Becoming an Informed Voter

Becoming an Informed Voter

American political leaders are rated depending on their ability to deliver on their election promises. While vying, politicians run on different platforms of interest to the people, and once they get elected, people expect them to fulfill their promises. Senators and Congressional members play a significant role in the legislative process, and people expect them to direct their efforts toward resolving local and nationwide problems. Measuring legislators’ track records requires focusing on their policy positions to determine if they deliver for the people. This paper will delve into Virginia’s Senator and Virginia’s 11th Congressional member’s role and service to the people. The paper will also highlight ratings for these legislators from different independent institutions and interest groups. Determining these leaders’ track records depends on their voting patterns and their policy positions on different issues of interest to the people.

The Political History of Virginia’s 11th Congressional District and State

The current Congressman for Virginia’s 11th Congressional District is Gerry Connolly, who assumed office in 2009. Since Congress members are elected every two years, it means that Gerry Connoly has served for seven consecutive terms. On the other hand, US senators from Virginia are Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, elected in 2009 and 2013, respectively. Senators get elected on a six-year term, implying that the two senators have each served more than one term.

One of the issues that has been dominant in Virginia is the political history of Virginia in the past 25 years is the conflict relating to district boundaries. The congressional district boundaries classification management falls under the state and local governments. As a result, both Democrats and Republics have fought to control these boundaries by controlling local and state governments. For instance, in 2002, Republicans won the governorship and control of both General Assemblies, hence tilting boundaries in their favor (Altman & McDonald, 2013). Changes to the district boundaries, popularly known as gerrymandering, made it easy for incumbents to retain their seats.

A significant highlight of the boundaries conflict between Democrats and Republicans occurred in 2011 when the General Assembly met for a special session to finalize district boundaries. The historical pattern whereby members protect their parties’ interests also emerged in 2011. Since the Democrats controlled the state senate by then, they drew the boundaries to place them ahead of their Republican counterparts (Altman & McDonald, 2013). However, the Republican governor vetoed the changes, forcing the Democrats to accept changes and avoid a court-sanctioned process.

Voting Patterns

Virginia is one of the states that hold gubernatorial elections a year after the presidential election. Over the years, Virginia’s voting patterns show that the people of Virginia favor gubernatorial candidates who are not from the president’s party (Yoon, 2023). For instance, one year into President Biden’s presidency, the state elected Glenn Youngkin as governor after beating the Democratic candidate by a two-point margin (Yoon, 2023). The race reflected a history of competition between Democrats and Republics since the 1950s. Virginia is one of the most contested states in American presidential election history.

Before Obama’s 2008 win in Virginia, the state had previously backed Republican candidates. However, since 2008, Democratic candidates have won presidential elections, either by decisive or marginal victories. Obama won the second bid by a slight margin, and Hillary Clinton won by a slight margin. However, Biden won the state decisively in 2020 (Cohen et al., 2019). The outcome over the past four elections indicates that Virginia is growingly becoming blue, partly due to shifting demographic patterns in the state (Cohen et al., 2019). As urban and sub-urban populations in the state continue growing and diversifying, the Democrats are digging into the region’s presidential vote.

Voting patterns in the 11th District of Virginia have always aligned with state voting patterns in the past 20 years. The current Congressman for the 11th District of Virginia is Gerald Connolly, a Democrat who has occupied the seat since the 2009 elections (Cohen et al., 2019). As mentioned earlier, the growing urban and sub-urban population is responsible for the rise in Democratic Party support. The 11th District is in the Northern suburbs of Washington DC, and this explains why the state has a diverse population that leans toward the democratic party (Cohen et al., 2019). Locally, the 11th District of Virginia constituents have supported democratic Party candidates, save for 2021 when they backed a Republican governor.

Representatives Rise to Power

Congressman Gerald Edward Connolly

Congressman Gerald, popularly referred to as Gerry is currently serving the eighth term as the 11th Congressional District of Virginia representative. The 11th Congressional District includes Fairfax County and the City of Fairfax. Before he was elected a Congressman, Gerry served in the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, including five years as the chairman of the board (US Congress, n.d.). Gerry’s main priority area has been to grow and protect Virginia’s economy. To achieve this goal, the Congressman has played a key role in securing federal funding for key state infrastructure. Some of his achievements geared toward building the economy in the district include securing a $150 million federal commitment for the region’s metro system and completion of the Fairfax Country Parkway, among other critical infrastructural developments (US Congress, n.d.). Gerry remains a committed community leader whose long service in the public service has shaped his policy positions on economic growth.

Senator Mark Warner

Senator Mark Warner was first elected to the US Senate in 2008 and is currently serving his third term, having attained re-election to the Senate in 2020. He is serving as the chairman of the Select Intelligence Committee (Senate, n.d.). Also, Warner is a member of the Senate Finance, Banking, Budget, and Rules Committee. Senator Warner previously served as the Virginia governor from 2022 to 2006, and during his reign, Virginia received recognition for being the best-managed state, the best state for business, and the best state in public education provision (Senate, n.d.). As the first person in his family to graduate from university, Senator Warner delved into technology startups and business. He is one of the founders of the cellular telephone company that later became Nextel. His political platform has revolved around protecting American families.

Legislation Items

Congressman Gerald Edward Connolly

One of Connolly’s significant legislation pieces is the passage of the Land Management Flexibility Act. Following the passage of the act, employees of land management agencies were now eligible to be employed in the civil service (US Congress, n.d.). The LMF act played a pivotal role in helping employees who previously felt discriminated against as they would now participate in public service. Also, Connolly contributed to the passage of the Telework Enhancement Act. The Telework Enhancement Act requires the federal government to increase telework held by federal employees to avoid heavy traffic and enable the employees to work during emergencies. Thirdly, Connolly authored and helped pass the Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act (FITAR), representing a significant paradigm shift in federal technology acquisition in 20 years (US Congress, n.d.). After the passage of FITAR, agencies received guidelines to ensure they apply federal law during technology acquisition. Most of Connolly’s bills were part of his election promises.

Connolly’s legislative items focus on enhancing fairness among all in society. For instance, his Land Management Flexibility Act allowed employees who were previously excluded from civil service the opportunity to work. These principles align with Biblical teachings, particularly Proverbs 29:14, which states, “If a King judges the poor with truth, his throne will be established forever (New International Version, 2011, Prov. 29:14).

Senator Mark Warner

In line with his goal of protecting families, Senator Mark Warner has authored and contributed to the passage of bills that will foster the family setting. One of his legislative pieces is the Equality Act of 2023, which seeks to prohibit discrimination against sex, gender, sexual orientation, and other forms of discrimination. Also, Warner is sponsoring the Honest Ads Act of 2023, which seeks to ensure transparency in political advertisements, as financiers are required to provide information about financiers and other elements. There is also the Background Check Expansion Act that calls for heightened vigilance before issuing a firearm. Warner did not state that he would get involved in these acts during the campaign, but they align with his principles.

Senator Mark Warner’s legislative pieces indicate that he is focused on ensuring transparency in the public service and political space. By sponsoring the Honest Ad Act, Warner will encourage transparency in political dispensation. This relates to Proverbs 22:21, which states that God’s desire is “teaching you to be honest and speak the truth, so that you can bring truthful reports to those you serve” (New International Version, 2011, Prov. 22:21).

Ratings by Independent Institutions

Different interest groups rate Congressman Gerald Edward Connolly differently. Notably, the ACLU, ADA, and ACU rates for Congressman Gerry Connolly are 86%, 100%, and 100%, respectively (ACLU, n.d.). On the other hand, the ACLU, ADA, and ACU rates for Senator Mark Warner are 62%, 92%, and 100%, respectively.

Classification into Federal or Conservative Politics 

Senator Mark Warner is a Democrat, and as such, he is naturally expected to be a liberal. However, going by house decisions, he does not exactly fall into the category of a liberal politician. Based on some methodology, the senator has previously emerged as the most bipartisan Democrat in the Senate. However, some of his policy positions, such as being pro-choice, put him in the liberal category (Graham et al., 2009). On the other hand, Congressman Gerry Connolly is also a Democrat whose policy decisions have aligned with the Democratic Party’s platform. Based on his previous policy decisions, Gerry is a liberal. His support for abortion and pro-choice policies indicates a progressive mind (Graham et al., 2009).

Conclusion

Overall, the main interests in Virginia include family well-being, health, and environmental protection, and the state Congressional delegation should support policies aligning with these interests. Although some of the elected officials from the region, including Representative Gerry Connolly, supported people’s interests, their colleagues failed to align with some interests. For instance, during the voting for the Clean Water Act, some representatives voted against the bill, showing a disconnect between local needs and political priorities. The bill would have facilitated pesticide spraying exemption from specific areas to protect the environment. Some congressional members are failing outstanding leaders like Representative Gerry, but the Senate delegation has a perfect record of representing people’s interests.

References

ACLU. (n.d.). Congressional Scorecard Congressional Civil Liberties Record in the Trump Era. https://www.aclu.org/sites/default/files/field_document/acl18002_legislative_report_card_v2.pdf?redirect=legscorecard2018

Altman, M., & McDonald, M. P. (2013). A half-century of Virginia redistricting battles: Shifting from rural malapportionment to voting rights to public participation. University of Richmond Law Review, 47(3), 771–831.

Cohen, R. E., Barnes, J. A., Cook, C., Barone, M., Jacobson, L., & Peck, L. F. (2019). The almanac of American politics 2020: Members of Congress and governors: Their profiles and election results, their states and districts. Columbia Books & Information Services, National Journal.

Graham, J., Haidt, J., & Nosek, B. A. (2009). Liberals and conservatives rely on different sets of moral foundations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 96(5), 1029–1046. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0015141

Senate. (n.d.). Biography. U.S. Senator Mark R. Warner. https://www.warner.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/biography

The Holy Bible: New International Version (NIV). (2011). Biblica, Inc. (Original work published 1973).

US Congress. (n.d.). Biography | U.S. Representative Gerry Connolly. Connolly.house.gov. https://connolly.house.gov/biography/

Yoon, R. (2023, November 3). AP Election Brief | What to expect in Virginia’s election for control of the state legislature. AP News. https://apnews.com/article/virginia-election-state-legislature-what-to-watch-

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Overview

The purpose of this paper is to provide a practical application of material learned by developing concepts learned in the presentations. Using these concepts, you will investigate the recent political history of your congressional district and state, the rise to power, and the voting record of your Representative to the United States Congress and one of your United States senators. You will determine if your representatives keep their promises when they go to Washington and determine if their voting record aligns with Biblical principles and your own beliefs.

Instructions

The body of the paper must be at least 6 pages in current APA format and include level 1, 2, and 3 headings. In addition to the body, you must include a separate title page and reference page. Do not submit an abstract with this assignment.

Do not write the paper without carefully studying the related presentations. To achieve more than a passing grade, you must demonstrate a mastery of the presentation of factual information and incorporate those ideas into your paper. Your paper must adhere to the current APA formatting guidelines.  Doing the minimum amount of work does not guarantee a perfect score.  Please consult the rubric for an understanding of what will be graded and the point value for content and style.

Researching your Congressional Delegation will be accomplished in two steps.

First, you will analyze the political background of your congressional district for the last 25 years and your U.S. Representative.

Second, you will analyze the political background of your state for the last 25 years and one of your U.S. Senators.

You are investigating your United States Representative and Senator.  Do not use members of your state assembly.

Begin by reviewing the presentation on “Becoming an Informed Voter.” If you have a newly elected representative who has not yet received interest group ratings, use the interest group ratings of a representative from a neighboring district.  You may choose which senator to study; however, if one senator is newly elected and does not have interest group ratings, study the other one.

After reviewing the presentation, the first part will deal with your congressional district and congressman; the second part will deal with your state and senator. As explained in the presentation, interest group scores may be found at Explore: Vote Smart located in the Learn items for Module 5: Week 5.

Scores may also be found in the interest group websites (ACLU, ACU, ADA, CC/FRC) or other sites that compile voting data.

Helpful resources can be found in the Research Guide for GOVT 220, located in the “Explore Tab” in Module 5.