more funding for public parks if elected to Richmond’s City Council. Taylor is also progressive, but she has not raised any money for her campaign.

Due to her commitment to policing reform, her platform of equality, and her commitment to working to improve disadvantaged communities, Stephanie Lynch is the most progressive choice in this race.

About the Race

The election of the 5th District representative for Richmond School Board takes place on November 3, 2020, sharing a ballot with the U.S. presidential election. Activist Stephanie Rizzi is running against administrator Dr. Decardra Jackson, local CEO David Jones, and fellow activist Jennifer Aghomo.

About the District

Richmond is an independent city and the Commonwealth’s capital. It lies on the fall line of the James River between Chesterfield and Henrico counties. Richmond City’s population is roughly 200,000, although the greater metro area has a population of over 1 million. Richmond’s 5th District is located in the southwest part of the city. The 5th District trends Democratic with Rep. Don McEachin (D) winning over 85% of the vote during the 2018 congressional election.

Recommendation

Stephanie Rizzi is a lifelong educator who has also worked in Richmond as an activist for change with groups such as Richmond For All to advocate for schools that are more equitable to educators and students of all backgrounds. 

Rizzi believes that empowering teachers and giving the community a voice in school matters is the best way to improve education. She believes that top-heavy administrative bureaucracies are counterproductive to educator success, and that teachers’ input on changes to school curriculum and day-to-day school life should be solicited first before new policies are imposed on them. 

In order to see that all Richmond students thrive, Rizzi advocates having input from educators, parents and communities before implementing pre-packaged curriculums. She also wishes to reimagine school discipline to focus on preventing infractions or dealing with them within schools, rather than resorting to calling in law enforcement officers. 

Her first opponent,  David Jones, is the CEO of a local construction company. He also runs an organization to support student athletes in Richmond, which he started because he wanted to provide students at Richmond Public Schools with the same level of athletic opportunity and training as students in the surrounding county schools. Jones is very focused on closing the achievement gaps for male students of color and has worked with Mayor Levar Stoney on reaching out to students. However, Jones has not put forward a platform as comprehensive or progressive as Rizzi.

Her other opponent, Dr. Decardra Jackson, works as the Richmond Public School Director of Testing Assessment Literacy and Research. Her platform is centered on ensuring that all students in Richmond Public Schools have equal access to 21st century learning tools. Jackson wants to reach out to local businesses, libraries, and police to build partnerships to support students. She also supports universal pre-K. While Jackson’s platform is moderately progresive, it does not provide the same level of policy engagement and agency for teachers and parents that Rizzi’s platform does and relies heavily on maintaining a large administration rather than transferring decision making power directly to the stakeholders. 

Rizzi’s final opponent, Jennifer Aghomo is also a Richmond education activist. She was PTA president of John B. Cary Elementary School in 2014-2015, when it was facing possible closure, and led efforts to rally parents, teachers, and community members to make sure the school stayed open. However, she does not have the same thorough, progressive platform for educational reform that Rizzi does. 

Given her commitment to empowering educators, taking into account the individual needs of students from all backgrounds, and her beliefs on school discipline, Stephanie Rizzi is the most progressive choice in this race. 

About the Race

Richmond’s 6th District City Council representative will be elected on November 3, 2020, during the general election. Openly progressive newcomer, candidate Allan-Charles Chipman, is running against incumbent Ellen Robertson.

About the District

Richmond is an independent city and the Commonwealth’s capital. It lies on the fall line of the James River between Chesterfield and Henrico counties. Richmond City’s population is roughly 200,000, although the greater metro area has a population of over 1 million. Richmond’s 6th District is considered the gateway district and is located in the central-eastern part of the city. The 6th District trends Democratic, with Rep. Don McEachin (D) winning over 90% of the vote during the 2018 congressional election.

Recommendation

Allan-Charles Chipman's inspiration for activism came from watching faith leaders use their skills to help community members when he was six years old. He is a lifelong organizer and activist working to strategize and implement a “reality of equality.” He has extensive experience as a financial advisor while working for Fortune 500 companies to make sure they stay within budget.

Chipman is basing his City Council candidancy on the concept of “everyday solidarity.” He believes that every constituent and concern matters, and that governments build trust with their communities by showing up to do the small things, like infrastructure maintenance.

In line with his desire to implement a “reality of equality, Chipman plans to push for equality in all areas of city life, including education, the allocation of tax resources, community, and public health, especially around COVID-19. He supports implementing police reform, taking equity assessment indices to evaluate marginalized communities, using equity funds to help counter the impact that crisis and emergencies have on already disadvantaged communities, and implementing a Housing Plus Pilot Program in Richmond.

To ensure transparency and a fair allocation of taxpayer resources, Chipman supports the implementation of a public-driven Community Benefits Agreement before any public subsidies are used in developments. He also wants to prevent public land from being sold without mandatory land assessments of their value. He would give the School Board the right to opt-out of developments that will impact school funding in the future.

Chipman is running against incumbent Ellen Robertson, who has been less progressive on several issues, particularly in the areas of transparency and accountability. Robertson was a supporter of Mayor Stoney’s Navy Hill development project. It was led by Dominion Energy CEO Tom Farrell and opposed by local progressive activists due to the taxpayer subsidies that would go toward financing the project. Robertson also advocated for the removal of a tent city located across the street from the Richmond Justice Center which she considered a “blight” on her district. The removal resulted in the displacement of between 50 and 80 of the city’s homeless residents. However, Roberton has spearheaded efforts to create affordable housing in the city and to increase its accessibility to homeless individuals.

Given his views on police reform and transparency, along with his innovative approach to creating equality in Richmond, Allan-Charles Chipman is the more progressive choice in this race.

About the Race

The election for the 6th District's representative on the Richmond School Board is on November 3, 2020, in conjunction with the U.S. presidential election. Former Binford Middle School PTA board member and constituent advocate, Lynette Plummer, is running against former Richmond School Board member Shonda Muhammad, community advocate Ta’Quan Grant, healthcare professional Timika Vincent, and Deon Wright.

About the District

Richmond is an independent city and the Commonwealth’s capital. It lies on the fall line of the James River between Chesterfield and Henrico counties. Richmond City’s population is roughly 200,000, although the greater metro area has a population of over 1 million. Richmond’s 6th District is considered the gateway district and is located in the central-eastern part of the city. The 6th District trends Democratic, with Rep. Don McEachin (D) winning over 90% of the vote during the 2018 congressional election.

Recommendation

Lynette Plummer is a former investment banker who has worked as Executive Assistant to both the Attorney General and Chief Deputy Attorney General of Virginia for the last six years. She also spent five years as a Constituent Advocate with Senator Mark Warner. Plummer has served on the Binford Middle PTA Board and the Richmond Education Compact Committee.

Plummer’s platform rests on three central pillars: communication, collaboration, and compassion. In regards to collaboration, she wishes to develop district-specific plans that can solicit parental engagement and involvement in policy and decision making. She also wishes to develop communication tools and practices which will allow students to share their experiences and voice their concerns.

She believes that improving communication means developing good relationships between School Board members and administrators and establishing strong communication lines with educators and parents. This includes soliciting and integrating feedback from teachers and parents on budgetary, curriculum, and other important decisions before the Board takes a vote. Plummer supports transparency in the School Board’s work and wants to use statistical data and analysis to inform the Board’s decision-making process.

Finally, Plummer believes that compassion means investing in diversity, inclusion and equality in Richmond Public Schools. She fully supports restorative justice and disciplinary measures over punitive ones in regards to students. Plummer also believes it is necessary to support teachers by providing them with the tools they need to do their jobs and trusting their professional experience and judgment.

Plummer’s opponent, Shonda Muhammad, served on the school board between 2012 and 2016. During her time on the School Board, Muhammad called out her fellow board members on not doing enough to address violence at Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School. Muhammad organizes the annual Back to School Rally, which has provided over 13,000 students with backpacks filled with school supplies since 2008. Muhammad has no specific platform information posted about her 2020 run for Richmond School Board.

Another opponent, Ta’Quan Grant, is a community advocate running on a platform of updating the technology and infrastructure of Richmond schools, creating mentorship programs for students, advocating for students with disabilities, and equal funding for teachers. Although his platform is progressive, it is not as detailed as Plummer’s, particularly on community involvement, transparency, and racial equality.

Timika Vincent, a healthcare professional, is also running for the 6th District School Board seat. She wants to promote parental involvement and act as a voice for students and parents on the School Board. Vincent also supports expanding programs designed to provide food, clothing, and school supplies to children in need through schools. Though her platform is progressive, it is less detailed than Plummer’s and lacks a specific focus on the needs of educators and students that Plummer provides.

Plummer’s final opponent, Deon Wright, has a history of speaking out about child welfare in his neighborhood. He has no information posted publicly about his run for School Board, as his campaign Facebook is private.

Due to her stance on transparency, parental and educator engagement, and her commitment to equality in education, Lynette Plummer is the most progressive choice in this race.

About the Race

The election for Richmond’s 7th District City Council representative is held on November 3, 2020, in conjunction with the U.S. presidential election. Openly progressive newcomer Joseph Rogers is running against incumbent Cynthia Newbille.

About the District

Richmond is an independent city and the Commonwealth’s capital. It lies on the fall line of the James River between Chesterfield and Henrico counties. The City of Richmond's population is roughly 200,000, although the greater metro area has a population of over 1 million. Richmond’s 7th District consists of the city’s East End. The 7th District trends Democratic, with Rep. Don McEachin (D) winning the district with over 85% of the vote during the 2018 congressional election.

Recommendation

A descendant of a Black legislator from Virginia's Reconstruction era, Joseph Rogers works as a museum educator in Richmond. He places particular emphasis on teaching students the truth about the impact of race in Virginia’s history. He is also a community organizer and activist with the Virginia Defenders for Freedom, Justice & Equality, and Justice and Reformation, an organization started by the family of Marcus-David Peters, an unarmed Black man killed by Richmond police.

Rogers’ platform focuses primarily on education, housing, community and public spaces, public safety, and transportation. He demands full funding for all Richmond public schools and will work to ensure equal access to quality education for all Richmond students, regardless of race, neighborhood, or income level. Rogers also plans to address the city’s affordable housing crisis and bring down Richmond’s astronomically high eviction rates.

Rogers favors a community-based approach to public safety that would shift first responder duties for those experiencing a mental health crisis away from police and to trained professionals. He supports the implementation of the Marcus Alert System, a program designed to dispatch teams of mental health professionals along with police to mental health emergencies. He also supports immediately banning chemical irritants and other militaristic non-lethal force weapons against protestors and the formation of an elected Civilian Review Board for police misconduct.

Rogers is running against incumbent Cynthia Newbille. She supported Mayor Stoney’s Navy Hill development project, which was led by Dominion Energy CEO Tom Farrell and opposed by local progressive activists. While Newbille voted to implement the Marcus Alert System and the creation of a civilian review board for police misconduct, she also voted against a proposal to study police defunding options. She also spearheads the Shockoe Alliance, which is now working to create a slave memorial park and museum to tell the full story of slavery in the Shockoe part of the city.

Due to his commitment to racial justice, and his views on affordable housing, education, and police reform, Joseph Rogers is the more progressive choice in this race.

About the Race

The election for Richmond’s 8th District City Council representative takes place on November 3, 2020 in conjunction with the U.S. Presidential election. Progressive candidate and newcomer Amy Wentz is running against incumbent Councilwoman Reva Trammell.

About the District

Richmond is an independent city and the Commonwealth’s capital. It lies on the fall line of the James River between Chesterfield and Henrico counties. The City of Richmond’s population is roughly 200,000, although the greater metro area has a population of over 1 million. Richmond’s 8th District encompasses the city’s Southside. The 8th District trends Democratic. In the 2018 congressional election, Rep. Don McEachin (D) won the district with over 90% of the vote.

Recommendation

Amy Wentz is a US Army veteran currently working for the Department of Defense. She has worked tirelessly to advocate for Richmond’s Black community and was named “Richmond History Maker” in 2020. She was awarded the Richmond Community Service Award by the Richmond City Council and recognized as one of Style Weekly's “Top 40 Under 40” in 2013. She is part of an action team that oversees “Visit BLK RVA,” Virginia’s first tourism platform dedicated to highlighting Black culture. She is also the co-founder of the Richmond Black Restaurant Experience.

Wentz is running on a detailed, openly progressive platform, with a focus on education, infrastructure, growth, housing, transportation, health, and public safety. She wants to ensure equitable lives and outcomes for all Richmond residents.

Wentz will work to diversify and improve public transportation. She plans to create more bus lines, particularly one going through the Southside. Wentz will also build more sidewalks and bikeways to increase the quality of life in neighborhoods. Wentz will ensure that all public schools, community centers, and libraries are accessible by GRTC bus lines.

She will work to protect renters’ rights and ensure access to affordable housing. Wentz believes that Richmond can provide access to homeownership opportunities to every city resident, due to current low-interest rates and down payment grant options. She would prioritize funding and supporting the Maggie Walker Community Land Trust, which works to create permanent affordable housing opportunities to foster racial equality within Richmond communities. Wentz would also look to increase multi-family zoning in the city.

Wentz is committed to increasing the accessibility of both primary and mental healthcare in the 8th District. She plans to collaborate with the Richmond Health District and the Richmond Behavioral Health to seek out solutions to problems related to healthcare access.

Wentz is dedicated to improving education for people of all ages in Richmond. She will support initiatives to strengthen pre-K to post-secondary learning opportunities for Richmond residents. She plans to increase access to adult learning and education, including vocational and technical programs for career training and retraining. Wentz will work toward pay raises for Richmond Public School educators and staff.

Wentz’s opponent is incumbent Reva Trammell, who repeatedly voted against removing Confederate monuments. Trammell has been reluctant to discuss issues of race and policing. Trammell has been accused of racist attitudes stemming from a controversy over some personal items displayed in her home during a streaming event. Trammell voted against the Navy Hill redevelopment project. While she voted unanimously along with the rest of the council to implement the Marcus Alert System and to create a civilian review board for police misconduct, Tramell also voted against a proposal to fund a study on defunding the Richmond Police Department.

Also running for the 8th District City Council seat is Regie Ford, a former president of the Richmond Crusade for Voters. Ford doesn’t have a campaign website, but a video posted on Twitter shows him calling for beautifying, not gentrifying the 8th district and accountable representation. Due to lack of information, Ford is not the most progressive choice in this race.

In light of her history working toward racial equality, and her views on education, transportation, and housing, Amy Wentz is the most progressive choice in this race.

About the Race

The election for Richmond’s 8th District School Board seat occurs on November 3, 2020, in conjunction with the U.S. presidential election. Newcomer Reverend Dana Sally Allen is running against incumbent Dawn Page, a Department of Corrections workforce specialist,.

About the District

Richmond is an independent city and the Commonwealth’s capital. It lies on the fall line of the James River between Chesterfield and Henrico counties. Richmond City’s population is roughly 200,000, although the greater metro area has a population of over 1 million. Richmond’s 8th District encompasses the city’s Southside. The 8th District trends Democratic. In the 2018 congressional election, Rep. Don McEachin (D) won the district with over 90% of the vote.

Recommendation

Reverend Dana Sally Allen is a Richmond minister who has advocated for more funding and equality in the city’s schools. She is also the president of the Blackwell Civic Association and succeeded in getting parks built and streets repaved while acquiring a $20 million grant from HUD to build 96 homes in Blackwell.

Allen is running for school board on a platform of accountability, transparency, and engagement. In February, she used her position as President of the Blackwell Civic Association to advocate for and address local students’ demands for improvements to the overall quality of life and education. She also wants to use a position on the School Board to do the same.

Allen is vocal on issues of school funding, particularly in regard to racial equality in learning. She wants to train Richmond educators to be anti-racist, while also working to ensure that educators are adequately compensated for their work. Allen would work to eliminate inequalities in high-speed internet access among students, predominantly impacting students of color. She believes this would promote equality in online learning and help narrow gaps in student achievement.

Allen’s opponent, incumbent Dawn Page, has voted on multiple occasions to maintain or expand Richmond’s expansive school administration, which has been criticized for being oversized and overpaid. Page served as the Richmond School Board Chair in 2019, but was replaced by Linda Owen in 2020 on the grounds that she was not transparent with other board members. She also faced criticism from the School Board for removing items from meeting agendas after promising they would be addressed.

Due to her advocacy for equality in education and her opponent’s lack of transparency and history of preferring school administration over educators and students, Rev. Dana Sally Allen is the most progressive choice in this race.

About the Race

The election for Richmond’s 9th District City Council representative is held on November 3 2020, in conjunction with the U.S. presidential election. The incumbent, Councilman Michael Jones, is running unopposed for re-election.

About the District

Richmond is an independent city and the Commonwealth’s capital. It lies on the fall line of the James River between Chesterfield and Henrico counties. Richmond City’s population is roughly 200,000, although the greater metro area has a population of over 1 million. Richmond’s 9th District is located in the south-central part of the city. The 9th District trends Democratic. Rep. Don McEachin (D) earned over 90% of the vote in the 2018 congressional election.

Recommendation

Dr. Michael Jones is a pastor at Villages of Faith Ministries in Richmond with a doctorate in ministry. He has served on the Richmond City Council since his election in 2016 and serves as the Chair of the Education and Human Services Committee and Vice-Chair of the Finance Committee.

During his time on the City Council, Dr. Jones repeatedly championed the causes of racial equality and reform. He consistently voted to remove Confederate monuments and spearheaded efforts to enact police reform in Richmond in response to the behavior of the Richmond Police Department at protests in the wake of the death of George Floyd.

Jones supports banning the use of tear gas and other military-grade weaponry against peaceful protesters. He is one of two council members to help develop and vote for a proposal to study defunding the Richmond Police Department.

He uses his social media accounts to spread information about COVID-19 resources and response issues. Jones plans only to support pandemic budget amendments that will not negatively impact the city’s most vulnerable and disadvantaged communities.

Despite the concerns of progressive activists, Jones voted to support the Navy Hill development project.

Dr. Mike Jones is running unopposed for re-election.

Given his views and actions in support of racial justice, his commitment to protecting vulnerable communities in the wake of the pandemic, and his work on police reform, Dr. Michale Jones is the most progressive choice in this race.

About the Race

The election for Richmond’s 9th District School Board representative occurs on November 3, 2020, as part of the general election. Newcomer Nicole Jones, the donor relations director at ART 180, an organization supporting city youth, runs unopposed in this race after incumbent Linda Owen dropped out in early July.

About the District

Richmond is an independent city and the Commonwealth’s capital. It lies on the fall line of the James River between Chesterfield and Henrico counties. Richmond City’s population is roughly 200,000, although the greater metro area has a population of over 1 million. Richmond’s 9th District is located in the south-central part of the city. The 9th District trends Democratic. Rep. Donald McEachin (D) earned over 90% of the vote in the 2018 congressional election.

Recommendation

Nicole Jones is the donor relations director at Richmond’s ART 180. This organization works to allow city youth to express themselves through art to share their stories and improve their lives. The organization also operates Atlas, an art center for teens located in the Jackson Ward area.

Jones is running unopposed in this race, as her opponent, former chair Linda Owen, dropped out in early July. Owen has endorsed Jones in her run for Richmond School Board.

Given her history of supporting Richmond's young people, Nicole Jones is the most progressve choice in this race.