Justin Woodford

As we witness billionaires and corporate interests take over our government, it is impossible to ignore the alarming reality that something has gone deeply wrong in our country. Both at the federal level and right here in Virginia, the voices of working-class citizens largely lack representation. Instead, the politicians we elect have been supplanted by the robber baron tech billionaires, the donor class of the wealthiest individuals, and corporations.

Get money out of politics to the greatest extent possible by setting the most stringent caps on private donations possible, banning public corporations like Dominion from donating altogether, and funding a public option for campaigns that are willing to abstain from all but small-dollar private donations.

Support for a unionized workforce and more worker co-ops by repealing the anti-union “Right to Work for Less” law. Combat wage theft by employers, the largest source of theft in Virginia. Guarantee paid parental and sick leave.

Establish healthcare as a human right by creating a state-level public health insurance option and fully funding it such that regardless of their ability to pay, all Virginian residents are covered. Establish a right to affordable housing for every Virginian and fully fund a ‘housing first’ strategy to end homelessness. Get Virginia’s skyrocketing housing costs under control by banning private equity from purchasing single family homes.

Fully fund public K – 12 schools, from capital improvements to teacher and support staff salaries. Expand the G3 program to make community college, as well as career and technical education, universally free to residents of Virginia. Make four-year undergraduate degrees and certain graduate degrees at state universities free to those who commit to working in Virginia for a certain number of years;

Adjust the highest bracket of the state income tax to raise more revenue from the highest earners. Create a state-level inheritance tax. Shift the state and localities away from flat-rate property taxes to a system of split-rate property taxes that largely apply to the unimproved land value and the value of improvements above a threshold that would exempt most homes.

State constitutional protections for all Virginians to guarantee their rights and liberties be respected regardless of race, religion, sex, age, disability, gender, sexual orientation, or immigration status. Enact state constitutional protections for all Virginians’ reproductive rights against any encroachment, including protections for abortion care, contraception access, and shield laws to protect both providers and patients. Guarding against police abuse by instituting stricter hiring standards, implementing training to promote de-escalation and reduce the use of force, and holding the ‘bad apples’ who abuse their authority accountable.