Chap Petersen
Democrat
News Editor Rachael Dickson

Democrat Chap Petersen is running against Senator Jeannemarie Devolites Davis (R) in the 34th district.

Petersen is well-known in Fairfax for his past service as a councilman and state delegate, where he was known for his ideas on roads, education, public safety and balancing budgets. He represented the area in the house for two terms before waging an unsuccessful bid for the party’s lieutenant gubernatorial nomination in 2005.

“My fundamental concern is that this state lacks a plan for the next generation in many key areas,” Petersen said in an August Broadside article. “For example, we need to ensure adequate opportunities in both primary and higher education for our students. That means strict standards for the student loan industry so that our Virginia students are not subject to above-market interest rates. You cannot have success without access. We also need a transportation vision that is not just tax and pave but actually recognizes the urban reality of Fairfax County and provides transit alternatives.”

Petersen has laid out many of his issues in his Virginia 2.0 platform, which has the goal of making Fairfax County and Virginia a leader in energy efficiency, environmental protection and sustainable living. Virginia 2.0 concentrates on issues of traffic congestion, carbon emissions, loss of open space, dependence on fossil fuels, and how to use technology to save money.

Despite Petersen’s Democratic status, he has some ideas which tend towards conservative, particularly when it comes to illegal immigration. Petersen said it is most important to go after employers who hire illegal immigrants. He said he would support pulling business licenses against businesses if they knowingly hired illegal immigrants.

On gun control, Petersen has voted in the past for laws that allow exceptions for conceal- carry permit holders who arrive to pick up a child from school, saying that his vote there was to ensure that inadvertent possession of a firearm on school property did not lead to a lifelong felony conviction. He has also filed legislation in 2003 which would have banned domestic abusers under a restraining order from carrying firearms.

His opponent Devolites-Davis’s decision to run advertisements on network Washington area TV in recent weeks have forced Petersen to follow suit, making this the most expensive race in the state. The Washington Post praised both Devolites-Davis and Petersen in a recent article, but ultimately endorsed Devolites-Davis. Voters in the 34th will have a tough decision next month, but our choice here is Petersen,” The October 24 Fairfax Times said. “A Democrat-controlled Senate would give Northern Virginia lawmakers significantly more clout in Richmond and increase our chances of getting much-needed funds for transportation and education.”