Springfield native Michael Golden has announced his plans to pursue the Republican nomination to fill the 41st District seat in the Virginia House of Delegates.
"I really felt like we weren't getting the representation, in my opinion, that this community deserves," said Golden, a graduate of Thomas Jefferson High School. "I was committed to giving people in this community a common-sense conservative alternative."
Golden will run as the Republican candidate for the seat which was held for more than 30 years by Del. James Dillard (R-41), who announced in early March his intentions to retire.
Golden challenged Dillard for the 41st District seat in the 2003 election, as an independent, and he said his desire to run was sparked by the circumstances surrounding the budget battles of the 2004 General Assembly.
"I felt like Jim had gone so far, with his entire policy framework, from what represented this community, that's what motivated me to run," said Golden.
Combating government waste is at the heart of his campaign, Golden said, citing the 2002 Wilder Commission that identified $1.25 in cuts to the annual budget aimed at streamlining the state government.
"When you break it down and see what the government has done since then, they haven't done a lot," he said.
How the General Assembly tackles government waste would have an effect on what he perceives as the major issues to Northern Virginia residents — transportation and education.
"We have high quality schools, but I think there's an issue of the efficiency of the money being utilized. On the state level, you can encourage activities that will ensure your state funding is producing real student improvement."
Golden supports the "lock box" approach to the transportation trust fund, which was a point of bipartisan contention during the recently completed General Assembly session.
"If you say to people, we're going to saddle you with a certain tax, people will support you if they know it will be used for roads," Golden said. "Then you turn around and say 'We're going to use it for another program.' In Northern Virginia, we have the third-worst congestion in the nation, yet we don't get our fair share. I think we need to implement solutions where we get the most congestion relief for our money."
A graduate of Keene Mill Elementary, Lake Braddock Middle and Thomas Jefferson High, Golden attended University of Virginia and Georgetown Law School. He currently lives in Springfield with his wife Jennie and their daughter. He works as an appellate attorney for Latham & Watkins.
"I've been around here for a long time, so I have a certain interest in this community, which is why I've stuck around. I like Northern Virginia," said Golden.
Golden has an fund-raiser planned for Thursday, March 31, at the Burke Fire House with former U.S. Rep. Bob McEwen (R-Ohio.)
The other candidate who has declared his intentions to run for the 41st District seat is Democrat David Marsden, a former campaign manager to Dillard.
According to the Virginia Public Access Project, Golden had raised $22,400 in support as of December 2004. He has received endorsements from the Virginia Conservative Action Political Action Committee, as well as Sens. Jay O'Brien (R-39) and Ken Cuccinelli (R-37).