Meet the candidates: Holly Hazard

Holly Hazard (right) on the campaign trail.

The Annandale Blog sent the same questionnaire to the two people running in the Democratic Primary for the 38th District seat in the Virginia House of Delegates: the incumbent, Kaye Kory, and challenger Holly Hazard. 

The 38th District includes most of Annandale inside the Beltway, Lake Barcroft, and parts of Bailey’s Crossroads, and Seven Corners.

The Democratic Primary is June 8. Early voting has already begun and will expand to more satellite locations on May 29, including the Mason Government Center and Thomas Jefferson Library. 

The following answers were submitted by Holly Hazard. Kaye Kory’s responses will be published tomorrow. 

Annandale Blog: What are your specific qualifications for representing the 38th District in the House of Delegates? 

Holly Hazard: I am a 25-year resident of House District 38 (HD 38) and a social justice attorney with 30 years of experience making transformational change. I bring a broad perspective in that I’ve worked with state legislatures around the country, as well as the U.S. Congress, and I know what works and what doesn’t. 

I’ve been a PTA president three times, bringing books, food, and advocacy to and for kids without other support. I’ve run a small business, dealt with mental health issues in my own family, and raised four kids. I understand the trauma of loss because my family has lived through it. I understand the challenges of blended families with two working parents because we’ve been one. I understand the issues with college costs because we’ve experienced it. I understand the issues with healthcare because, although we’re lucky enough to have insurance, I see the unreasonable and unfair costs for those who don’t. 

I’ve been a legislative director in Richmond, a lobbyist for women’s and animal issues, and a fierce grassroots advocate for women, children, and the environment. I will bring a passion for Democratic values and experience, strong leadership, and strategic thinking to Richmond.

AB: What are the three most critical issues facing the 38th District? How would you address them?

HH: (1) Climate change is the most critical issue for all of us. From unstable weather patterns and heat changing our local environment to healthcare issues caused by heat stress, poor air quality, and increased disease, the climate crisis is quietly creating a confluence of negative environmental outcomes that we must act decisively and quickly to overcome.

Virginia has made some modest efforts to act, but it’s not enough. The legislature must first ensure that every dollar of our $160+ billion biannual budget runs through a filter of whether it’s good or bad for our environment. Transportation is the largest source of Virginia’s climate pollution, at a full 45 percent of emissions. We must shift from reliance on one-person one-car for transportation to public and alternative transportation, such as a robust bicycle culture and electric vehicles.

Regarding transportation: 

• Public transportation is key to taking cars off the road and better serving communities.
• We must dedicate funds to electrify and expand passenger rail, public transportation, and bike, pedestrian, and housing programs that are convenient and affordable. 
• We must expand solar projects that generate billions of dollars annually and have a proven track record in HD 38.

(2) Equity, or the lack thereof, is also a critical issue and impacts every area of people’s lives. Inequity begins with a lack of access to good prenatal healthcare. It continues with inadequate access to free or low-cost early childhood education, nutritious food, healthcare, and shelter. Decisions on where to build highways, with the pollution they bring, inequitably impact minority and poor neighborhoods. 

And then there are the gross inequities in our criminal justice system that have played out with higher percentages of minorities per capita arrested and jailed. These inequities not only affect the accused, but also their families and communities.

We need to reform our criminal justice, healthcare, transportation, and educational systems so that our future is fair and equitable for all Virginians. I want to lead in this reform.

Related story: Holly Hazard to run against Del. Kaye Kory in Democratic Primary

(3) Education is the third priority issue for HD 38. In one of the richest counties in the United States, access to higher education; equity in education; and teaching to the kid, not the test, have all faltered in recent years. Although we have great public universities, many students cannot access them because state support for our universities has shrunk dramatically in recent years. Instead of reducing the number of standardized tests at the elementary school level, the legislature just tripled them. Minorities and families with children with disabilities are often hit hardest by teacher, infrastructure, and program shortages.

We should be reducing, not increasing, standardized tests in our lower grade levels, and I will work to do just this. We also must create alternative and less expensive opportunities at the university level through increased reliance on virtual learning. I’m proposing Four Years of College for the Price of Three, using virtual learning options, to help families pay the exorbitant cost of college.

Finally, we need to do a better job encouraging and supporting our students who want to pursue a technical career or one in the trades. We have a large shortage of these workers, especially in Northern Virginia, and yet our educational system and our culture treat these careers as “second choices” to college. We should take back pride in blue-collar, healthcare, technical, and service careers and better support our students through dedicated coaches and other aids. I’ve helped start a pilot project on this at Justice High School, and I am hopeful the state will expand on this initiative.

AB: What are the three most critical issues facing the state? How would you address them?

HH: Two of the three – equity and climate change – I’ve discussed above as they are also critical issues to HD 38. The third critical issue is the lack of access to broadband. Many of us remember the days of impatiently waiting for our computer to connect with that weird electronic hum and ping. 

That, or something like it, is the reality today in many parts of our state for business owners trying to compete and sell their Virginia products online. It is a struggle for kids trying to engage in virtual school, apply to college, and even for emergency workers, doctors, and others trying to get and give vital information in a timely fashion. 

While we recently invested to expand broadband to 11 communities, this is not enough. Like electricity, access to the internet is a vital utility and should be treated as such. We should invest quickly and widely in a broadband initiative for our commonwealth. 

Of course, we should do this to support fellow Virginians, but also because it’s to our benefit to raise the economic status of those left out and left behind. The poverty and hardship experienced as a result of lack of broadband access in any part of the commonwealth affects our taxes and population demographics as well as the lives of our fellow Virginians.

AB: What would be the first bill you would introduce in the next session?

HH: Introducing a bill is the easy part. Before I make a final decision on this, I will talk with a broad cross-section of stakeholders, weigh the chances of success, and talk with my colleagues about their priorities so we aren’t duplicating efforts.

The time in Richmond is extremely limited. One mistake legislators make is clogging up an already stressed system with all kinds of “wish list” bills. Some legislators carry 10, 15, and even up to 40 bills. Legislators do better, and therefore Virginia does better, when legislators focus on a few, carefully selected, bills. This year, the majority leader banned legislators from introducing more than seven bills and, as a result, many had better success.

My priority interests for consideration as a “first bill” will be:

• Eliminating the 1,000+ teachers shortage in Virginia by paying a market-based wage.
• Breaking up Dominion Energy’s stranglehold on solar energy competition, getting back the estimated $2 billion Dominion owes us that the legislature has done nothing about, and making solar energy entrepreneurship more equitable.
• Requiring re-sentencing hearings for all residents now in prison on marijuana charges, now that the legislature has made marijuana possession legal. This is a grave injustice that weighs more heavily on minorities and is a gross waste of tax dollars. 
• Abolishing the racist so-called “right to work law” that has stifled union growth and collective bargaining and gutted our middle class.

AB: How would you describe yourself ideologically: “progressive,” “moderate,” “liberal,” or something else? 

HH: I’m a strong Democrat and progressive leader. I look at each issue holistically and with an open mind. The art of legislating is not to take on any label and dismiss alternative points of view, but rather listen to all points of view and work hard, with a broad cross-section of stakeholders, to find common ground. Labels don’t help this process.

AB: How would you involve constituents in local government matters? 

HH: What happens in Richmond is a mystery to many in our community. I want to change this. We have cultural, language, and access barriers to engaging with the people we represent. We don’t have a town square or even just one high school in the 38th District so that residents can gather and discuss the issues of the day. 

Representatives should be creative and intentional in reaching out to engage, not just to those who have raised their hand, but those who need their help. I don’t think attending meetings or holding Town Halls is enough (although these are important). I’ve already reached out to the Korean American business community in Annandale, the Dar Al-Hijrah Islamic Center on Route 7, and other civic and religious organizations to talk about my priorities but, more importantly, to listen to theirs. 

I’ve talked with environmentalists concerned about losing another park and residents upset over drag racing and the police’s inability to deal with it. I am going where constituents live, work, and recreate to honor their experiences, time, and perspective. From this, I will develop engagements that best suit our unique communities.

I have a weekly “Meet and Greet” (Zoom for now) that is an open mic in which residents are welcome to talk about issues important to them. This isn’t a scripted topic with time filled by experts, but rather an informal and easy space to just listen. All are welcome and can find out more on my website at hollyhazard.org.   

I plan to form advisory committees for small businesses, the environment, energy policy, and local affairs. But mostly, I’ll work with our vast and diverse communities to navigate what makes the most sense to them in terms of engagement to make their concerns both heard and acted upon.