The year after a Presidential election is a key year in Virginia politics. All three statewide offices — Governor, Lt. Governor, and Attorney General, all currently held by Democrats — are up for four year terms. So are all 100 seats in the House of Delegates, which serves a 2 year term (the State Senate serves a 4 year term with elections the year before the Presidential). Currently the Republicans hola 66-34 advantage, in large part because of gerrymandering. That makes it unlikely the Democrats can take control, but not totally impossible, a situation unlike what national Democrats face in the House of Representatives next year. Democrats are this cycle contesting far more seats than in previous cycles, and have hopes of making significant gains.
But first Democrats have to hold marginal seats. The 87th District, largely Loudoun County (very much a swing county, and a small part also in swingy Prince William), is one such seat. It was for three terms held by Republican David Ramadan, who chose not to run for a third term in 2015. On his second try for the seat, Democrat John Bell was elected and is seeking support to continue to hold the seat.
I have known John since he first ran (unsuccessfully) for this seat, and would like to make more people aware of him.
John spent 26 years in the Air Force, enlisting out of high school, later being selected for Officers Candidate School, and retiring as a Major, with an expertise in Finance. Along the way he got a bachelors degree in business administration Summa cum Laude. He also has two masters’ degrees, an MBA (finance emphasis) and a Masters in Organizational Development from George Washington University. He is outside of his service as a state legislator, a finance professional. He brings that expertise to his work as a delegate.
In his spare time, John Bell served as a volunteer coach for the tennis team of a local high school, where he took a failing program and turned it into something of a powerhouse with multiple titles and a 66-12 record during his tenure as coach.
The 87th District includes Dulles Airport within its boundaries. The Dulles Greenway, originally created as a private for-profit toll road under the direction of the guy who in the Reagan administration had headed the Urban Mass Transit Authority (no, I am NOT making that up, and I realize the irony, or if you will the absurdity), is a major issue in the district. It is a major commuting path for people in Loudoun County, and after the failure of the private endeavor and it being taken over by a private organization whose ultimate control is an Australian company, there has been an issue of ever increasing tolls: the original endeavor failed, and the losses from that effort have been being recouped by rolling them into ongoing tolls. Eventually the roadway, which is one part of Virginia Route 267, is supposed to be turned over to the Commonwealth. If you go to John's website and click on link for Priorities, you will encounter these words about the Greenway:
Each year brings a new increase in tolls on the Dulles Greenway, with no end in sight. The only permanent solution that will bring real relief to families in the 87th District is to buy the road from its current owners. We can do this by issuing bonds and taking advantage of our current low interest rates. With the savings from road maintenance and snow removal and the cost of the taxes the owners currently pay, we could institute distance-based pricing and reduce the cost of tolls dramatically. This would be at no cost to the taxpayers and would allow the people to control their own fate going forward.
The other priorities emphasized by Delegate John Bell include
- fighting for full-day Kindergarten for every student
- promoting economic development
- finding cost-effective transportation solutions (transportation is a key issue in all of Northern Virginia)
- protecting Virginia’s natural beauty: here I note that John says “We need to invest in alternative forms of energy, so that we can end our dependence on fossil fuels and also create new jobs and industries that will help diversify our economy. We shouldn't give massive tax breaks to coal companies and other polluters while making it more difficult for clean energy providers to get off the ground in Virginia.” it is worth noting that the largest single contributor to Virginia Politics is Dominion Energy which is heavily dependent upon coal, having just a few years ago brought online a billion dollar coal-fueled generation facility near Wise VA, and having tried unsuccessfully to get another massive plant near Surry. You can expect that Dominion will be contributing heavily to John Bell’s Republican opponent. I also note John Bell has a strong environmental record, as you can see in these endorsements
- increasing access to quality health care: John makes a point about women’s health in a state where under Republican (male) leadership attempts were made to really restrict the choices of women. John writes “I want my daughters and granddaughters to be able to make their own health care choices. That is why I am so disgusted by Republican efforts to close health clinics and interfere with individuals' private medical decisions. I trust Virginia's women and doctors to make those decisions, not politicians. As legislators, we need to increase access to health care, not restrict it.”
- ensuring equal rights for all Virginians: John notes that guaranteeing such equality is something that connects with economic development, and we should all recognize that increasing numbers of major corporations consider that an important issue to consider when deciding where to locate/expand facilities. It is also, even more basically, a question of fundamental fairness.
- taking steps to prevent gun violence: including closing the gun show loophole and instituting universal background checks. Virginia is a state with a long history of ready access to firearms, but even our attitudes began to change somewhat after the slaughter at Virginia Tech. All of the current statewide Democratic office holders have been committed to taking these steps to prevent further slaughter.
If you visit this site you might question my description of this as a swing district — after all, a lot of the data seems to indicate an increasing Democratic tilt, as was true of Northern Virginia as a whole, and even the Commonwealth as a whole. But remember that when looking at that, in 2013 a Republican won the delegate’s race. And remember, that in general, in odd-year elections (as in all off-year elections) Republican leaning voters turn out at a higher rater than do Democratic leaning voters, although we can hope that negative reaction towards Trump might influence that this cycle.
Further, as you can see here, John’s Republican opponent has raised almost twice as much as he has, approximately $285,000 to 154,000.
Thus contributions would be welcome to make sure John does not get swamped.
Here are John Bell’s current committee assignments:
Committee Membership
Subcommittee Membership
If you live nearby, you might also consider contacting the campaign to volunteer, especially once we get past the forthcoming primary contests on June 13 for Governor and Lieutenant Governor and the party can come together with a common purpose.
I know John Bell because when he first ran he reached out to me, as someone at that point then a prominent voice on a major Virginia blog.
Nowadays I blog far less in general, and rarely at sites beyond Daily Kos.
I think enough of John that he and I had a discussion several months ago about my raising attention to his race here at Daily Kos. This posting is a result.
I hope I have interested at least a few of you. Even if you decided as a non-Virginian or a Virginian not in his district that you could only give a nominal amount, it will be greatly appreciated. And if you know people in or near his district, perhaps you can contact them to get involved. Remember, we do not want to lose what we have because we are not paying close enough attention.
Peace.