Democratic primary for 14th Senate District underway

By Debora Timms

With early voting ongoing for the June 20 Democratic primary, the candidates each spoke with the Richmond Free Press about some of the issues that are on the minds of voters in the new 14th Senate District.

The incumbent, Sen. Lamont Bagby, 46, had been serving in the House of Delegates since 2015 before winning the March special election to fill the 9th Senate District seat previously held by Jennifer McClellan. His opponent is 40-year-old Katherine “Katie” Gooch, a pastor in the United Methodist Church and the director of The Pace Center, a church-supported resource for students at Virginia Commonwealth University. Both candidates saw education as a primary concern. Ms. Gooch spoke to one issue that she felt was often overlooked in conversations about education — child care.

“It’s a crisis in this city to try to find quality child care before kindergarten, but even through grade school,” Ms. Gooch said. “This is an area that I think has really not been addressed in significant ways.”

Sen. Bagby stressed infrastructure investments and the fight over a $1 billion surplus in the senate’s budget that could help to fund projects to ensure students have “quality spaces for teaching and learning to take place.”

Another issue both candidates raised was housing.

Sen. Bagby said bringing localities together with the state and federal government so that all three are working in concert is crucial. Funding for infrastructure once the Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority supplied a comprehensive plan, was a key way he saw the state being able to help.

He added that issues such as housing are also interrelated to others such as education.

“We can pump all the money we want into education, but at the end of the day that child still has to go home. We should be taking care of the community as a whole. That’s all the wrap around services,” Sen. Bagby said.

Ms. Gooch also saw connections between housing and other issues. She believes two ways to address the short supply of available housing is to look at reigning in the short-term rental market in the city, “think Airbnb and Vrbo,” and creating high-density housing. That’s where she sees another issue coming into play.

“[Housing] and transportation — the two things go hand-in-hand,” Ms. Gooch said. “You have areas that you can make sure you have appropriate transportation opportunities for people to create high-density housing.”

Issues of social and environmental justice on the minds of voters as well such as women’s reproductive rights, LGBTQ rights and voting rights. Sen. Bagby sees the need to address all three with constitutional amendments in the next General Assembly.

“We need to get these things in the Constitution so that when we have a new governor or a new General Assembly, we don’t have Virginians worried about losing those rights,” he said. “Those rights should not be a political football. Those rights should be enshrined in the Constitution.” While Ms. Gooch shares the same policy stances on these issues as Sen. Bagby, she said she feels uniquely qualified to represent the district in the senate as a pastor and as a woman.

“I know my own biology. I think I can be in the room with Republicans when they are considering some of these extreme measures and changes to Virginia laws and explain it is not a cut and dry issue,” she says. “For LGBTQ issues, that is a community I work with. I think I will be a good advocate because that is the community I serve every day.”

She also added that campaign finance reform is another critical component to getting things done when it comes to social and environmental justice issues, but especially in relation to gun control because “certain lobbyists and corporations have way too much power over Virginia and its lawmaking.” https://www.elections.virginia.gov/casting-aballot/polling-place-lookup/

“Richmond deserves better,” Ms. Gooch said.

Early voting continues until Saturday, June 17. Polls will be open for the June 20 primaries from 6 a.m. until 7 p.m. People in line by 7 p.m. will be allowed to vote. To find your polling location visit elections.virginia.gov.