City of Manassas

Incumbent Democratic Senator Jeremy McPike has served in the State Senate since 2016. He received his Bachelor's and Master's of Public Administration degrees from George Mason University. He is a volunteer firefighter and led the design and construction of an innovative, environmentally conscious, and award-winning volunteer fire station. He is a department director for the City of Alexandria and has worked for the city for 22 years.

Senator McPike has supported numerous progressive bills during his time in the Senate. He sponsored a bill to ensure foster children can keep their healthcare while transitioning into adulthood after turning 18. He is also committed to advancing common-sense gun safety measures, like universal background checks and blocking domestic abusers’ access to firearms. He considers redistricting reform as one of his fundamental policy goals. Sen. McPike voted to expand Medicaid in Virginia and to raise Virginia’s minimum wage.

Senator McPike recognizes abortion rights in Virginia are on the line, noting abortion ban attempts this past General Assembly session. He has stated that he fully supports reproductive rights, the right to safe and legal abortion, and access to contraceptives. He believes the government should not interfere with critical medical decisions and that Virginians should have the right to make their own choices. He voted to support the Reproductive Health Protection Act in 2020, and prioritizes codifying access to abortion into the Virginia Constitution.

Senator McPike supports public education and trusts teachers to know what is best in the classrooms. He considers Governor Youngkin’s teacher tip line as an extreme tactic to spy on educators. Senator McPike wants to invest in school facilities and teacher resources. He also stresses the importance of teaching real history.

Senator McPike advocates for workers' rights and is pro-union. He voted in favor of removing the ban on public sector collective bargaining and passed legislation to hold companies accountable for wage theft from Virginia workers. He believes in continuing to raise the minimum wage and so workers have fair pay. He also advocates for all workers having access to paid sick leave and paid family and medical leave.

Senator McPike is facing a challenge from Republican Nikki Rattray Baldwin. Baldwin grew up in Florida in the foster care system until her second placement. She earned her Bachelor’s in Liberal Arts in Psychology and her Master’s in Public Administration. Her campaign site fails to mention her stances on several issues.

Due to his record for protecting abortion access, workers rights, and public education, Senator Jeremy McPike is the progressive choice in this race.

Note: portions of this write-up were compiled from a previous Progressive Voters Guide recommendation for this candidate.

Incumbent Democratic Delegate Michelle Maldonado is a former attorney and small business owner. She was born in Massachusetts and raised by teachers who instilled in her the importance of education, equity, and hard work. She received her undergraduate degree at Barnard College at Columbia University and her law degree from the George Washington University School of Law. She has lived in Virginia for the past 28 years with her husband, a U.S. Air Force veteran, and her son.

Del. Maldonado priorities addressing the climate crisis. She supports the Virginia Clean Economy Act and sees it as a great start for investing in green infrastructure and jobs. She co-patroned policy to add incentives for the preservation and restoration of local green spaces in urban areas. She wants to ensure Virginia’s infrastructure is resilient to the weather challenges that climate change brings. She believes that creating green-collar jobs in the fields of renewable energy, electric vehicles, and recycled materials will be great for the environment and workers. She has also co-patroned HB1721, a policy created to monitor the occurrences of microplastics in the drinking water.

As a small business owner and working mother, Delegate Maldonado prioritizes policies to uplift Virginia families. She supports living wages for all workers so that people can live with dignity as well as co-patroning bills that give workers compensation for workplace injuries and stressors. She believes that paid family and medical leave, and high-quality, affordable childcare options for parents help keep people out of poverty. Maldonado also advocates for equal pay for women and minorities and will fight for policies to prevent workplace discrimination. Del. Maldonado co-patroned HB2115, a policy to support those in need of unemployment compensation.

Delegate Maldonado supports educational policies that will uplift both teachers and students. She supports increasing teacher salaries and advocates for the collective bargaining rights of teachers and other public employees. She supports updates to school infrastructure, including new ventilation systems to provide clean air during the return to in-person teaching during the pandemic. She has voted in support of mental health education in elementary and secondary education. Del. Maldonado has also co-patroned to extend the eligibility for those seeking to obtain the Brown v Board of Education Scholarship.

Delegate Maldonado wants to ensure all Virginians can participate in our fair and free elections. She opposes any effort to create deliberate barriers to voting access. She recognizes that early and mail-in voting were crucial to keeping voters safe and healthy during the 2020 election. She knows that many restrictions to voting access unfairly target minorities and is dedicated to ensuring people of color have equal access to participating in our elections. She co-patroned HB1552 a policy that prohibits personal funds to be used during campaigns, as well as HB2049 which assists those with disabilities on where to vote at their polling location.

Delegate Maldonado is running against Sharon E Ashurst, a resident of Manassas for 33 years. Ashurts believes in funding the police department despite their various violent crimes towards communities of color. She has no plan to combat the growing threat of an abortion ban in the Commonwealth nor does she have a plan to fight the climate crisis we are in.


Due to her support for working families, the environment, voting rights, and criminal justice reform, Delegate Michelle Maldonado is the most progressive choice for Virginia’s 50th District

Travis Nembhard is running for delegate in VA-22 to create a better community for his family and future generations. His focus is on lightening the burden for working families by advocating for universal childcare and paid family and medical leave. Addressing traffic congestion and tolling problems on I-66 is another priority for him. As a lifelong public servant, Nembhard aims to combat injustices, promote transparency, and work towards a more inclusive Commonwealth. His diverse career and community service background demonstrate his dedication to helping others and advocating for positive change.

Recognizing Virginia's 32nd rank in cost of living, Nembhard wants to preserve the earning power of Virginians by reducing day-to-day expenses. As the next delegate, Nembhard will advocate for policies such as immediate access to paid family and medical leave, universal pre-kindergarten, and a Working Families Bill of Rights with earned sick leave. He also strives to establish training programs for career changes and bolster opportunities for military service members, veterans, and their families.

Nembhard stands strong against legislation that threatens freedoms and adversely affects vulnerable communities in Virginia. As your representative, he pledges to safeguard voting rights for all citizens, preserve access to abortion, and champion a just and equitable justice system. Additionally, he advocates for the protection of LGBTQ+ individuals and marginalized groups against discrimination, affirming his dedication to defending fundamental rights for every Virginian.

As a Delegate, Travis Nembhard is dedicated to ensuring that every Virginian has access to high-quality healthcare, regardless of their background or insurance coverage. He will tirelessly advocate for affordable care initiatives, including the Cover All Kids program, to extend health coverage to low-income children. Nembhard is committed to reducing drug prices, strengthening pandemic prevention and response capabilities, and modernizing hospitals to improve medical outcomes for all demographics. His focus on equitable healthcare will leave no one behind in building a healthier and more inclusive Virginia.

Nembhard faces Republican Ian Lovejoy. Lovejoy is a long-time resident of Virginia. His platform includes cutting funding for crucial safety net programs and allowing the rich to benefit from tax cuts. Additionally, his support of universal school resource officers in schools is dangerous due to the continuous threat that Black people and communities of color face in regards to mistreatment and increased violence towards them by law enforcement.

Travis Nembhard is the progressive choice due to his stance on healthcare reform, protection of human rights, and education.

A Prince William County native, Incumbent Democratic Delegate Briana Sewell was raised by parents who were each United States Air Force members for over 20 years. She attended Prince William County Public Schools, and then received her bachelor’s degree in public policy from the College of William and Mary and a Master of Public Administration from American University. She has since worked providing constituent services for Congressman Gerry Connolly. She also helped found the Virginia Campaign for a Family Friendly Economy, which advocates for paid family and medical leave for working families. During her time as Delegate she has patroned bills to support the improvement of education for students as well as protections for teacher licensure. She has also made efforts to reduce gun violence in the Commonwealth by co-patroning bills to conduct a study on the effect of gun violence in the community.

Due to her experience advocating for paid family and medical leave, Delegate Sewell supports policies that uplift Virginia’s families and economy. She worked to ensure federal employees receive 12 weeks of paid medical and family leave and other workers have access to sufficient leave and benefits. She also knows a well-funded education system is crucial to a strong economy. She will work to ensure school resources are equally distributed and every student has access to well-funded, quality education. She supports policies to lower the cost of college and fund other job training and vocational programs.

Delegate Sewell particularly understands how women play a critical role in the economy. A strong advocate for fair pay and anti-discrimination laws in the workplace, she will work to lower the cost of childcare to ensure parents can afford to stay in the workforce. She will also advocate for childcare providers, who are often women and women of color. She knows that economic and reproductive rights are inherently tied together and will fight for people to have access to abortion, so people can choose when and whether to become parents.

Delegate Sewell knows that paid family and medical leave must also go hand-in-hand with affordable and accessible healthcare coverage and chief co-patroned HB2035, a bill to establish the paid medical leave program. She supports efforts to regulate prescription drug companies and reduce prescription costs. The pandemic has further revealed racial and socioeconomic biases in healthcare coverage, and Del. Sewell will work to ensure there are no barriers to necessary healthcare.

Delegate Sewell has advocated for the environment her entire career. While working in Congressman Connolly’s office, she tried to reduce pollutants in the district by shutting down the coal ash pond nearby. She chief patroned HJ545, a bill requiring the Dept. of Energy to list the barriers that prevent local governments from directly buying clean energy. She believes that investing in green infrastructure will create high-paying jobs in the Commonwealth and will ensure that every citizen has access to clean water and air. She will work to fund green public transit options to limit emissions and traffic congestion.

Sewell is running against Republican John S Gray. Information on Gray’s politics was unavailable, but his string of extremely problematic tweets gives some clue as to where his politics lie. Among the tweets he paid to be deleted are racist statements made in regards to Black people and the BLM protests, as well as hateful speech towards other religious practices. He has expressed no regret for his statements.

Due to her advocacy for Virginia working families, women’s rights, affordable healthcare, and the environment, Delegate Briana Sewell is the most progressive choice for Virginia’s 51st District.