Now that the Democrats control both the Virginia Senate and House of Delegates, they must do the right thing. Democrats need to put the people of Virginia first.
Doing the right thing means making bold moves to reverse years of Republican-sponsored voter suppression by making voting easy and widespread. Doing the right thing also means doing away with the “Virginia Way” that has enabled corporations and big donors use money to influence lawmakers and stifle dissent. By addressing money in politics and the politics of gaming both elections and governance, this new Democratic majority can lay a strong foundation for pursuing the full breadth of progressive goals for the environment, criminal justice reform, racial justice, healthcare, education, and economic opportunity. The newly elected General Assembly has an important choice: Be bold and make lasting progressive change or maintain the status quo. It’s up to us to ensure they pursue the former.
Pay attention to these strategic choices that the Democratic leadership could make:
- Will they support for a second vote on the state constitutional amendment to create a redistricting committee, which is needed to make it on the ballot as ballot initiative? Or will they re-introduce another constitutional amendment, one that removes it from their hands?
- Will they ban or cap corporate campaign donations? Governor Northam floated this idea in 2018, even as he accepted huge donations from Dominion Energy and other corporations.
- Will they repeal voter photo ID and voter database “clean up” laws, and will they enact automatic voter registration and early voting, or even align Virginia with the election cycles of other states?
- Will they repeal “Right to Work” and allow workers to unionize?
- Will they stick to their pledge to embrace the Green New Deal Virginia, or fall back in line with fossil-fuel industry’s 30-year time horizon and top-down control?
- Will they stack committees with Democrats or will they distribute committee assignments proportionally as the previous House Democratic leadership called for when the party was still in the minority? Moreover, will they follow Kirk Cox’s precedent of using the Rules committee to kill bills that might otherwise reach a floor vote?
In order to hold our Democratic legislators accountable and ensure they enact the policies and reforms they purported to be committed to, we need volunteer help. We will be working to engage Virginians in policy advocacy in a variety of different ways. If you’re excited about deep diving into issues and seeking creative ways to communicate that information to the public in order to help empower them to action, then we want you to join us! We need organizers, social media & media savvy folks, writers, communicators, filmmakers, storytellers, podcasters, event organizers, and more!
Please fill in our Volunteer Survey form here.
Follow us on social media: @VAJusticeDems We are watching closely and talking to legislators and allied groups regarding the upcoming legislation. Stay tuned for our analysis, priority list, and ways to follow and support our priorities.
Photo Credit: Richard Ricciardi (Creative Commons 2.0 General)