CHESAPEAKE, Va. — Virginia's 2023 general elections happen on November 7, and all 140 seats in the state's General Assembly are up for grabs.
This is also Virginia’s first election since legislative district maps were redrawn using 2020 census data — so most voters will be in a new district for state Senate and House of Delegates since the last election.
At the heart of Virginia's 90th House District sits Chesapeake, where Republican incumbent Jay Leftwich is running against Democratic challenger Jeremy Rodden.
Leftwich, an attorney and former Chesapeake School board member, became a House delegate in 2014 and has run unopposed multiple times in the Republican leaning district. Rodden says he didn't want to see that happen, again.
"I did not like the idea of letting the incumbent run unopposed. I think that is fundamentally un-Democratic,” he said.
Rodden, a teacher and parent, says his top concern is education. He wants to boost state funding for public schools, citing a report saying the state’s education system is underfunded when compared to national and regional averages.
Leftwich did not respond to 13News Now's requests for an interview, but his website lists crime, school safety, workforce development and education among his legislative priorities.
VOTER GUIDE: Virginia's 2023 elections are coming up. Here's a look at races, candidates, voter registration info and more.
Abortion is expected to be a hot topic for the next General Assembly session, as Virginia remains the only southern state not to issue some form of ban following the Supreme Court's decision to end protections in Roe v. Wade.
Leftwich is on record supporting Governor Glenn Youngkin's call for a 15-week ban with restrictions. Rodden, citing his family's personal health experiences, says he's fundamentally against banning abortion.
"I believe the attempts to create black and white legislation to govern medical decision making is inherently flawed and problematic. It will create situations where people are harmed because of that legislation,” he said.
Rodden said his wife experienced late miscarriages, where medical intervention was necessary.
As the parent of a transgender child, Rodden says he's also against the Governor's model policies, requiring students to use their assigned sex for bathrooms and school activities.
If elected, Rodden said he would immediately work to pass a bill to address language in Virginia’s law to protect same-sex marriage.
His next bill would support a bill introduced in the Senate for medical aid in dying.
"I believe there is a dignity in dying for people who have terminal illness and being able to make that decision for yourself, I think, is necessary,” he said.
Rodden said his experience running for the city's school board unsuccessfully last year introduced him to voters who sought new ideas for the district.
"We've gotten too far away from the understanding that an elected official represents their entire district, not just the people that voted for them, not just one party or another, and I think that's what the people of southern Chesapeake really want,” he said,
Voters can find information about their district and the voter makeup and history there through the Virginia Public Access Project.