2023 Virginia Elections: Questions for Democratic primary candidates in House District 96

Ed. — The following are responses to questions posed by The Independent News to candidates in the Tuesday, June 20, primary election for the Democratic nomination for the District 96 seat in the Virginia House of Delegates. Answers to our questions generally are not edited, aside from obvious punctuation issues, spacing and formatting, or for clarity. The print edition containing our full primary voter guide is now on stands. 

• Please reach John Doucette, the editor, with any questions or concerns via email.
• Find the main page for the complete 2023 primary guide at this link.

BRANDON HUTCHINS

Residence: Northlanding Heights in the Salem area of Virginia Beach

Age: 42

Occupation: Healthcare

Military Service/Education: US Navy (11 Years)/ BS Healthcare Administration

Endorsements: Virginia State Del. Delores McQuinn, Virginia Beach Councilmember Sabrina Wooten and former Vrginia Beach City Councilmember Guy Tower

Website: brandonhutchins.com

Phone: (757) 289-4249

Email: bhutchinsvb@gmail.com

Social Media: Brandon Hutchins for VB on Facebook, @brandon_hutchinsvb on Instagram and @bhutchinsvb on Twitter

What are your specific qualifications for this office? I am an 11-year Navy and Iraq War Veteran that was born and raised in Virginia. My wife and I take great pride in the fact that we were able to raise our family here, and open an amazing business. Our children are products of the Virginia Beach Public School system, and it is our hope that they will raise their families here as well.

I am currently a Board Member for the Virginia Beach Community Development Corporation, which focuses its efforts on affordable housing. In 2021 I was appointed to the Virginia Redistricting Commission which was tasked with redrawing Virginia’s legislative lines in hopes of protecting the voting rights of all Virginians. In Healthcare I am tasked with ensuring that our most vulnerable populations are receiving the quality care that they deserve. 

I have spent my entire adult life in the service of others and it has been an honor. It is my hope that I can continue to serve Virginia as Delegate in the new 96th House District. 

What are your three main legislative priorities for the General Assembly? The future of Virginia is on the ballot this year, but my top three priorities are: to ensure that women’s reproductive freedoms are protected, to ensure that all Virginians are receiving equitable and affordable quality healthcare, and to ensure that our public school systems are fully funded to include salary increases and programs to ensure that our children are prepared to excel post 12th grade.

How will you be an advocate for state support to local public education? As Delegate, I am committed to salary increases for our teachers and staff while ensuring that our children are prepared for success post high school. As a father to children that have gone through the Virginia Beach Public School system, I have had a front row seat to the challenges that our students, teachers, and staff face on a daily basis. I am committed to ensuring that our public education system has all of the resources necessary to educate our children in a manner that we can all be proud of.

What priorities do you have that will help support the agriculture community? As Delegate, I will work  with local leaders to ensure that our green line is preserved and that our agricultural community has the resources necessary to thrive while protecting our environment. I am committed to ensuring that our farmland will be available for future generations in Virginia.

Do you support access to reproductive health care for women? Why or why not? As Delegate, I will absolutely support access to reproductive health care for women. I firmly believe that women have a right to choose what is best for them, and I don’t believe that the government should interfere with their reproductive decisions. As a father to three women, a son to a strong woman, and a husband, I have grown to understand how important it is for women to make their own reproductive decisions.

How will you work to help coastal communities address issues such as sea level rise or recurrent flooding? As Delegate, I will advocate for policies that are designed to mitigate the impacts of sea level rise and will fully support innovative projects that present real infrastructure solutions.

SEAN MONTEIRO

Residence: Glenwood in Virginia Beach

Age: 47

Occupation: Retired Air Force Colonel/Realtor

Military Service/Education: US Air Force, Colonel, 25 Years; BS Political Science, US Air Force Academy; and MBA Management, American Intercontinental University

Endorsements: Former U.S. Rep. Jim Moran (VA-08), former U.S. Rep. Lacy Clay (MO-01) and Virginia state Del. Michelle Maldonado (HD-20)

Website: seanmonteiro.com

Phone: (757) 578-1053

Email: info@seanmonteiro.com

Social Media: @seanforvirginia on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter

What are your specific qualifications for this office? As an Air Force Colonel who served over 25 years, I’ve commanded and led people in some of the most stressful and difficult situations. I accomplished that by exercising authentic servant leadership. 

As a servant leader, I will listen to the people of District 96, fight for the resources to address the problems we identify, and most importantly communicate truthfully about how we will continue the fight to achieve desired solutions. 

I’ve also built successful teams amongst differing viewpoints to achieve tangible goals. In 2021, I had the honor of serving as the inaugural Chair of the Citizens Review Panel Task Force. This task force was formed to address police oversight in Virginia Beach. 

During my time as Chair, I worked with my colleagues on the task force to build consensus and to unanimously recommend an improved community based model of police oversight. 

Subsequently, the Virginia Beach City Council unanimously adopted our recommendations as an ordinance and stood up the Independent Citizens Review Board, which is meant to provide long term improved community-police relations with the public. I look forward to bringing those same leadership skills along with my consensus building skills to Richmond, especially in these turbulent times.

What are your three main legislative priorities for the General Assembly? My legislative priorities are protecting reproductive choice, improving public education, and addressing systemic gun violence. 

• I support codifying a woman’s choice to reproductive care in Virginia’s Constitution. The government should not interfere in family planning and personal healthcare decisions. 
• Our public education system is the opportunity engine for future generations. Our young people deserve the best education possible. To deliver a world class education, we must continue to raise the salaries of teachers and the administrative staff that keep our schools safe. Virginia students need to see themselves in their curriculum to understand where we came from, how we got here, and where we still need to go.
• We are well beyond “thoughts and prayers” when it comes to rising gun violence in America. The increase of mass shootings and violent crime is unacceptable. I respect gun ownership, but I also understand that the state may regulate that right. I will fight for common sense gun laws where our community says which types of weapons belong on our streets, how individuals obtain those weapons, and promotes responsible gun ownership and safe storage.

How will you be an advocate for state support to local public education? I will always advocate fully funding our public schools. Our students deserve well-resourced facilities and supplies to receive the best education possible. I will be a strong voice in Richmond for teachers and staff who deserve continued pay raises so we can recruit and retain the best and brightest here in Virginia Beach. I also support the right for educators to collectively bargain. Finally, as a parent I believe our students need curriculums, free from outside distractions, where they can see themselves and understand where we came from, how we got here, and where we still need to go. 

What priorities do you have that will help support the agriculture community? With over $70 billion of economic impact, agriculture is an important industry in Virginia. Our farmers must navigate the impacts of urban sprawl, operations costs, and environmental stewardship while helping to feed our nation. To address urban sprawl, I support land conservation through land and conservation easements, as well as land preservation tax credits. Farmers are inherently stewards of the environment, we must promote environmental best management practices by subsidizing the equipment and methods necessary, especially for small farms, to reduce agricultural pollution while promoting profitable yields.      

Do you support access to reproductive health care for women? Why or why not? Absolutely! With the reversal of Roe v. Wade, women’s status as citizens and reproductive rights are under threat. My top statewide priority is protecting women’s reproductive rights. I support codifying a woman’s choice to reproductive care in Virginia’s Constitution. I commit to voting for legislation that protects a woman’s reproductive freedoms such as the Affordable Care Act’s provision to provide birth control. I support reproductive rights covered in Medicaid expansion. Reproductive choice should never be an issue of income. The government should not interfere in family planning and personal healthcare decisions. This is a matter of privacy, dignity, and respect.

How will you work to help coastal communities address issues such as sea level rise or recurrent flooding? Our best defense against sea level rise is committing to the Clean Energy Act to fight climate change. In Richmond, I will work to protect the current provisions and seek improvements to move us into the clean energy economy. To directly deal with recurrent flooding, we must prioritize sustainable, cost-effective green infrastructure solutions in favor of hard solutions. We must fund initiatives to protect, rehabilitate, and grow our coastal wetlands, sand dunes, and oyster reefs to further stem the impact of sea level rise and recurrent flooding.  

SUSAN HIPPEN

Residence: Alexandria in Virginia Beach

Age: 63

Occupation: Retired U.S. Navy

Military Service/Education: Retired Navy Master Chief Petty Officer, 25 years active-duty, BS Computer Information Systems, AS Paralegal Studies.

Endorsements: Former Virginia Del. Nancy Guy, Virginia NOW and VoteVets.

Website: hippenfordelegate.com

Email: susan@susanhippen.org

Social Media: @hippenforVaHD96 on Facebook, @hod96vahippen on Instagram and @VaHippen on Twitter

What are your specific qualifications for this office? I served on the Virginia Board of Veterans Services. We were able to pass legislation, with bipartisan support, for the V3 Program; to waive real estate and car taxes for 100 percent disabled veterans; to increase the number of service offices and personnel; to build 2 residential centers, Virginia Beach and NoVA. I served as a Legislative Assistant in the House of Delegates.

My experience in Virginia programs, working with the House of Delegates, and career as a Navy Master Chief uniquely qualify me to serve the majority-minority district I have lived in for 30 years. I know the area and have watched it develop. I also know the problems with flooding, school underfunding, and the lack of activities for our children.

What are your three main legislative priorities for the General Assembly? 

• We must protect women’s rights, both healthcare and workplace related. I will patron legislation to ensure women have the right to determine their healthcare in consultation with their doctor. Equal pay for equal work should be law.
• We must properly fund public education. The last session identified a $201 million “mistake” that shortchanged schools. Virginia lags the national average for educator pay. We must fund school lunches for children. A hungry child cannot concentrate to learn. We must fund school districts to ensure teachers are not paying for supplies from their own pockets. We must fund school infrastructure. No more trailers. Schools that grandparents attended have not been improved or rebuilt.
• We must guarantee every worker paid time off for illness and vacation. Too many voters working full-time jobs tell me that they lack paid time off. We must guarantee workers a living wage that does not lag inflation.

How will you be an advocate for state support to local public education? I will work with delegates and senators to replace the “mistakenly lost” $201 million in funding. We must allow our educators to have collective bargaining. Pay for educators and other public school staff must be raised above the national average. Public education curricula must be developed by qualified educators. We must teach the history of every ethnicity and race as part of the core curricula. We cannot allow the loudest voiced minority of people to deprive our students of education materials.

What priorities do you have that will help support the agriculture community? Agriculture is the largest private industry in Virginia. We must teach children why we need them to continue to be farmers and protect farmland. Each county/city with farming areas must limit development to maintain our farming industry. I will work with delegates and senators to do what is best for Virginia Beach and other areas with farmland.

Do you support access to reproductive health care for women? Why or why not? I fully support women’s access to reproductive healthcare. This is not just about abortion. It is about ensuring women who want to have children are able to access the best care to support their pregnancy and their life during that pregnancy and afterwards. The narrow focus on abortion will stifle medical care for women in their reproductive years that could shorten their lives or prevent them from remaining fertile. Women must be able to consult with their doctors and doctors must be free to prescribe treatments appropriate for their patients.

How will you work to help coastal communities address issues such as sea level rise or recurrent flooding? Virginia Beach must be on the leading edge to prevent recurring flooding. The General Assembly must work with coastal cities to construct flood barriers and retain natural flood mitigation areas. That will require funding, discussion, and listening. We cannot develop out of flooding or sea level rise. All of the 757 area must collaborate to save our cities.

KELLY CONVIRS-FOWLER

Residence: Brigadoon in Virginia Beach

Age: 42

Occupation: Delegate and Real Estate Broker

Education: Bachelors in Psychology and Criminal Justice and Masters in Elementary Education

Endorsement: LGBTQ Victory Fund 

Website: delegatefowler.com

Phone: (757) 368-8438

Email: staff@delegatefowler.com

Social Media: @DelegateFowler on Facebook, TikTok and Twitter

What are your specific qualifications for this office? I used to be a third grade teacher at Lynnhaven Elementary and I can say that I know how to get the job done. Also, I have served the 21st House of Delegates district for almost 6 years. 

Although I believe in term limits, I know that 6 years in not enough time to get meaningful legislation passed with an election every 2 years. 

Besides experience, I have built critical relationships to bring much needed attention to our flooding problems. Additionally, with the high turnover in the General Assembly, my seniority will get more of Virginia Beach’s priorities to the finish line.

What are your three main legislative priorities for the General Assembly? My main priorities revolve around working families, education, and voting rights. The Pandemic created a learning gap that we must address, working families were hit the hardest. We need livable wages, protections for employees, and a stronger educational system. I will be proposing a 10 year task force to address Covid Educational disparities by identifying and making recommendations. The task force would be completely non partisan and be made up of the professionals, parents, and educators in an effort to set goals and implement plans to close the learning gaps.

How will you be an advocate for state support to local public education? Being a former teacher, I bring much perspective to the educational conversation.  The task force that I will be presenting will be creating a framework to give localities the support they need to implement their recommendations.

What priorities do you have that will help support the agriculture community? I support closing developer loopholes that allow them to bend the rules and build inappropriately. An example would be the plans not matching what’s inspected or what is actually built or done. We need to keep looking at the issue of flooding in context to an entire watershed considering all aspects before putting more pavement.

Do you support access to reproductive health care for women? Why or why not? Yes I support access to reproductive healthcare. This is basic healthcare. These are decisions made by the professional (the Doctor) and his patient. 

How will you work to help coastal communities address issues such as sea level rise or recurrent flooding? Knowledge is power. I will again propose the Albermaro-Pamlico Watershed study to get a better picture of all the information within this watershed that will help us address the issues in southern Virginia Beach. We have done this for the Chesapeake Bay and the Albemaro-Pamlico Watershed covers 20% of Virginia and we still do not have a comprehensive picture of how it functions.

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