The race in VA-10 between incumbent Republican Congresswoman Barbara Comstock and Democratic nominee State Senator Jennifer Wexton (D-Fairfax) is a battle between two things: resistance v. results. Though, the congressional district stretching from the urban metropolis of the capital area beltway to the rural-minded rolling hills of the Shenandoah Valley typically does not work within the spectrum of a national partisan agenda. A district-first approach to public policy is the way things have been for decades, which Comstock has upheld through her two terms in the House of Representatives.
Unlike the congresswoman, Wexton believes that divisive, politically-charged rhetoric will be what propels her into office, as running further and further left is the mark of dedication within the Democratic Party. She is unashamedly the candidate of “The Resistance,” as her mentor, Congressman Gerry Connolly (VA-11), said at her victory party on primary election night.
However, being the poster child for progressivism doesn’t come without merit – she had to work for it. During her time in the General Assembly, Wexton has thrived on voting down common sense, Virginia-first measures, and has supported a long list of tax increases, gun-stripping bills, sanctuary cities, and other leftist policy that just doesn’t fit the bill in the Commonwealth.
Virginia progressives have caught wind of this as the Virginia Progressive Legislative Alert Network (VAPLAN) has voted her first in progressivism with a perfect “scorecard” for her voting record in the 2018 General Assembly session.
The methodology behind the scorecard considers all bills tracked for VAPLAN which includes Medicaid expansion, the work requirement part of expansion, the grid transformation “Dominion bill,” bills banning guns in churches, sanctuary cities, and “Erin’s law.” According to the metrics used by VAPLAN via a spreadsheet to record votes on legislative measures, here’s the way Wexton went:
Medicaid work requirement (H.B. 338): Opposed
Coal tax credit (H.B. 665): In Favor
Civil asset forfeiture (H.B. 900): Opposed
Equal Rights Amendment (S.J. 4): Supported
Restitution (H.B. 484): Opposed
Redistricting (S.B. 106): Voted against
Gay conversion therapy (S.B. 245/H.B. 363): Opposed
Bump stock ban (S.B. 1/H.B. 41): Opposed
Insanity Hospitalization (H.B. 1193): Voted against
Dominion (S.B. 966): Voted Against
EMT guns (S.B. 715): Voted Against
Sanctuary cities bill (H.B. 1257): Opposed
Expungement (S.B. 608): Supported
School discipline (S.B. 170): Voted in favor
Voter ID (S.B. 523): Voted against
Death penalty; SMI (S.B. 802/H.B. 758): Supported
Housing discrimination (S.B. 423): Voted in favor
Guns in churches (S.B. 372): Voted against
Tobacco child labor (H.B. 947): Supported
SCC Interventor (H.B. 556): Opposed
Budget (H.B. 5002): Voted in favor
Erin’s Law (H.B. 1223): Opposed
Clean rate repeal (H.B. 96/S.B. 9): Opposed
Campaign Finance Utilities (S.B. 10/H.B. 562): Opposed
Golf course tax (H.B. 1204): Voted against
Franchise (H.B. 375): Voted against
These votes make Wexton the top progressive in the General Assembly, according to VAPLAN – even more so that the freshman 15 that had their eyes set on bursting Virginia’s budget with hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars worth of tax increases. This is also par-for-the-course with her congressional campaign agenda, set to roll back the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which has helped tens of thousands of constituents in Comstock’s district.
Of course, if the people in VA-10 want higher taxes, less money in their pockets, a representative working solely on self interest, and resistance-laden clamoring, Wexton’s your gal. However, if one is like the vast majority of those in the district that have enjoyed the constituent-first approach of legislating, brought forth by now-retired Congressman Frank Wolf in the 1980s and continued under Comstock, Virginia’s Iron Lady, the choice is clear.
Results or resistance?