Ed. — The following are responses to questions posed by The Independent News to candidates in the election for the new State Senate District 22 seat. Answers to our questions in this series generally are not edited, aside from obvious punctuation issues, spacing and formatting, or for clarity. Candidates appear in ballot order. Remaining copies of the Sunday, Sept. 24, print edition containing the complete guide may still be available on some of our secondary racks through Sunday, Oct. 22.
- Please reach John Doucette, the editor, with any questions or concerns via email.
KEVIN H. ADAMS [R]
- Residence: Dunbarton, Virginia Beach
- Age: 62
- Occupation: Independent Contractor
- Military Service/Education: 26 years of Naval service (Seaman Recruit to Lieutenant Commander); High School Diploma
- Endorsements: Gov. Glen Youngkin, Lt. Gov. Winsome Sears and Sheet Metal Air Rail Transportation (SMART) Union
- Phone: (757) 577-0705
- Website: kevinadamsforsenate.com
- Email: info@kevinadamsforsenate.com
- Social Media: Kevin Adams on Facebook and @kevinadamsva on Instagram and X, formerly Twitter
What are your specific qualifications to serve in the General Assembly? In addition to meeting the requirements of the State of Virginia to serve in the Senate, my experience serving in the US Navy for 26 years, raising a family with nine children, (6 boys and 3 girls) and operating a small business throughout Hampton Roads has given me a keen understanding of what service to others means. Leadership matters, and I am deeply concerned about the availability of the American Dream to the citizens of my district and beyond. I am humbled by the opportunities afforded to me throughout my life and want to ensure that all Virginians have access to the American Dream. I know what hard work is, and I am willing to work hard for my constituents. Whether in the church, community centers, and parenting classes, my service to others is a matter of record and more than qualifies me to serve in the General Assembly.
What, to you, is the most important issue facing your district and how will you address it in office? My constituents have made it clear that crime is the most important issue facing the 22nd district. They are concerned about their safety. The economy is a close second. As a contractor, I work in the households of government subsidized citizens as well as the homes of millionaires, and their chief complaints are high taxes and crime and the need to bring more businesses to Virginia. We must bring business and industry to support the tax base and provide opportunities through good paying jobs to develop a vibrant workforce while providing safety and security throughout the district. I will address this by ensuring that our local and state law enforcement agencies are fully manned, equipped, and funded to keep us safe. I will further address the economy by bringing more businesses to the district, while keeping the cost of doing business as low as is reasonable.
What are your three main legislative priorities? My three main legislative priorities are:
- The Economy: I will improve the economy by cutting taxes, lowering inflation, and increasing good paying jobs. Virginia has a tax surplus of $5.1 billion for fiscal year 2023. We have been overtaxed and I want to return your hard earned money to you…plain and simple.
- Education: I will work to improve the quality and safety within our public schools, while advancing parental rights and career gateways through apprenticeships, internships, and workforce outreach programs.
- Public Safety: I will increase safety with our communities by fully supporting our law enforcement and other first responder professionals. I also want harsher penalties for violent offenders and drug dealers. Prescription and counterfeit pills such as fentanyl are ravaging our communities. Our emergency rooms are overflowing with overdose patients. We have to address this head on.
In addition to the three items mentioned above, I will vigorously pursue veteran benefits. Too many veterans are moving to states with more favorable veteran tax benefits. We have to level this playing field and as a US Navy veteran I will make it a priority to retain our veterans in the Commonwealth of Virginia.
How will you help ensure job creation and economic vitality? I will drive job creation and spark economic vitality by cutting taxes, expediting workforce development through organizations such as The Hampton Roads Workforce Council (HRWC) and focusing on teaching skills to support the demand for well trained teachers in our high schools. I also intend to provide incentives for manufacturing and technology industries to use our port facilities to grow infrastructure, and develop nuclear power in the Commonwealth to ensure low cost, reliable, and sustainable power. I will also bring together other regions within Virginia to pursue common goals in job creation and economic vitality.
How will you support local efforts to address sea level rise and recurrent flooding? Sea levels continue to rise along the Atlantic coast and Virginia is projected to experience almost 5 feet of increase by 2080, submerging an additional 649 square miles of land. I will work with all stakeholders in Virginia to prioritize and address mitigation activities such as the preservation of wetlands, dunes, and coastal forests, in reducing flood risk. I will also seek to fund projects such as sea wall placement, pumping stations, and the construction of barriers as prescribed by the scientific and engineering professionals working on this issue.
How will you support public education? I will support public education by first ensuring students and staff are safe. This includes funding and filling resource officer positions for every school and developing and rehearsing a vibrant school safety plan optimizing the latest technology. I would also like to incentivize and empower parent/teacher collaboration to develop curriculum and resources toward three post high school pathways: college, trade skills and military service.
Most small business owners I know, especially in the trades, started out working for other small businesses before acquiring an existing business or creating one.
Do you support access to sexual and reproductive health care for women, including birth control and legal abortion access in Virginia? Yes. I support the availability of birth control and legal abortion access through the first 15 weeks of pregnancy, which is when a baby begins to feel pain. Legal abortion could occur after 15 weeks due to exceptions of the rape, incest and risk to life of the mother. I am universally concerned for a women’s physical, mental, and spiritual health before, during and after pregnancy. This point of view reflects common sense, compassion and the consensus of the people of this district. My wife and I have voluntarily facilitated parenting courses, mentoring mothers and fathers at crisis pregnancy centers.
Virginia Beach plans to ask the General Assembly to support a new district voting system, either by charter change or general law change. Will you work with the delegation and across party lines to support this? Based upon the most recent discussions the Virginia Beach City Council has had on this issue, and in the era of the ward (district) system (10+1) currently in use and supported by the citizens of Virginia Beach’s 22nd District, I will work with all parties to ensure that the will of people is enacted regarding this issue.
AARON R. ROUSE [D]
- Residence: Virginia Beach
- Age: 39
- Occupation: Former NFL player; founder of Rouse’s House, a nonprofit that serves to establish education as the foundation for youth
- Military Service/Education: Bachelor’s degree in sociology from Virginia Tech
- Endorsements: U.S. Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine and former Gov. Ralph Northam
- Website: rouseforsenate.com
- Email: info@rouseforsenate.com
- Social Media: @aaronrousevb on Facebook, @aar0n_rouse on Instagram, @aaronrousevabch on X, formerly Twitter
What are your specific qualifications to serve in the General Assembly? After retiring from the NFL, I returned home to Virginia Beach to begin my career in public service. I started a nonprofit serving young people in need, and in 2018 I ran for Virginia Beach City Council. As a member of the Virginia Beach City Council, I delivered real results and worked to improve the lives of our community members. I voted to raise the minimum wage to $15, increased pay for teachers, first responders and police officers, and I lowered taxes for small businesses. As your State Senator, I am proud that all of my bills this session passed the Senate and advanced to the House of Delegates, the only Senator with a 100% passage before they were sent to the House of Delegates. Two of my bills were passed by both chambers and signed into law by the Governor.
What, to you, is the most important issue facing your district and how will you address it in office? The most important issue facing our district is building an economy that works for everyone and not just some. Too many families are struggling to make ends meet and put food on their tables.
It is our job as leaders to build sustainable pathways to a stronger economy. We need to do everything from investing in education so we can set young people up for success, to building a strong and skilled workforce, to attracting new jobs and industries to the region. Virginia Beach is teeming with opportunities for growth, and I intend to leverage our assets to create new opportunities for families and good-paying jobs in every community.
What are your three main legislative priorities?
- As Senator, I remain committed to building a stronger economy where every person can thrive. That includes investing in our education system so our youngest community members are in a position to succeed when they graduate, ensuring students have access to job training so they can obtain critical skills, and finding new and innovative ways to attract businesses and good-paying jobs to the region.
- As Senator, I will continue to address making housing more affordable and building new workforce housing. Too many people cannot afford to live where they work which creates tremendous challenges for workers and their families. We can do more to address this, and I look forward to bringing my ideas to Richmond.
- I will also be focused on lowering the cost of health care, because too many people have to sacrifice their health and wellbeing in order to provide for their families. The cost of prescription drugs has increased dramatically in recent years, placing a tremendous burden on families everywhere. Reproductive health care rights are also under attack and at stake in this election. As Senator, I will continue to work to lower the cost of healthcare and fiercely protect reproductive rights.
How will you help ensure job creation and economic vitality? As a Senator, I will continue focusing on creating opportunities and driving economic growth by:
- Work to attract new, good-paying jobs to the region by marketing the region and building a strong workforce to fill new or open jobs.
- Invest in job training to equip people of all ages with the skills they need to secure good-paying jobs.
- Speed up the implementation of a $15 minimum wage.
- Ensure small and minority-owned businesses are able to thrive and compete by providing technical assistance and other supports to business owners.
- Increase funding for affordable housing and build new workforce housing so people can afford to live where they work.
How will you support local efforts to address sea level rise and recurrent flooding? Virginia Beach is among the most vulnerable communities in the nation to the impacts of climate change. In the Virginia Senate, I prioritized addressing stormwater and sea level rise problems here in Virginia Beach and around the Commonwealth. In our recent budget deal passed, we allocated $10,000,000 for the 17th Street Regional Stormwater Management Facility and $7,000,000 for stormwater encroachment resilience activities in Virginia Beach and natural space preservation in the Southern Rivers Watershed and Chowan River Basin.
How will you support public education? As Senator, I will work to fight for teacher pay raises, investing in school infrastructure, and improving access to job training and workforce development opportunities. We must make a commitment to providing a world-class education for every child, combating the COVID learning loss, recruiting and retaining the best educators, and investing in school infrastructure. In our recent budget deal, the General Assembly provided a $418 million funding pool for public schools, intended to focus on learning loss from the pandemic. Virginia Beach is estimated to receive an additional $30,500,00 on top of monies from the general fund.
Do you support access to sexual and reproductive health care for women, including birth control and legal abortion access in Virginia? Yes. I’m proud to have earned a reputation as a strong presence who fights for issues that impact the people of Virginia Beach, including defending reproductive rights, affordable birth control and the full spectrum of health care.
Additionally, I fought back against every attempt to roll back Virginians’ rights. No politician should be involved in Virginian’s personal healthcare decisions. Women have been very loud and clear in Virginia: Don’t touch my rights and freedoms when it comes to making a really tough health care decision.
Virginia Beach plans to ask the General Assembly to support a new district voting system, either by charter change or general law change. Will you work with the delegation and across party lines to support this? Yes. The 10-1 voting system is here to stay in Virginia Beach with an overwhelming number of Virginia Beach residents in favor of the system.
I look forward to working with the full Virginia Beach delegation and colleagues in the Senate and House to get this measure passed in the General Assembly.
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