WILLIAMSBURG — With less than three weeks remaining until Election Day, candidates for two House of Delegates races met Wednesday evening at the Williamsburg Regional Library Theatre to address issues important to voters.
Republican Del. Amanda Batten, who represents House District 71, sat alongside her Democratic opponent Jessica Anderson. Also participating in the forum was Valerie Beverley, an independent who hopes to represent House District 69. Incumbent Republican Del. Chad Green, who currently holds the 69th District seat, and Democratic opponent Mark Downey were unable to participate in the forum because of prior commitments.
The forum, hosted by WHRO Public Media and Williamsburg Watch, covered a range of issues, including several on which the candidates agreed. Among those was teacher pay, which all three candidates said was too low and needs to be increased to attract and retain talented professionals — a feat Beverley said could be accomplished through collective bargaining.
Candidates for House District 71: Amanda Batten, left, and Jessica Anderson. (Courtesy images)
All three women also condemned political violence in response to a question about violent text messages sent by Jay Jones, the Democratic candidate for Virginia attorney general. While Anderson said voters should be the ones to decide if Jones’ choices disqualify him for office, Batten contended he should step aside, and that the text messages and a prior reckless driving conviction in New Kent County were disqualifying.
“If you can’t follow the law, how can you be the top law enforcer in the commonwealth?” Batten asked.
Another issue that the candidates seemed to agree on was the confusing state of Virginia’s laws regarding recreational marijuana. While Beverley and Anderson said they were in favor of regulated retail cannabis sales in Virginia and Batten did not commit support for such a marketplace, all agreed that the current state of the marijuana laws were a perplexing mishmash that offered little clarity to users and to law enforcement.
Virginia’s personal property tax for automobiles — known informally as the car tax — was characterized by all three candidates as an object of scorn and a burden on working families. While Beverley said she was open to suggestions on how to replace the revenue lost by repealing the car tax, Anderson floated the idea of taxing millionaires at a higher rate in Virginia. Batten said that positive revenue forecasts for Virginia’s state government offer the opportunity to discuss eliminating the tax without loss of services.
The candidates expressed opposing viewpoints on numerous issues, such as education savings programs, which can assist families in sending their children to private schools — Batten expressed support while Beverley and Anderson opposed the stipends — and Virginia’s status as a right-to-work state — which Batten said bolstered the economy and Anderson and Beverley said hurt workers.
Independent Valerie Beverley. (Courtesy image)
Anderson said she intended to vote yes to allow a referendum on a constitutional amendment about abortion access, allowing citizens to decide the issue. Batten characterized the proposed amendment as one of the most radical abortion policies in the world. Beverley indicated her support for reproductive health care and lamented that women’s bodies had been “turned into battlefields.”
On the matter of data centers in Virginia, Beverley said she was generally opposed to their construction because she said they are the product of back-room deals, potentially bring harm and are often located in socioeconomically disadvantaged areas. Anderson acknowledged that data centers are an inevitable part of the future, but that they must be well regulated. Batten, meanwhile said data centers can be a boon for localities where they are located, but that policymakers need to have serious conversations so that they don’t impose undue burdens on citizens, such as increased energy bills.
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On the topic of energy, Beverley and Anderson committed to an “all of the above” strategy for the power needs of Virginians, an approach that would continue some use of fossil fuels and nuclear power, but would also fold in wind and solar energy. Batten said the problem with such a plan is that Virginia is subject to the Virginia Clean Economy Act, which requires a carbon-free electricity grid by 2045. Basing all of Virginia’s energy on wind and solar is an unrealistic goal, according to Batten, and she recommended revisiting and revising this objective.
When the candidates were asked about the most important issue that will face Virginians in years to come, Batten cited energy among the most pressing concerns, particularly in light of projected increases in demand. Virginia imports 40% of its energy, according to Batten, and faces the real prospect of blackouts in the future if nothing changes.
Anderson and Beverley both identified looming federal cuts as the most important issue facing Virginians. Anderson said that the cost of health care and prescriptions are going to increase, as will wait times to be seen by medical personnel. Beverley, who works in the insurance industry, said that she already sees premium increases locked in for next year, and those rising costs along with reductions in federal support mean that Virginians can expect the quality of their health care to decline in coming years.
Ben Swenson, ben.swenson05@gmail.com
