Where do the candidates for DPVA Chair stand on LGBTQ+ issues?

After a decade, Susan Swecker is stepping down as Chairperson of the Democratic Party of Virginia (DPVA). We are grateful for her service. Susan always stood with us in advancing equality while doing the hard work of party building. Three candidates have met the requirements to run for the position: Lamont Bagby, Zachary Pruckowski, and Josh Stanfield.

Members of the DPVA Central Committee will vote on the next chairperson on Saturday, March 22nd, in Richmond. For those who might not be aware, the Central Committee is made up of members of each congressional district committee, officers of the DPVA, elected Virginia Democrats to federal and statewide office, Democrats in leadership roles in the Virginia General Assembly, members of the Democratic National Committee from Virginia, and the president or chairpersons of various Democratic organizations in Virginia, including the Chairperson of LGBT+ Democrats of Virginia. The rules for the election can be found here.

The Chairperson of the Democratic Party of Virginia plays a significant role in leading and representing Democrats around the commonwealth. While the role is not legislative, we believe it is important for leaders within the Democratic Party to be on record and take a stand on issues important to our community. With this in mind, we invited each candidate to complete a questionnaire to share their position on key LGBTQ+ issues.

Below is each candidate’s response in order of submission.

You may need to scroll or swipe to view all questions and responses.

	Marriage Equality Amendment Do you support amending the Virginia Constitution to protect marriage equality for same-sex couples?	Gender-Affirming Healthcare Do you support protecting access, including public funding through Medicaid, to gender-affirming healthcare for all individuals, including age-appropriate care for minors?	Sexual Healthcare Do you support protecting access, including public funding through Medicaid and/or federal/state grants, to sexual healthcare for all individuals, including STI prevention, testing, and treatment?	Transgender Athlete Participation Do you oppose broad bans that prevent transgender athletes from competing in sports according to their gender identity?	Engagement with LGBT Caucus If elected as DPVA Chairperson, do you commit to engaging with the LGBT Caucus when issues concerning the LGBTQ+ community arise within the party or the public?
Lamont Bagby Richmond	✓ "As Chair of the VLBC, I have always fought for equality for all and marriage equality is no different."	✓ "Yes. Government should not pretend to be doctors and dictate what healthcare is appropriate."	✓ "Sexual healthcare is an essential form of care that we can't ignore simply because it makes some among us feel uncomfortable."	✓ "Kids should be able to play sports if they want to play sports and government shouldn't be in the business of being their biggest bullies."	✓ "If elected Chair, I very much look forward to partnering with the LGBT Caucus to win elections and rebuild our big tent Democratic Party."
Zachary Pruckowski Leesburg	✓ "I support the right of two loving and consenting adults to marry, regardless of their sex or gender."	✓ "I think we should follow the guidance of doctors, and there's a strong medical consensus that gender-affirming care saves lives."	✓ "Folks aren't going to stop having sex, so we need to help them do so safely. Which includes birth control, education, and STI treatment/prevention."	✓ "I oppose broad bans and think it's very situation-dependent. Priotizing inclusion while balancing fairness and safety requires case-by-case judgment."	✓ "It's critical that DPVA Chair & staff engage with our caucuses - they're important stakeholders and often experts on their community's issues."
Josh Stanfield Yorktown	✓ "I've supported marriage equality for decades - before it was accepted by Party leadership - and perceive this as both a moral and legal commitment."	✓ "All healthcare should be considered a human right, and in the richest country in the history of the world, it should be free and easy to access."	✓ "All healthcare should be considered a human right, and in the richest country in the history of the world, it should be free and easy to access."	✓ "Such bans are fundamentally opportunistic political ploys to play off of fear, emotion, and often bigotry. They're bad public policy and cause harm."	✓ "I commit to not only engage with the LGBT Caucus but to help grow and empower the Caucus while providing support for its members and community."

In addition to responding to the questions in the questionnaire, each candidate was asked to share a statement.

Senator Lamont Bagby shared, “As Senator, I have a long record of standing up for LGBT Virginians, and you can count on me doing the same as Chair. As a candidate for Chair, I’m proud of the more than 140 Central committee members standing with me, including Senators Warner and Kaine. They support me because my vision for DPVA is one that is more inclusive, supportive of our committees, and that makes critical investments in year-round organizing. Please reach out if you have questions, and I hope I can count on your support!”

Zachary Pruckowski shared, “Whether or not I’m elected, I look forward to working with you in the months ahead to strengthen the Democratic Party and promise to work to prioritize protecting your rights. Rights that’ve been hard-won in recent years and that can’t be allowed to slip away. As DPVA Chair, I’m going to work to strengthen and empower our caucuses, and solicit input from you and from all our Central members. I believe that as a leader, my job is to support you and help you succeed.”

Josh Stanfield shared, “I’ve been heavily inspired by the work of ACT UP, as described in David France’s How to Survive a Plague, and by the work of Marsha P. Johnson, yet another giant in the chronicle of activists. In 2018, despite advice from Party leaders to downplay LGBTQ issues, I brought Judy and Dennis Shepard to Staunton for an amazing and well-received event while managing a campaign for Congress in CD6. My commitment is unwavering regardless of (often unfounded and morally unacceptable) pushback.”

“If judged solely by their positions on the issues included in our questionnaire, I believe any of these candidates would serve the LGBTQ+ community well,” responded Joel McDonald, Chairperson of LGBT+ Democrats of Virginia. “We recognize that the role of DPVA Chairperson is bigger than what we included on our questionnaire, but we hope that the candidates’ responses help members of the Central Committee and the public better understand who these candidates are and what they believe.”