Albemarle County
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Election Day is Tuesday, November 5th
The Virginia Progressive Voters Guide compiles the information that allows you to make informed decisions about the races on your ballot, based on your values. Please share this guide with your friends and family.
Federal
For her running mate, Vice President Harris selected Minnesota Governor Tim Walz. For his running mate, former president Trump chose JD Vance.
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz is the Democratic candidate for Vice President of the United States. He previously served as a congressman for Minnesota’s 1st Congressional District. Governor Walz is a National Army Guard veteran and retired school teacher.
Together on the Issues
⭐ They support reproductive freedom and access to abortion and will never allow a national abortion ban to become law!
⭐ They support affordable housing!
⭐ They support investing in small businesses–especially when it comes to entrepreneurs from marginalized communities!
⭐ They support making healthcare more accessible and affordable!
⭐ They support affordable quality childcare and education!
⭐ They support high-quality clean energy jobs and environmental justice!
⭐ They support passing the Equality Act and protecting the rights and freedoms of LGBTQIA+ communities!
⭐ They support common-sense gun violence prevention legislation!
There’s definitely more, but you get it by now.
The Opposition
Former Republican President Donald Trump and Senator JD Vance are facing off against Vice President Kamala Harris and Governor Tim Walz.
The Republican candidate for president is Donald Trump. If you’ve found yourself looking at our voter guide, we probably don’t need to tell you all the reasons not to vote for him–so we’ll just do a few. Donald Trump’s administration is responsible for legislation and deregulation that led to disasters such as deregulated meat distribution and increases in working class tax payments due to his 2017 tax law. Trump also fired the CDC team that was responsible for detecting zoological diseases in wildlife in China, which was a decision that directly led to the mishandling of Covid-19. Even before his presidency, Trump had a terribly long history of racism, homophobia, sexism, violence against women, and fraudulent activity. One paragraph is not enough to cover his record of being an absolutely horrible human being, let alone a deplorable president.
Let’s not forget: thirty-four counts. And an insurrection. 🤬
JD Vance, on the other hand, is just your run-of-the-mill racist. He’s not even exceptionally good at it, seeing as how he admitted to creating false stories about Haitians on national television. He also talked about single childfree women (who are free to have children or not if they wish) using “childless cat ladies” as an insult. JD Vance’s pivot from his previous statements about Trump exposes how weak his constitution is, and how it has affected his political motivations. At best, JD Vance is a grifter who was extremely critical of Trump before he realized there was money in extreme MAGA Trumpism. At his worst, Vance is your everyday sexist who knows that the general public will excuse him for being fatally boring if he spews racist and sexist rhetoric. Please, for the love of all that is good and even somewhat enjoyable, do not vote for these vile men.
Recommendation (Note: Not an endorsement!)
For many–maybe even countless–reasons, Vice President Kamala Harris and Governor Tim Walz are without a doubt the progressive candidates in this race. We don’t even need to say anything more about the other two.
On the Issues
⭐ Champions reproductive rights and access to abortion
⭐ Was a deciding vote to protect the Affordable Care Act
⭐ Advocated for quality public education since his time in Virginia local and state politics
⭐ Helped pass the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act
⭐ Strong supporter of DACA
⭐ Passed his EMBRACE Act to improve climate resiliency at military facilities
⭐ Supports Equality Act
⭐ Popularly known as America’s Dad
The Opposition
Senator Kaine is facing a challenge from Republican candidate Hung Cao, a retired Navy captain. Cao unsuccessfully ran for Virginia’s Congressional District 10 seat against former Congresswoman Jennifer Wexton in 2022. Cao is anti-abortion, regularly uses anti-immigrant rhetoric, and boldly supports former president Donald Trump. 🤬
Recommendation (Note: Not an endorsement!)
Because of his decades-long proven track record of being a champion for the people, Senator Tim Kaine is the progressive candidate in this race.
Congress
5th Congressional District
Virginia’s 5th district includes 21 counties and parts of Albemarle County, Bedford County, and Hanover County. With a population of 797,420 this district leans Republican.
On the Issues
⭐ Expresses the need to restore reproductive rights
⭐ Wants to expand access to basic quality healthcare, enhance mental health access for all, and advance affordable childcare
⭐ Pushes to preserve Protect the PACT Act - the largest expansion of health care and benefits for veterans
⭐ Advocates for preserving Social Security, Medicare, and the Affordable Care Act
⭐ Wants to expand access to voting - Advance the John Lewis Voting Act
⭐ Supports gun violence prevention legislation, such as banning assault weapons and mandated waiting periods
⭐ Pushes for re-inventing k-12 public school education and replace “No Child Left Behind” policies
⭐ Advocates for supporting teachers through licensure, pay, and development
⭐ Wants to strengthen pathways to workforce skill development: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM), Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs
⭐ Wants to adjust the federal minimum wage
⭐ Emphasizes need for smart climate-friendly economic growth and fair share tax policies
⭐ Wishes to expand access to voting - Advance the John Lewis Voting Act.
Things to Note
Served in leadership roles at several civic organizations
Previously president of the NAACP Amherst Branch and the Central Virginia Academy for Nonprofit Excellence
Endorsed as a Virginia Gun Sense Candidate
Wants to innovate immigration processing solutions to assess, relocate, employ, or deport individuals 🤔
Little information exists outside her website, so much of this information is pulled directly from that source. If possible, always seek additional confirmation of positions from other sources.
The Opposition
Gloria Tinsley Witt is facing off against Republican State Senator John McGuire. Senator McGuire has served in the Virginia State Senate since 2024. Previously, he served in the Virginia House of Delegates from 2018 until 2024. Through legislation he introduced and his votes on others’ bills, Senator McGuire has shown time and again that he is anti-abortion. He also tried to repeal risk-protection order laws. He has also voted:
🤡 against establishing an independent policing auditor to oversee civilian law enforcement oversight groups
🤡 against extending voting rights to citizens on parole
🤡 against repealing the death penalty
🤡 against repealing the “Gay Panic” murder defense
🤡 against establishing better standards for LEO training and qualifications
🤡 against prohibiting no-knock search warrants
🤡 against establishing gun-free zones on School Board property
He also co-sponsored a bill to deny trans women and girls the right to participate in sports and a bill to require the forced outing of students exploring their gender identities to parents who may be hostile to them. Additionally, Senator McGuire voted against requiring schools to create policies friendly to transgender students. 🤬
Things to Note
The first thing you will see on McGuire’s website, after an embedded form to donate, is the following endearing statement:
About John
Pro-Life. Pro-Gun. Pro-Trump. 🤮
This should tell you all you need to know.
Recommendation (Note: Not an endorsement!)
There is too much that can be said about Senator John Mcguire. Suffice it to say, he is a Trumper through and through and is hostile to the rights of anyone who isn’t a straight white Christian man. Gloria Tinsley Witt shares many of our values, and her policy positions indicate her progressive intent. If she holds to her word, Gloria Tinsley Witt is the progressive candidate in this race.
7th Congressional District
Virginia’s 7th district includes 9 counties and parts of Prince William County and Albemarle County. With a population of 798,820, this district leans Democratic and Republican.
On the Issues
⭐ Considers himself an ally for LGBT rights
⭐ Asserts he will stand up to MAGA Republicans and protect a woman’s right to an abortion
⭐ Supports common sense gun violence prevention legislation
⭐ Advocates for fair, safe, and strong immigration reforms
⭐ Pledges to support family farms
⭐ Wants to expand access to rural broadband and rural healthcare
⭐ Pushes for restoration of Roe with the passing of the Women’s Health Protection Act
⭐ Says he will stop attempts to ban abortion, IVF, or contraceptives
⭐ Wants to improve resources for veterans
⭐ Supports public education and stands against book bans
⭐ Supports unions and says he will co-sponsor the PRO Act
⭐ Advocates for supporting Ukraine
⭐Stands against Project 2025
NOTE: We could find few sources for Vindman’s positions outside of his website. Nearly all of the news about him pertains to his role as a whistleblower in the Trump White House and his service in the Army.
The opposition
Eugene Vindman is facing off against Republican Derrick Anderson. Anderson worked in the Office of National Drug Control Policy in the White House during former President Donald Trump’s administration. He graduated from Virginia Tech in 2006 with a Bachelor of Science in Political Science (Legal Option), and then joined the U.S. Army as an infantry officer. In 2019, Derrick graduated from Georgetown University Law Center. Anderson applauded the overturning of Roe v. Wade. 😡He celebrated the March for Life, whose goal is to “end abortion,” and enthusiastically campaigned with Yesli Vega even after she doubted women could get pregnant from rape. Anderson has also unsurprisingly spewed some anti-immigrant rhetoric. There’s more, but we doubt you need more convincing that this guy is not the one.
Recommendation (Note: Not an endorsement!)
Anderson tries to fashion himself as your everyday working man. Still, his policy positions and intentional alignment with Donald Trump make it clear that his number one priority is preserving a Christian nationalist state at the expense of millions’ human rights.
Vindman’s policy positions are broadly progressive and align generally with our values. We must include a caveat, as it has been noted many times during the primary that Vindman is not as well integrated into the area as some of the other candidates were and does not appear to know as much about local politics as many would like. That said, he seems intent to put in the work to fill in the gaps there and has earned support from many local officials. Eugene Vindman is the more progressive choice in this race.