Former Delegate Albert Pollard addressed the Stafford County Democrats Saturday, April 28. Pollard is the Democratic candidate to replace retiring Republican State Senator John Chichester in the 28th Senatorial District.
The rain held up, thankfully, and so did Al's unamplified voice. It's a change election here in the 28th Senatorial District, with longtime moderate Republican John Chichester retiring. Fortunately, we have a strong candidate in former 99th District House of Delegates member Albert Pollard. Al has a great pedigree, he is the great-grandson of former VA Governor John Garland Pollard. He served three terms as Delegate from the Northern Neck, a mostly rural, heavily Republican district; no Democrat represented a more Republican-leaning district.
Al is a past President of the Virginia Chapter of the Sierra Club. He has a strong environmental record and will address the issues of development and traffic that have tremendous impact on our region. He will address educational funding and work to disengage it from transportation funding. He will, above all, continue to represent the best interests of the citizens of the 28th District and the Commonwealth as a whole. He is the natural political heir of Senator Chichester.
We don't yet know who will be the Republican nominee; they are having a closed "firehouse" primary on May 19th. In a district where the bulk population center of Stafford County is trending blue, a hard-right Club-for-Growth type candidate, likely John Van Hoy, may just find himself is a real struggle with Pollard's strong, broad-based campaign.
State Senator Edd Houck of the 17th District introduced Al. Senator Houck himself is a past master of winning elections in a Republican-leaning district, and, like the 28th, the 17th continues to trend blue. There are rumors Edd may be appointed to a state position by Governor Kaine, but he made it sound like he was definitely running for re-election.
Also in attendance was Carlos Del Toro, the outstanding Democratic candidate for the 88th House of Delegates seat. Carlos reported over $81,000 dollars raised in the first quarter, and has thrown a scare into incumbent Republican Delegate Mark Cole, who raised all of about $4,000. Cole, who is prone to strange notions like amending the Constitution to create a unicameral legislature, will doubtless improve his financial condition, but he is in the fight of his political life against a well-funded, savvy, and strongly-supported candidate like Carlos.
We need four seats to turn the Senate blue, and we think we're going to get one of them in the 28th District. We need 11 to turn the House blue, and we're going to get one in the 88th District.