TANYA M. GOULD [R]
Residence: Waterway, Chesapeake
Age on Election Day: 47
Occupation: Counselor
Education/Military Service: BA
Key endorsements: PBA, AgPAC, Commonwealth Attorney
Website: tanyagouldfordelegate.com
Phone: (757) 656-6841
Email: info@tanyagouldfordelegate.com
Social Media: @TanyaForDelegate on Facebook
What are your specific qualifications for this office? When I was 18 years-old I entered into an abusive relationship that resulted in me being trafficked for over two years. I was fortunate to escape that terrible situation and start a new life with my then infant son. Since then, I have dedicated my career to fighting for victims and helping trauma victims recover from their own experiences. I’ve spent nearly 20 years working with government agencies at the state and federal level to help pass policies to end human trafficking. I’ve also worked with several local non-profits and law enforcement agencies to better inform their approach and policies on this issue. I’ve also had the honor to serve on advisory committees for three Presidential Administrations across both parties. As Delegate, I will use this experience to bring people together to solve the tough problems facing our community.
What are your three main policy priorities or examples of legislation you would pursue in Richmond? Our economy and small businesses are still healing from the COVID shutdowns. I will work to lower taxes for our local job creators so they have more capital to invest back into their business and hire local employees. I will also support policies that cut burdensome regulations and I’ll support legislation that ends taxation on PPP and Rebuild VA loans because small businesses need that money now more than ever.
I have had to make tough budget decisions to help support my family. Unfortunately, politicians in Richmond continue to pass policies that increase our cost of living. In Richmond, I will support legislation to repeal costly tax hikes and repeal the gas tax increase that have made it tougher for working families to get by.
Like most Virginians, I am concerned by the increase in crime in our own community. As Delegate, I will ensure local law enforcement have the resources they need to keep our community safe while improving training requirements and accountability standards.
What, to you, is the most important local issue facing the district and how will you address it if elected? I have knocked on thousands of doors and the most common issue I hear about is concern about the economy post-pandemic. Our economy and small businesses are still healing from the COVID shutdowns, not to mention the people who are out of work or underemployed. As Delegate I will support commonsense policies that get our economy again and get people back to work. I will also hold job fairs that help connect local businesses with talented employees that need work. We need to work together to support our community and rebuild our economy.
How will you work to assist businesses, particularly in the hospitality industry, recover from the economic effects of the pandemic? Tourism is a vital industry for our community. The COVID pandemic has caused many challenges for the hospitality industry which employees many families in this district. While our economy is slowly recovering, many businesses still struggle to find adequate staff. As Delegate, I will support policies and initiatives that help connect businesses with employers and also champion solutions that improve workforce training programs.
How will you be an advocate for state support to local education efforts, including higher education? As a mother and grandmother, I understand the importance of a quality education. Unfortunately, too many children fell behind this past year as a result of COVID. We need to address learning loss right away by providing schools and teachers with the resources they need to help get our kids back on track. Teachers are vital and deserve a pay raise as well as providing more funding to fix our school infrastructure. Finally, students today face more challenges than ever before. We need to increase training and resources around mental health to ensure children receive the help they need.
What priorities do you have that will help support the agriculture community, which represents the commonwealth’s largest industry? I am proud to have received the endorsement and support of the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation AgPAC. The agriculture industry creates thousands of jobs in our district and support Virginia families across the Commonwealth. In Richmond, I will be a tireless advocate for our farmers, lead the effort to cut burdensome regulations on the agriculture community [….] I also will continue to support programs that educate and train the future farmers of Virginia.
Do you support access to reproductive health care for women? Why or why not? Healthcare is a very personal issue where every opinion and story should be listened to and considered during the public policy process. When I was 18 years-old, I had an unplanned pregnancy and had no idea where to turn to receive help and support. Today, I mentor young people who are often times victims of poor circumstances and need help when it comes to getting access to proper healthcare, education, and mental services.
I am proud of my work to support our youth and will always be a shoulder for them to lean on in tough times.
How will you work in the Virginia General Assembly to help coastal communities address issues such as sea level rise and recurrent flooding? Coastal flooding is a major issue that impacts our community, economy, and local businesses. As your Delegate, I will work across the aisle to secure resources to adequately and quickly address this issue by partnering with local, state, and federal leaders including working with the Army Corps. of Engineers. I’d also like to use my experience in working with government agencies to create a bipartisan task force to focus solely on this issue.
KELLY K. CONVIRS-FOWLER [D]
Residence: Hillcrest Farms, Virginia Beach
Age on Election Day: 40
Occupation: Delegate & Real Estate Broker
Education/Military Service: Masters of Education, Old Dominion University
Key endorsements: EMILY’s List, End Citizens United and Virginia League of Conservation Voters
Website: www.delegatefowler.com
Phone: (757) 364-8428
Email: staff@delegatefowler.com
Social Media: @DelegateFowler on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and TikTok
What are your specific qualifications for this office? I am currently the Delegate in the 21st District, and have been since being sworn into office in 2018. I grew up in Virginia Beach in my district. I know the folks of the 21st, I know their interests and their priorities. My most qualifying trait is that I truly represent working Virginians, my lived experiences align with those in the 21st district. My husband and I are raising our three girls here, he is a Sheriff’s deputy with the City of Virginia Beach Sheriff’s Office and I used to be a 3rd grade teacher at Lynnhaven Elementary. I am now a small business owner of my real estate firm, Sparrow Real Estate. My family’s journey has been one of ups and downs just like many in my district and they deserve someone who sees them and their experiences.
What are your three main policy priorities or examples of legislation you would pursue in Richmond? I am very proud of the work that I have accomplished in my two terms, but I am so far from done! I plan on bringing back a bill that died in the Senate that made it illegal to send unsolicited obscene photos to someone. Shockingly there isn’t anything in the current code addressing this. Additionally, I will continue to dedicate my platform and policy initiatives to reform our criminal justice system. We made historic strides these last two years but there is much left to accomplish. Finally, a consistent priority, especially in the district, is flooding. I am fully committed to continuing my work on obtaining funding to move forward on stormwater projects that have been placed on the back burner. Beyond my work in Richmond, I will continue to work closely with our local and federal partners to secure funding needed.
What, to you, is the most important local issue facing the district and how will you address it if elected? Currently, the most important issue we are hearing from constituents about is unemployment and the economic issues surrounding COVID-19. Folks across the district are still struggling with employment, for a variety of reasons including a downsizing of their former job, their employer went out of business, childcare costs and accessibility, and more. The pandemic really exasperated the issues with our unemployment processes and technology and brought it to light. I will continue to support investments in our unemployment technology and support the recommendations of an independent study on the VEC process.
How will you work to assist businesses, particularly in the hospitality industry, recover from the economic effects of the pandemic? I will continue to meet with stakeholders in our business and hospitality industry to hear what they are facing on the ground and what their needs are to get back on their feet. It is so important that our elected officials use their platforms effectively to elevate the concerns raised by our communities. I will continue to work with my colleagues, as well as our local and federal partners to bring funds and resources directly to our businesses.
I am proud to have dedicated another $250 million in American Rescue Plan Funds to the Rebuild VA program to assist our businesses in need.
How will you be an advocate for state support to local education efforts, including higher education? We have vastly underfunded our public schools in the Commonwealth. As a former 3rd grade teacher, I am completely dedicated to fully funding schools and continuing to increase teacher pay to bring our teacher wages above the national average. In terms of higher education, I was proud to support and will continue to support programs that incentivize and assist our higher education students. Recently, we created an avenue for free community college through our G3 program for folks to receive that necessary support. We also need to ensure our high school students are aware of the opportunities outside of a traditional college path, like trade schools and community enrichment.
What priorities do you have that will help support the agriculture community, which represents the commonwealth’s largest industry? Farmers are the backbone of our Commonwealth and extremely important to our economy here in Virginia Beach. We need to focus efforts on resources for our young farmers and ensuring they stay in Virginia. Additionally, farmer’s markets have become more accessible and expansion would help our farming communities. I support our farmers, and my door is always open to hear their concerns and advocate on their behalf!
Do you support access to reproductive health care for women? Why or why not? Absolutely. What is happening across this country right now, especially in Texas, with the attacks on reproductive rights is atrocious. Virginians should have the rights and freedoms to control their body and their body’s path. Medical decisions should be driven by a woman’s health and circumstance, not by politicians and their personal views. These decisions are deeply personal, and, above all, I trust women to decide for themselves.
How will you work in the Virginia General Assembly to help coastal communities address issues such as sea level rise and recurrent flooding? Funding, funding, funding. We have a plethora of concrete solutions and plans to help our communities with sea level rise and recurrent flooding. What we don’t have is adequate funding. I am honored to now be the Vice Chair of the Joint Subcommittee on Coastal Flooding, I will use my platform and position to work towards bringing more funding to Hampton Roads and other affected areas in the Commonwealth.
As always on infrastructure and flooding issues, it is so important to work effectively with local and federal partners to ensure collaboration and support.
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