Carroll Foy returns home to Petersburg for her gubernatorial campaign
Carroll Foy goes to Petersburg and another update on the Republican nomination process.
Carroll Foy returns home to Petersburg for her gubernatorial campaign
Democratic gubernatorial hopeful Jennifer Carroll Foy returned to her hometown of Petersburg on Saturday to rally support for her campaign. While she was in town, the mayor and vice-mayor announced their endorsement of the former state delegate as she seeks to become the first Black woman Governor in the United States.
“Petersburg has made me who I am: a fighter,” Carroll Foy said on Saturday. “Growing up here, I was raised with a lot of support from members of the community, my family, and my church. But I also knew what it was like to struggle, making hard decisions solely based on lack of resources.”
While in town, the gubernatorial hopeful visited several small businesses in the downtown-area including Boppers Malt Shop, Trapezium Brewing Company, and Karen’s House of Beauty. As each of them were recipients of CARES Act money to help them through the pandemic, Carroll Foy talked to the employees and owners about her plans to place an emphasis on helping small businesses rebuild in a post-COVID economy.
“This plan is important to me because I’ve lived the everyday struggle of economic insecurity,” she said in January when she originally announced the plan. “I grew up in Petersburg, a town that was left behind, in a community fighting every day just to get by.”
Earlier Saturday morning, Carroll Foy took her followers back to her beginnings when she filmed a Q&A while standing in front of her childhood home on Talley Ave. “When I run for Governor I will not forget where I came from,” she said before answering questions about increasing LGBQT+ inclusivity and reaching rural voters in Southwest Virginia.
Additionally, a film crew from MSNBC was following the candidate around the city throughout the day.
The Petersburg native pumped up a crowd of supporters that gathered during the afternoon at a parking lot in Old Towne while Mayor Sam Parham and Vice Mayor Annette Smith-Lee stood beside her.
“Del. Carroll Foy is a once in a lifetime candidate and local hero from our town,” Parham said in his endorsement announcement. “We need a fearless leader who knows what it’s like to advocate for everyday people as Governor of Virginia and I could not be prouder to endorse her candidacy.”
Vice Mayor Annette Smith-Lee echoed the same sentiment. “I am enthusiastically supporting Jennifer because she has constantly shown up for her community,” the Vice Mayor said. “She knows what it’s like to face these barriers and tackle them head-on.” Smith-Lee continued to say that she is looking forward to working with the Petersburg native if she becomes Governor.
The candidate reciprocated the notion of working with leaders to help the people of Petersburg in the future. “I am honored to have the support of my hometown’s leaders and look forward to working with Mayor Parham and Vice Mayor Smith-Lee on fighting for working families and ensuring people have a fighting chance to succeed.”
Carroll Foy is seeking the Democratic nomination in a field that includes another Petersburg native in state Senator Jennifer McClellan (D-Richmond), former Governor Terry McAuliffe, Del. Lee Carter (Manassas), and Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax.
A Message About the Upcoming State Central Committee Meeting
The following letter was distributed to Republican State Central Committee members yesterday by Kristi Way, the first Vice-Chair of RPV.
** In consideration of Chairman Anderson’s notice to reconvene the currently recessed January 23 meeting of the State Central Committee at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, February 23, the meeting called for 1:00 p.m. today will not be held.
We have been working since the conclusion of the January 23 meeting to resolve the current impasse. That is why, in issuing our Call one week ago, we offered to support a Canvass as a compromise.
Although a State Central Committee meeting will not be held today, we remain steadfast in our support of a Canvass. We intend to advance that compromise when we reconvene Tuesday.
A Canvass fulfills the requirements several State Central Committee members who voted against a Primary in our previous meetings publicly stated were necessary for their support. Specifically, a Canvass allows for ranked choice voting, so our nominee for Governor would earn the support of a majority of Republican voters participating. And unlike a Convention, a Canvass does not limit the number of Republicans who may participate in the process.
Essential to resolving the current impasse, it is not necessary to amend the Party Plan to conduct a Canvass. The State Central Committee could select that method now by majority vote. Finally, a Canvass does not require Republicans to pre-register to participate, nor would any of our unit committees have to conduct Mass Meetings in the midst of a pandemic to elect delegates to a Convention.
At our previous meetings, several State Central Committee members who voted against a Primary indicated they would not support an in-person Convention as the method of nomination. Canvasses, which have been successfully conducted to select nominees for Congress in the 10th District, for many House of Delegates and Senate of Virginia districts, and for local and constitutional offices in localities, are a proven party-run method of nominating candidates who win general elections. As evidenced by canvasses held recently in the 38th Senatorial District, and the 2nd and 90th House of Delegates Districts, a Canvass can be conducted in a manner that does not invite the intervention of the Governor.
While a Primary has been and will remain our “first choice” as a method of nomination, we have committed ourselves to supporting a Canvass to resolve the current impasse. Our candidates and Republican voters deserve certainty in the nominating process. By selecting a Canvass, State Central can deliver that certainty without further delay.
We hope more State Central Committee members will support this compromise. We urge all of our colleagues to join us in resolving this impasse and uniting our party by selecting a Canvass to choose our statewide nominees for the November 2 General Election.