Jennifer Naperala is a candidate for Chesapeake Commissioner of the Revenue and is running as a Democrat. Her name will appear on the November 4, 2025 General Election ballot. Naperala is running against the incumbent, Victoria L. Proffitt, the Republican candidate.
The first day to vote early at your local voter registration office or satellite voting location for the Nov. 4 General Election is Sept. 19. Find your local office at this link. On Election Day, polls are open in Virginia from 6 a.m. until 7 p.m. Click here to see who is on your ballot.
10 On Your Side reached out to all of the candidates running in this race, with a request for a bio and a list of questions to answer. The bio is unedited; this is what the candidate submitted. If you do not see the candidate listed with a profile, we did not receive one.
Name: Jennifer Naperala
Age: 56
Website: https://www.jennifernap.com/
Party: Democratic
Biography
I was born in Washington, DC to a working-class family of sheet-metal workers and firefighters. Growing up in a single-parent home gave me a strong understanding of the value of hard work, direct communication, and collaboration. I earned my Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Maryland at College Park. While there, I held down two jobs: I waited tables in the evening, and I worked as a secretary for the National Institutes of Health’s Radiation Oncology Clinic weekday afternoons. Chesapeake welcomed me and my family in the mid-1990’s. I went on to earn my Master of Science in Education at Old Dominion University and was hired to teach English for Chesapeake Public Schools in 2000. Despite the successes I’ve enjoyed from my various efforts, the best thing I’ve done is raise amazing people: Avery, Aaron, and Alison. All three are products of Chesapeake Public Schools and graduates of Hickory High School, where I teach. Today, Avery is a graduate of Yale School of Public Health, living & working in Boston as an environmental health scientist. Aaron is a graduate of the ODU School of Nursing working at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital on the cardiac intensive care unit. Ali is working on a degree in Communications at James Madison University. Despite working full-time, I currently work actively with several community organizations toward the shared goal of improving opportunities for everyone in Chesapeake. I love my work for Chesapeake Public Schools, where I advocate for both students and staff. In all areas of my life, I’ve found success by meeting people where they are and using that starting point as the foundation for a productive relationship. I anticipate that trait will continue to serve me and Chesapeake well, as I collaborate to improve our city in vital, citizen-centered ways.
Why are you running for office?
I’m running to serve as Commissioner of the Revenue because the office has a tremendous amount of untapped potential to serve our taxpayers and small business owners.
If you are elected, what will be your top priority in office?
Protecting and promoting the financial interests of all Chesapeake stakeholders is an essential component of the Commissioner’s obligations, and that commitment will be my top priority throughout any term I’m elected to serve. However, if I’m elected, I also intend to immediately begin the work of restoring public trust in the Commissioner’s Office. Chesapeake’s taxpayers have been forced to accept frustrating, inefficient, and sometimes outright negligent service from the Commissioner’s Office. By reviewing staffing, learning departmental strengths and weaknesses, and establishing reasonable expectations of the office’s various branches, I will be able to promote strong and responsible business practices and eliminate careless oversight – lapses in management that currently cost the Commissioner’s Office (and by extension, us – the taxpayers) money and reduce our satisfaction with the Office’s services. That reality should be unacceptable to all of us and absolutely will be to me as Commissioner. In order to promote accountability and increase transparency, the office will establish dedicated social media sites for folks to see how and where their money is – and isn’t – being spent. Increasing efficiency will allow the office to increase its presence in the community. Rather than simply existing as an office of obligation, the Commissioner’s Office will be positioned to offer opportunities: community workshops modeled after the Commissioner’s Offices in nearby localities and town halls to hear citizen ideas and concerns.
What is the top challenge facing your office and how will you address it?
The top challenge facing the Commissioner’s Office is the uncertainty of federal and state funding coupled with the knowledge that reduced funding will compromise the well-being of city government, taxpayers, and small business owners alike. I will address the challenge by putting our taxpayers’ and small business owners’ security first. To that end, I will explore avenues to counter losses now, rather than waiting until we are experiencing their painful effects firsthand. For example, a small business owner can relocate from Chesapeake to Virginia Beach and immediately enjoy lower licensing fees. Therefore, we need to provide our small business owners incentive to remain in Chesapeake. Exploring the possibilities of matching Virginia Beach’s licensing fees is an obvious place to start. I will further protect Chesapeake from harder times by making our financial obligations less immediately painful. Rather than expecting taxpayers to pay their personal property taxes within a 4 – 6 week window upon receiving their bill, I look forward to working with the city treasurer to establish quarterly personal property tax payments. In the same way that local government serves the people, I see the commonwealth government carrying a responsibility to serve localities. I have every intention of reaching out to delegates with proposals for bills that will provide financial relief to all of us who call Chesapeake home.
