City of Falls Church

Saddam Azlam Salim is a graduate of George Mason University where he received his Master’s in Public Administration with a concentration in public and non-profit finance and currently works as a Senior Consultant advising federal clients. Salim is also actively involved in several community organizations. He serves as second Vice Chair on the 8th Congressional District Democratic Committee, the Co-State Director for South Asians for America, and is a founding member of the API Caucus and the FCDC Black Caucus.

One of Salim’s priorities is reproductive rights. Salim pledges to ensure that people have access to reproductive health and education including “high quality and medically accurate sex education in our public schools.” Salim also understands the importance of having community resources and will fight to expand access to abortion in underserved communities. Additionally, Salim plans to bring down the maternal mortality rate by advocating for more resources for prenatal care, especially for people of color. Lastly, Salim has committed to making sure that accurate information regarding reproductive options are made available to patients and that no restrictions are placed on reproductive services or information.

Another issue in Salim’s campaign is LGBTQ+ rights. He promises to oppose all legislation that negatively targets LGBTQ+ communities. Once elected, Salim has plans to add legislation that protects the rights of LGBTQ+ people by adding Virginia to the list of states that include Rainbow Wall legislation. He also has plans to sponsor legislation that codifies the right to have gender affirming care and prohibits anti-trans legislation from other states. Salim promises to be an ally and fight alongside the LGBTQ+ community against all attacks.

This first time candidate also has a plan for climate action in the Commonwealth. Salim understands how crucial it is for Virginia to move towards clean energy. He plans to allow local governments to set energy codes in order to improve energy efficiency and aid in reaching 50% of the Virginia Clean Economy Act Goals.
Salim also supports the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). He promises to oppose any efforts by the Governor to pull out of RGGI and be an outspoken advocate of environmental policies.

Salim is a 2023 gun sense candidate and supports an assault weapons ban as well as legislation for mandatory waiting periods for firearm purchases. He also plans to support legislation that will restrict perpetual domestic abusers from making purchases. He pledges to support legislation that provides early prevention, investing in communities with higher gun violence rates and making sure that they have access to resources such as affordable housing, healthcare, and jobs, so that gun violence is less prevalent in their communities.

Salim’s opponent is Loudon County Supervisor, Republican Ken Reid, a former business owner and author. Reid obtained his M.A. University of Missouri School of Journalism from George Mason University along with an B.A. Rutgers in political science and Espanol. Reid builds his campaign off of his support for state income tax cuts as well as the removal of state interference in prescription medication and medical devices. Reid also shows strong support for the police department, believing that we should increase police funding despite clear and indisputable evidence that police are incapable of de escalating and stopping crime. He opposes environmental initiatives such as RGGI and allowing local government to set energy codes believing them to be “extremist environmental provisions.” Saddam Azlam Salim is the progressive choice for this race due to his advocacy for commonsense gun laws, his dedication to climate action, and his position to protect the LGBTQ+ community from growing attacks. Close Window

Incumbent Senator Jennifer Boysko and her husband Glenn have raised their two daughters in historic downtown Herndon, where they have lived since 1996. Senator Boysko has volunteered with numerous organizations in her community including serving on the board of NARAL Pro-Choice Virginia, now known as Repro Rising. She was first elected to the House of Delegates in 2016 and won a special election to the state Senate in 2019.

Boysko is committed to social justice. She supported legislation to establish hate crime protections for individuals targeted for violence because of their sexual orientation or gender identity and has voiced opposition to conversion therapy. In 2020, Senator Boysko passed a bill that requires the State Registrar to issue a new certificate of birth to show a change of sex upon request of the person. The following year Boysko also passed the Equal Rights Amendment to protect against discrimination.

She has been a champion for immigrant families, carrying legislation to provide in-state tuition to residents regardless of immigration status and establish driving privilege cards so families can safely get to school, work, and worship.

When it comes to healthcare, Senator Boysko has also prioritized protecting and expanding access to abortion and supporting families through establishing paid family and medical leave. She also sponsored SJ255, an amendment that protects the right to an abortion. Among her efforts to ensure all people of the Commonwealth have access to healthcare, Boysko helped to expand Medicaid coverage and sponsored legislation that would require doula care to be covered by insurance.

Boysko also champions environmental protection. Understanding that everyone should have access to clean and safe air and water, Boysko sponsored legislation that required all localities to make sure that their energy codes were energy efficient and infrastructure for electric vehicle charging stations. Additionally, she passed legislation to include electric vehicles as a part of Virginia’s Energy Plan in order to address the poor air quality and excessive heat are issues in the Commonwealth.

Her opponent, Republican Matthew Lang, is a retired Navy veteran with a degree in Criminal Justice and Security Management. Lang wants to increase the police budget, despite ongoing reports of police brutality. He also runs his campaign on his promise to back veterans and armed forces by expanding career opportunities for them and their spouses as they transition back to civilian life.

Senator Boysko’s stance on healthcare, equality for all, and support for environmental protection make her the progressive choice for this race. Close Window

Incumbent Democratic Senator Adam Ebbin took office in 2012 after serving for eight years in the House of Delegates. A graduate of American University, Ebbin has resided in Alexandria since 1989. Additionally, Ebbin was a Flemming Foundation for Legislative Leadership in 2006, and attended the University of Virginia’s Sorensen Institute of Political Leadership in 2000. He also attended Harvard University’s Kennedy School program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government.

Senator Ebbin has fought to advance progressive priorities including establishing legislation to fight for equality in the Commonwealth. In 2022, Sen. Ebbin unsuccessfully passed SJ5, a bill that reapeals and replaces the ban on same-sex marriage in the Virginia Constitution with the right to marry affirmation. Two years prior, Sen. Ebbin also passed comprehensive ban on discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity, making Virginia the first southern state to create legislation to protect the LGBTQ+ community.

Senator Ebbin understands the need for commonsense gun laws. He champions preventing gun violence most recently by introducing legislation that makes the selling of guns without serial numbers, or ghost guns, illegal. Sen. Ebbin also sponsored SB643, legislation that would’ve allowed law enforcement to prosecute those who are found with illegal firearms. Sen. Ebbin also serves as the co-chair of the General Assembly Gun Violence Prevention Caucus, where he was able to ban firearms in state buildings.

He is a member of the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission, the School Readiness Committee, the Commission on Economic Opportunity for Virginians in Aspiring and Diverse Communities, the Task force to Commemorate the Centennial Anniversary of Women's Right to Vote, and the Joint Commission on Technology and Science.

Running against Senator Ebbin is Republican Sophia Moshasha. A self-described technology advocate and community builder, as well as the vice president of the DC Chapter of the VR/AR Association, Moshasha prioritizes building sustainable solutions for Virginia’s growing economy, interested in lowering taxes small businesses, which will take away from funding in education and other programs. Moshasha also advocates for Glenn Youngkin’s Parental Rights in education, which is just another way of saying she does not trust our teachers to teach our student correct historically accurate information about school curriculum.

Because of his dedication to create commensense gun laws andhis fight for equality, Senator Ebbin is the progressive choice in this race.
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Incumbent Democratic Senator Barbara Favola has been a state senator since 2011. Prior to her election as a state Senator, she served on the Arlington County Board of Supervisors from 1997 to 2011, serving as chair three times. Senator Favola was the Board's leading advocate for children, youth and families, and her contributions to the community include establishing mental health services in the public schools during her service.

Favola’s prioritizes healthcare in her campaign. She passed legislation that bans medical providers and insurance companies from billing patients for out-of-network emergency care or surgery in excess of their deductible and/or co-payment. She also passed the Care Act, which allows patients to designate their own caretakers. Senator Favola supports access to abortion and reproductive health care for all. She sponsored legislation that requires that the pre-natal, delivery and postpartum care provided in our jails meet the standards set by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

Favola also champions workforce training, believing in supporting workers in order to rebuild Virginia’s economy. When she served on the Arlington County Board, where she was able to issue county contracts to businesses who paid their employees livable wages. She also avidly supports wage protection laws and the right of workers to participate in collective bargaining. In an effort to support workers trying to re-enter the workforce, Senator Favola patroned legislation to introduce paid family and medical leave.

Senator Favola has made efforts to reduce the gun violence in our community. Favola has passed the protection order violation legislation which makes carrying a firearm a class six felony for abusers. Additionally, Favola helped to establish the Virginia Gun Violence Intervention and Prevention Fund. She also serves on the Virginia Advisory Committee on Sexual and Domestic Violence to implement policies to reduce the incidence of sexual and domestic violence.


Senator Favola is dedicated to criminal justice reform. She supports anti-racist policing and even played a large role in the implementation of universal bodycam use and encourages comminuty policing strategies. Favola has advocated for Citizen Police Review Boards, a measure to be taken to increase accountability in law enforcement as well as funding to enlist the help of mental health professionals to work alongside the police.

Favola is running against Reublican David Henshaw. Henshaw is running on transphobia. He wants to ban trans children from playing in school sports in schools. He also is against teaching accurate history in schools and doesn’t trust our teachers and educational professionals to do their job. Henshaw prioritizes increasing prosecution across the Commonwealth, a very dangerous policy to enact due to the current lack of accountability in law enforcement when it comes to increased violence and targeting Black people and communities of color. Henshaw also would repeal the Virginia Clean Economy Act and the Clean Car law, both of which were put in place to combat climate change and keep the Commonwealth moving towards a safer, cleaner environment. This candidate is a dangerous choice for the Commonwealth.

Senator Favola is the progressive choice because of her prioritization of economic growth, gun violence prevention, and access to affordable healthcare.

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