VIRGINIA BEACH — A college student from Pungo who wanted to take on one of the most powerful leaders in the Virginia General Assembly is not on the November ballot.
Democrat Zachary Coltrain, 20, has been campaigning as a Democrat in the new 98th House of Delegates District seat, a product of the recent redistricting process.
But the state never received needed documentation from the city Democratic committee, according to the candidate. Coltrain told The Independent News this morning that he is reviewing options.
State elections officials do not have any information about Coltrain seeking ballot access, Andrea Gaines, a spokesperson for the Virginia Department of Elections, wrote via email today. Deadlines for candidates and parties to seek such access passed in June, according to the department website.
Coltrain said he submitted his paperwork to the Virginia Beach Democratic Committee and was unsure why it was not forwarded to the state. He was the youngest candidate running in a General Assembly race this year. Coltrain would face state Del. Barry Knight, a businessperson and retired farmer from Back Bay who is the chair of the House Appropriations Committee.
Coltrain knew he faced tough odds to winning a district that leans Republican against a longtime GOP incumbent, but he wanted to talk about important issues during the campaign and give voters a choice.
“I wanted to be able to have a little bit of attention brought to this race because it’s not a district a lot of people think about,” Coltrain said. “Maybe they will now, but in a different way.”
Cardinal News, a nonprofit news organization based in Roanoke, first reported that Coltrain is among four Democrats who have not made the ballot this year in state legislature races. According to reporting by Markus Schmidt, Coltrain “submitted all of his required documents, but the local nominating committee did not send it in.”
Coltrain was not among candidates certified by the state for this year’s elections. The Virginia Beach Department of Voter Registration & Elections provided the list to The Independent News.
The absence apparently took local Democrats by surprise — as it did the candidate and his opponent. Coltrain said he learned of the problem with his candidacy only this past week.
The city party committee named Coltrain among its slate of candidates in social media posts earlier this month, which Coltrain retweeted at the time, and, in late June, the state party introduced him as part of the slate of Democrats seeking election this year.
Coltrain isn’t listed among candidates for local legislative races on the city committee’s website now.
Lindsey Nathaniel, chairperson of the Virginia Beach Democratic Committee, wrote via text message today that she is working with the chairperson of the nominating committee to review what paperwork was submitted.
Coltrain had about $2,000 in his coffers, according to his most recent campaign financial disclosure. Knight, with more than $1.2 million in his campaign war chest, is likely to run unopposed.
“I kind of halfway admire the young man for wanting to run,” Knight said on Friday, July 14, “and I wish him all the best for the future.”
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