Democratic Party of Virginia

Meet the Candidates: John Bell

John Bell is a retired member of the United States Air Force. He served almost 26 years before retiring in 2007 as a Major. During his Air Force career, John served as a Finance Officer all over the world, including tours in Southwest Asia in support of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. John now leads a team of financial professionals in the private sector and assists government clients to identify inefficiencies and implement cost-saving solutions. He also is a volunteer tennis coach at Freedom High School.

The 87th District encompasses parts of Loudon and Prince William counties.

Meet the Candidates: Dr. Gary Miller

Dr. Gary Miller has spent his life serving the people of Danville as a doctor, small business owner, and public servant. He has practiced medicine in Danville for 25 years as a cardiologist and founded Cardiology Consultants of Danville. Dr. Miller previously served on the Virginia Board of Medicine and served as a delegate to the Medical Society of Virginia. He was appointed to the Danville City Council in 2008. He still holds that position as well as the position of Vice-Mayor of Danville.

The 14th District encompasses Danville and parts of Pittsylvania and Henry counties.

Meet the Candidates: Kathleen Murphy

Kathleen Murphy is a strategic consultant who has long been active in Democratic politics. She served as senior adviser for international trade issues at the Department of Commerce and handled Congressional affairs at USAID during the Clinton administration. Previously, she worked for Rep. Charlie Wilson (D-TX) where she handled defense and foreign operations appropriations. She helped found Salute Our Services, an organization to connect the families of deployed service members, and Kids Serve Too, an organization to honor and support children of military families. Kathleen is a member of Fairfax County’s Human Services Council, the McLean Community Foundation, the Fairfax County Health Care Task Force and serves on the fundraising board of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

The 34th District encompasses parts of Fairfax and Loudon counties.

Meet the Candidates: Monty Mason

Monty Mason has a long history of civic and business involvement. His experience in business includes working for nearly 25 years in the real estate and insurance industries. He currently serves as a Senior Director at Visa, Inc., where he focuses on fraud prevention and reducing risk for banks and consumers. Monty currently serves as chairman of the Williamsburg Economic Development Authority, on the board of the Greater Williamsburg Chamber and Tourism Alliance, on the Historic Triangle Collaborative Economic Diversity Task Force, and on the development committee of Child Development Resources.

The 93rd District encompasses parts of Newport News, Williamsburg, James City, and York County.

Message from Mame Reiley on Women’s History Month

Dear fellow Democrats,

Sometimes in life you have to just sit there. Sit there and not move and the course of history can be changed. By staying seated, Rosa Parks stood up for justice and equality, and in so doing, helped launch the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Her simple but firm action, along with those who joined in the boycott, helped awaken a nation’s conscience and emboldened ordinary people everywhere - if she can, if they can, so can we. It is fitting that Rosa Parks’ statue was unveiled and dedicated during Women’s History Month, and now that her likeness has become part of the National Statuary Hall Collection, thousands of students, teachers, and others who visit the U.S. Capitol each year will be reminded of this woman’s courage and quiet greatness.