Name: Shelly Simonds
Race: House of Delegates, 94th District
Party: Democrat
Website: Simondsfordelegate.com
Biography: Shelly Simonds is an educator and community leader. Shelly and her husband, Paul, moved to Newport News in 2000, when he was hired as a NASA engineer. They soon realized that Newport News was the perfect place to raise their two daughters, Georgia and Tessa. After her second daughter turned two, Shelly returned to the workforce as a Spanish teacher at Hilton Elementary. In 2012, Shelly was elected to the Newport News School Board. As a School Board member, Shelly channels her passion for education and teaching into securing resources for our public schools and connecting students to careers.
Why should residents elect you to the Virginia House of Delegates?
It is time for change in Richmond. We need bold leadership on education, healthcare, gun safety and protecting a woman’s right to choose. I believe that leadership starts with service. I have proudly served on the Newport News School Board since 2012, standing up for our families and securing resources for our public schools. As delegate, I will continue to fight for things like teacher pay and defending education against budget cuts. All too often, politicians in Richmond balance the budget on the backs of our students and teachers. That’s why I’m running. We need more educators in the General Assembly who know just what these cuts do to our students and our schools. In the House of Delegates, I will always put the needs of Newport News first.
What is the biggest issue facing your district, and how do you plan to address it?
One of the top concerns I hear about is the rising price of prescription drugs. People in Newport News and across Virginia are paying more and more for the medications they can’t live without, putting strain on their family budgets. I want to make sure no family ever has to face a choice between paying the bills or paying for their child’s inhaler or their father’s insulin. Luckily, we do not have to wait for Congress to take action. I have a plan to create a Drug Affordability Panel that will police the price of drugs for Virginians. Based on similar legislation that was recently implemented in Maryland, this panel will stop big pharmaceuticals from hiking up prices and ensure Virginians can afford their prescriptions without breaking the bank.
What was the most important vote taken in the Virginia General Assembly in 2019, and why?
This summer, in the wake of the senseless tragedy in Virginia Beach, the General Assembly was called into a Special Session. The session lasted all of 90 minutes and adjourned without voting on a single piece of gun safety legislation. If you show up to work and don’t do your job – you get fired. Politicians shouldn’t be immune from that. I don’t think that keeping our communities safe should not be a partisan issue and there is no excuse for this prolonged inaction. Virginians are ready for common sense gun safety laws and it’s time to put politics aside for the sake of our community
