The goal of extending the 2017 wave of Democratic victories to the upcoming November election drew about 200 supporters to the party’s Fauquier County kickoff Sunday where activists talked of flipping two local Republican seats in the House of Representatives and re-electing U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine.
Both Leslie Cockburn and Vangie Williams, the party’s candidates for the 5thand 1stDistrict seats, respectively, urged the audience to get involved in their campaigns and to reach out to others for support, including Republicans unhappy with their leadership.
Cockburn, a former 60 Minutes and Frontline journalist who lives in Rappahannock County, is running against Charlottesville distillery owner Denver Riggleman. The latter became the GOP nominee after one-term incumbent Rep. Tom Garrett withdrew from the race in May, citing his need to deal with his addiction to alcohol.
The 5thDistrict runs from Fauquier County to the North Carolina line and includes all or part of 21 counties, plus the cities of Charlottesville and Danville.
Williams is running against Republican incumbent Rep. Rob Wittman in the 1stDistrict.
The 1stDistrict includes four precincts in Fauquier County – Catlett, Lois, Morrisville and Bealeton. The rest of Fauquier is in the 5th District.
Kaine (D) wasn’t present at the kickoff event, held in the Barn at Lord Fairfax Community College, but his candidacy was cheered by the other candidates and by Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax (D), the event’s keynote speaker.
Republican President Donald Trump (R) wasn’t present either but was a target of speaker after speaker.
“We see lie after lie after lie,” said Fairfax. “The only way to make a change is to stand up and fight. We need a Congress that will hold the White House accountable.”
“What the Trump administration gives us every day is mind-boggling,” said Cockburn. She said the administration claims a social safety net isn’t needed even though 41 million Americans were impoverished as of 2016.
Cockburn also said that Trump policies on tariffs and immigration are hurting Americans.
“I was in Campbell County last week talking to a dairy farmer who is getting killed by tariffs. And who’s milking his cows three times a day? Immigrants,” she said.
She called immigrants “the engines of the agricultural economy.”
Cockburn said if elected, “I’m going to make sure the Affordable Care Act is restored.”
She said she also supports extending Medicare eligibility to all, no matter what age.
“I’m a woman of color in a Republican district working to get one vote at a time,” Williams said by way of introduction, coming out from behind the podium to get closer to the audience.
Williams works as a federal contractor. She’s from King George County and beat two other contenders in June’s Democratic Party primary.
“I’m not running to sling dirt. I’m running to win votes,” she said.
“Everybody needs housing, health care, transportation, and [a secure] retirement so that you don’t have to walk seven miles to a job that pays minimum wage,” she said. “I have been homeless. I have faced the loss of my home. I’m resilient and I did all this raising six children,” she said.
Williams said that she also supports Medicare for all.
“You shouldn’t face losing your home to pay for dental treatment,” Williams said.
She urged people to get involved in her campaign and others, whether it be going door to door, making calls or working in a campaign office.
“We need someone to represent ‘We the People,” Williams said.
Delegate Elizabeth Guzman, D-31st District, which includes parts of Fauquier and Prince William counties, and Rebecca Colaw, who lost a bid to Emily Brewer to represent the 64th District last year, also gave rousing speeches aimed at motivating campaign volunteers.
Sunday’s event was sponsored by the Fauquier County Democratic Committee and Fauquier Indivisible, the latter a political group with 650 members.
Reach James Ivancic at jivancic@fauquier.com.
