The folks here at Daily Kos have done an awesome job keeping on top of elections; even hyper-local ones. Last year, Kos writers and readers kept eyes on a January Special Election in the Virginia state house and although Cheryl Turpin didn’t win in that Special, she went on to run again in the Fall and won!
Once again, David Nir and the team on Daily Kos staff are focusing in on the elections that matter most — local Special Elections where Republicans try to skate by because no one’s paying attention. This time, it’s for the Virginia Special Election in State Senate District 33. Earlier this month, Carolyn Fiddler wrote an excellent piece about Daily Kos’s endorsement for the Democratic Nominee for the seat, current State Delegate Jennifer Boysko.
The picture above is of the very first time I met Delegate Boysko. She was one of the very first elected officials at Dulles Airport to stand in solidarity with the Muslim and Arab community in the wake of Trump’s Travel Ban. We had a great conversation about inclusion that stuck with me.
Since then, we’ve seen each other at several events throughout Virginia; last year I met with her alongside several activists in support of the Restoration of Rights for ex-offenders, and this year we went to her office to advocate for Medicaid Expansion. Both times, Jennifer has shown to be not only a great listener, but someone who truly champions moving the ball forward for families throughout Virginia.
Here’s the thing, though — the State Senate district she’s running for isn’t a done deal for Democrats. Here’s how things went last time:
This is how the district did from a precinct perspective the last time there was a General Election. Only a couple thousand votes there are a lot of swing precincts.
And the last time there was a Special Election (in 2014), only a couple thousand votes separated the Democrat from the Republican with a GOP-leaning Independent running! And guess what, Joe May — that very same GOP-leaning Independent from 2014 — is now the Republican Nominee in the Special Election!
This may seem like a big win, but notice how many votes the Independent received. Add those together with the GOP vote and you have a tight race.
That’s why having as much attention on this race as possible is vital. In just 8 days, voters throughout the 33rd will have a Special Election that many will never know about… or they do not know that they live in the district. We need everyone out there in the Kos world to tell your friends in Northern Virginia that January 8th is a Special Election, and that Democrats need to win to keep the Republicans from widening their currently slim majority in the State Senate. That’s why I went out yesterday to talk to voters at the doors in Sterling about Jennifer and her race.
Kos community, you’ve been vital to our success in these elections in the past — Be sure to support Jennifer Boysko in any way you can!
Northern Virginia has become an indispensable part of the electorate for Democrats over the last decade, especially in counties such as Loudoun County (which has part of the 33rd Senate District in it) and Prince William County. Last year, Jackie Smith’s win for Clerk of the Court set the stage for a huge year for Democrats, this coming year we have a chance to make sure Jennifer Boysko’s win does the same.
As a candidate running for county board in Prince William County next year, I’ll make sure of it, too. All politics are local, and we need to win locally. The fight for control of our state house, state senate and county boards starts with the State Senate 33 Special Election on January 8th!
