It’s campaign season and we are checking in with candidates all over the state:

Delegate Amanda Batten – Representative 96th District – Virginia House of Delegates

It’s campaign season and we are checking in with candidates all over the state:

Rachel Levy 

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It’s campaign season and we are checking in with candidates all over the state:

Holly Seibold 

Senator Ghazala Hashmi 

Senator Ghazala Hashmi, PhD, serves in the Virginia General Assembly, representing the 10th Senatorial District which includes parts of Richmond City, Chesterfield County, and all of Powhatan County. She sits on the following Senate committees: Education and Health; Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources; General Laws and Technology; and Local Government. Senator Hashmi also chairs the Senate Subcommittee on Public Education. Prior to her election in November 2019, Senator Hashmi had a long career in higher education in Virginia.

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It’s campaign season and we are checking in with candidates all over the state:

Makya Little 

Makya Little is a mother, a former FBI and CIA officer, and an equity advocate. She is running to represent the new 19th District encompassing portions of Prince William and Fairfax Counties in Virginia’s House of Delegates. In 2019, Makya fought to reform how African American history is taught in Virginia as the Parent Advocate of Governor Northam’s Commission on African American History Education. As President of the TJ Alumni Action Group, she led the admissions reform advocacy efforts for the nation’s #1 high school—Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology. Most recently, as a Survivor of domestic violence, she authored House Bill 1351 (known as “Makya’s Law”) and advocated for the removal of the one-year waiting period that victims of domestic violence must wait to be granted a full divorce in Virginia. A certified Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) practitioner who led the development of the CIA’s first Accessibility Strategy, Makya seeks to ensure a more inclusive future where shared prosperity is achieved collectively. Makya is a 26-year resident of Woodbridge, Virginia, a small business owner, and a coalition-builder who believes that partnerships and creative problem-solving are keys to our enhanced success.

Michele Joyce 

Michele and her husband, Pete, married in Isle of Wight County, in 1999—at Benn’s United Methodist Church—in what is now the new 84th district. Isle of Wight is also where they raised their two daughters, Hailey and Julia. Michele graduated from William & Mary with a degree in Physics and has worked in Newport News at Jefferson Lab as a computer scientist since 1998 writing software for the lab’s particle accelerator. For the last 14 years, Michele has been a volunteer community leader and advocate—helping families in HD84 find affordable access to health care. Michele’s longtime community and professional experience in Hampton Roads speak to her abilities as a problem solver. She felt compelled to take an active role in helping her community after witnessing a neighborhood family fall victim to a flawed health-care system. She became a volunteer neighborhood team leader with the Obama campaign and organized for the passage of the Affordable Care Act. When the full law was implemented in 2014, she was trained to be a volunteer Health Care Navigator, traveling throughout the district, educating the public about the new law, and helping families find quality, affordable health care. In 2012, while Michele was serving as chair of the Isle of Wight County Democratic Committee, they were awarded “Committee of the Year” from the Democratic Party of Virginia. In 2019 Michele served as the Democratic nominee for Delegate from the former 64th House District (now HD84). In that election, Michele achieved record Democratic performance funded completely by small-dollar grassroots donors.

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It’s campaign season and we are checking in with candidates all over the state:

Senator Barbara Favola 

Heidi Drauschak

Dr. Shawnrell Blackwell is a Professional Curator for health and wellness and networking events. Her interactive sessions in the fields of education and mental health have impacted thousands for over 20 years. She is a change agent with a proven track record of success. Her clientele boasts immediate transformation during her powerful coaching sessions. Affectionately called the self-care guru, she advocates for equity and  accessibility of mental health services in BIPOC communities through her work as co-owner of Avail Outpatient Counseling. As founder of the Education Connection Academy (ECA) nonprofit, she has spearheaded many accomplished philanthropic projects, including creating healing spaces for hundreds of people each year. Dr. Blackwell specializes in nonpharmaceutical interventions such as mindfulness, movement, and medicinal herbs to heal the mind, body, and spirit. Through her gift of storytelling and dance, she has created an unparalleled connection with people around the world. The international motivational speaker received her Ph.D. from Virginia Tech University and M.Ed. and BA from Virginia State University where she studied communications, literature, and leadership. A true multi-hyphenate, she shares her offerings as a licensed mental health professional, grant writer, certified Reiki Master Teacher, and Fitness, CPR, and ESL Instructor.

Now, Senator McClellan is running for Congress to continue delivering for the people of Virginia, and to make sure their voices are heard in Washington, D.C. McClellan recognizes the tremendous legacy of Virginia’s 4^th Congressional District, from Rep. John Mercer Langston to Rep. Donald McEachin. She is committed to continuing that legacy of service, and to breaking barriers as Virginia’s first Black woman member of Congress.

McClellan was elected to the House of Delegates representing Richmond in 2005. When the late Donald McEachin was elected to Congress in 2016, McClellan was elected to serve McEachin’s former Senate seat. She has served in the Senate since 2017, and serves as Vice Chair of the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus. Sen. McClellan has also been a leader in addressing Virginia’s painful history of racial inequity. As Chair of the Virginia Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Commission, Jenn promotes Dr. King’s legacy and continues his work, particularly racial healing, economic and social justice, and community engagement.

As a community leader at the local, state, and national level, McClellan has served on a wide variety of non-profit and civic organizations’ boards, including the YWCA of Richmond, the Virginia League of Planned Parenthood, the Black History Museum and Cultural Center of Virginia, the Children’s Museum of Richmond, and the Robert Russa Moton Museum. She is also a member of the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.