Senate District 015

Virginia’s new 75th House of Delegates district encompasses parts of Chesterfield County, Hopewell City, and parts of Prince George County. With over 56,000 registered voters, this district leans Republican.

This election will be held on November 7, 2023. Incumbent Republican Carrie Coyner is facing a challenge from Democrat Stephen Miller-Pitts in the general election for Virginia’s new 75th House of Delegates district. Delegate Coyner has served in the House of Delegates since 2020.

Stephen Miller-Pitts is a combat veteran, military spouse, father, educator, service-disabled small business owner, and community activist. He joined the military in 2001 and developed a passion for volunteering in the community throughout his military service. After returning from Afghanistan, he was awarded the Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award for his lifelong commitment to building a stronger nation through volunteer service. His advocacy for resources and better services for veterans led to his political pursuits, and he became the Senior Legislative Assistant for a member of the Virginia House of Delegates. Miller-Pitts is an alumnus of the 2018 cohort of the Minority Political Leadership Institute and obtained his Master of Public Administration at Regent University.

Miller-Pitts does not list any positions on his website, but he does pledge that he is “committed to expanding access to quality, affordable healthcare, increasing opportunities for small businesses and entrepreneurs, and working to make our communities safer from gun violence.” This commitment is solidified by endorsements from Giffords, Run for Something, Roe Your Vote Virginia, and Planned Parenthood Advocates of Virginia. He also co-authored an assessment of the Racial Equity Impact of Legislation to Establish a Virginia Grocery Investment Program and Fund.

Miller-Pitts is challenging current Republican Incumbent Delegate Carrie Coyner, who was first elected in 2019. Coyner is a Chester native, where she currently resides with her three children. She voted in opposition to the Virginia Clean Economy Act and voted against renter’s protections during the ongoing pandemic. She also voted against raising the minimum wage and establishing the Virginia Voting Rights Act.
Despite limited information, because of his pledge to expand quality, affordable healthcare and his commitment to keeping our communities safe from gun violence, Miller-Pitts is the progressive choice in this race.

Virginia’s new 76th House of Delegates district encompasses parts of Chesterfield County. With almost 67,000 registered voters, this district leans strongly Democratic.

This election will be held on November 7, 2023. Democratic candidate Debra Gardner and Republican candidate Duc Truong will face each other in the general election for Virginia’s new 76th House of Delegates district. Gardner previously ran for the 2019 Clover Hill Chesterfield County Supervisor seat, as well as the 2021 District 27 House of Delegates seat. This is an open seat with no incumbent in the race.

Debra Gardner is a former teacher, social worker, and public servant. She received a bachelor’s degree in sociology from North Carolina Central University and a Master of Public Administration from Virginia Commonwealth University. She worked as an adjunct professor at VCU and has held leadership positions at three state agencies: the Department of Criminal Justice Services, the Department of Corrections, and the Department of Human Services. She currently lives in North Chesterfield with her daughter.

Gardner is dedicated to policies that support Virginia working families. When her elderly mother came to live with her, Gardner understood the needs of an aging society and immediately set to work on policies that would reduce the caregiving burden on families. She also received the “Family Friendly Seal of Approval” from the Virginia Campaign for a Family Friendly Economy for her dedication to paid family and medical leave, paid sick days, quality childcare and affordable eldercare. She is also dedicated to ensuring everyone in our communities earns a living wage and receives sufficient support during the economic recovery from COVID-19.

Gardner will also prioritize access to affordable healthcare. She especially supports expanding insurance options for people who are unemployed so that access to healthcare is no longer tied to employment. Additionally, she will work to increase funding for mental health care and addiction recovery to ensure these critical services are accessible to all who need them. She will fight to decrease the price of prescriptions to make sure everyone is able to afford their necessary medications.

With her background in criminal justice and corrections, Gardner has proven her dedication to public safety. Additionally, Gardner served on the Commonwealth Domestic Violence Prevention Response Advisory Board. She will implement evidence-based and community-based programs to increase community safety. She will require updated training for all police officers and work to improve relationships between officers and communities. She sees common-sense gun violence prevention legislation as critical to ensuring community safety.

Gardner will also work to tackle the climate crisis in Virginia. She sees protecting the planet as beneficial both environmentally and economically and knows investing in clean energy will help bring jobs to the 27th District. She will fight to ensure economic growth is responsibly planned and sustainable. She also sees how public health is tied to environmental protections and will work to ensure all of her constituents, regardless of economic status, have access to clean water and healthy food.

Republican Duc Truong, a small business owner, is Gardner’s opponent in this race. Truong wants to leave the fate of healthcare in the hands of employers. He wants to help Republicans cut regulations, making us less safe. His favored solution for fostering success beyond K-12 education is to traffic graduates directly to the military.

Due to her support for the environment, affordable healthcare, and Virginia working families, Gardner is the most progressive choice for Virginia’s 76th district.

Virginia’s new 77th House of Delegates district encompasses parts of Richmond City and parts of Chesterfield County. With almost 55,000 registered voters, this district leans strongly Democratic.

This election will be held on November 7, 2023. Democratic candidate Michael Jones is running unopposed in the general election for Virginia’s new 77th House of Delegates district. He previously served in the Richmond City Council District 9 seat.

Richmond City Councilman Mike Jones is the son of a Navy SEAL and proud Richmonders who taught him to overcome any obstacles that life can throw your way. He graduated from Maggie Walker Governor’s School. His parents taught him to never judge someone based on the superficial aspects because of what they witnessed growing up in a segregated Richmond. For most of his life, Jones has channeled the values taught to him to fight for the rights of others. He has been about the people.

Jones knows that climate change is real and that we must take action to reduce emissions and protect the public health of Richmond citizens. He believes that it is unacceptable that Richmond has some of the highest rates of asthma in the country and flooding in our neighborhoods. He also understands the need for environmental justice, as some parts of the 77th district are 10% hotter than others. He believes that we need to fight at the state level for tree canopies, greenspace, and improvements to the James River Park System. Jones has taken a pledge not to take any campaign contributions from Dominion Energy and has been endorsed by Sierra Club.

Jones has garnered a reputation of fighting for the streets. Black, White or Brown, he has sought to amplify the voices of those that are too often overlooked. In a part of the City that has been left out of so many conversations, Jones has a way of matching problems with legislation. He has shown his ability to lead during tough times by chairing the Council’s Finance Committee, calling for more fiscal responsibility. He is willing to say what so many are afraid to say in a tone of empathy and compassion. Jones tries to educate and inform while others might seek to alienate.

As a Black man, Jones knows people of color are over-represented in the criminal justice system and underrepresented in elected office. We need to rectify some of the wrongs of the past, but more importantly, stop the next generation from being pulled into the system. Jones wants to slow the school-to-prison pipeline, reform policing, help returning citizens get into the workforce, and eliminate mandatory minimum sentences. On the city council, Jones led the fight to gain local control of the Confederate Monuments in the City of Richmond. Standing alone, he endured backlash and death threats. That did not stop him. He is leading the charge for more accountability with Law Enforcement seeking to move to a true form of public safety.

Jones also supports access to abortion and feels strongly that the government should never limit access to or prevent someone from making their own reproductive choices. He also wants to give kids a pathway to the middle class by providing jobs with good benefits, a $15/hr minimum wage, and creating a great economy that works for everyone.

Councilman Jones is running unopposed, but given his stance on criminal justice reform, climate change, and racial justice, he is decidedly the progressive choice in this race.

Virginia’s new 79th House of Delegates district encompasses parts of Richmond City. With almost 63,000 registered voters, this district leans strongly Democratic.

This election will be held on November 7, 2023. Democratic candidate Rae Cousins is running unopposed in the general election for Virginia’s new 79th House of Delegates district. There is no incumbent in this race.

Rae Cousins is a lawyer and candidate for the House of Delegates. She graduated from The College of William & Mary and Howard University School of Law. Cousins has worked at BrownGreer, a local law firm in Richmond, where she manages the administration of multi-million- and billion-dollar settlement programs for people injured by harmful drugs and medical devices and environmental disasters. She has a passion for voter registration and has worked on voter registration drives throughout the city. Cousins is endorsed by Governor Ralph Northam, Rep. Abigail Spanberger, Delegate Jay Jones, and many other organizations and unions, including the Working Families Party, Bold Progressives, and the National Women's Political Caucus of Virginia.

Cousins promises to be a strong voice for tenants’ rights. Her plans to enhance tenants' rights include increasing the inventory of affordable housing and supporting people who want to stay in their communities despite rising tax revenues and costs of living. She also seeks to keep utility prices down and address environmental hazards that disproportionately affect low-income neighborhoods and communities of color. To achieve this, she plans to ensure more urban green space, invest in clean energy, and fight for transparency and community input in the decisions behind new development projects.

With the Commonwealth one election away from bans on abortion access, Cousins understands that the time is now to enshrine reproductive rights into law. She will advocate for the right to an abortion and the use of contraceptive methods, and she will be a champion for reproductive health on the floor of the Virginia House of Delegates. She also aims to expand affordable quality healthcare for all Virginians and promote preventative healthcare, access to fresh and healthy foods, and enhanced maternal health care services. She supports or sponsors legislation aimed at ensuring paid family and medical leave and will not compromise with Republicans seeking to dismantle public healthcare for low-income Virginians and the elderly.

Cousins believes that all Virginians deserve to feel safe in our neighborhoods. As Delegate, she will work to enhance sensible gun violence prevention measures to keep our streets safe. She will also work to eradicate the school-to-prison pipeline, invest in after-school enrichment programs, provide funding for programs that support individuals with felony convictions as they reenter society, and work with community stakeholders and law enforcement to implement data driven policies that cut to the root cause of crime in our neighborhoods.

As a lawyer committed to equal justice, Cousins understands that a good education is the foundation for economic opportunity. She is committed to defending public education and to renewing our commitment to our students by modernizing technology and maintaining our school buildings. As delegate, Cousins will defend public education from Gov. Youngkin’s so-called “school choice” policies, which amount to defunding our public schools. Cousins is also committed to securing funding for career and technical skills training for Richmond’s young people, universal pre-K and early childhood care, and increased teacher pay. She will work to ensure that all students, regardless of their gender or sexual identity, feel at home in Virginia.

There are no other candidates on the ballot in this race, but given Cousins’ commitment to ensuring access to healthcare for all Virginians, her support of common sense gun violence prevention legislation, and her advocacy for tenant’s rights, Cousins is decidedly the progressive choice. This recommendation remains in line with Progress Virginia’s endorsement of Cousins in the Democratic primary.

Virginia’s new 81st House of Delegates district encompasses parts of Henrico City, parts of Chesterfield County, and Charles City County. With over 60,000 registered voters, this district leans strongly Democratic.

This election will be held on November 7, 2023. Incumbent Democratic Delegate Delores McQuinn is running unopposed in the general election for Virginia’s new 81st House of Delegates district. She has served in the House of Delegates since 2009.

Incumbent Democratic Delegate Delores McQuinn is a lifelong resident of the Richmond area and a public servant with a passion for community service. She has served in various roles throughout her career, including as Vice Chairperson of the Richmond School Board, Vice-Mayor and Vice-President of Richmond City Council, and as a member of the Virginia House of Delegates. McQuinn has received numerous awards for her work, including recognition as the YWCA's Woman of the Year and the Virginia Center for Inclusive Communities Humanitarian Award.

Delegate McQuinn has been a strong supporter of protecting the environment since she was first elected. Throughout her career, she has received an overall rating of 100% from both the Virginia Sierra Club and the Virginia League of Conservation Voters. In the last session, she voted to expand renewable energy tax credits (SB 710--conference vote). She also took steps to prevent gentrification by Introducing HB 635, which required inclusionary housing and zoning.

Delegate McQuinn has also been a reliable voice for abortion access and bodily autonomy. She received an overall rating of 92% from REPRO Rising Virginia. In the last session, she voted against HB 212, which would have reinstated the 24 hour mandatory waiting period before a person can access abortion care. . In the session before that, she voted to repeal the abortion prohibition in VA Health Insurance Plans (HB1276), voted to establish the Reproductive Health Protection Act (HB 980) and voted against the prohibition of state funding of abortion services (HB2264).

Delegate McQuinn has also proven to be a staunch defender of immigrant rights. She voted to expand financial aid for undocumented immigrants (SB 1387), voted to authorize driver's licenses for undocumented people(SB 34, concurrence vote), voted to eliminate the requirement that jails and prisons ascertain citizenship status of inmates (HB 1150 Conference report vote), voted to authorize in-state tuition for undocumented students (SB 925), voted to prohibit law enforcement questioning and individual's immigration status (HB 262) and voted against prohibiting the establishment of sanctuary cities (HB 1257).

She has proven a reliable vote for gun violence prevention. Last session, she co-sponsored HB 2387, which establishes a refundable income tax credit for firearm safety devices, and voted against repealing the extreme risk protection order law law (HB 509). She was rated 14% by Virginia Citizens Defense League and 0% by the NRA. She voted against reducing penalties for carrying a concealed weapon without a permit and was rated 100% by LEAP Forward.

Delegate McQuinn is running unopposed, but her historic support of progressive issues such as abortion access, gun violence prevention, and immigrant rights make her the progressive choice in this race.