ROANOKE, Va. – We are only a few weeks away from what is shaping up to be a historic election day for the Commonwealth.
10 News anchor Abbie Coleman met with both candidates for lt. gov. to probe their plans, their priorities, and their paths to history.
She sat down one-on-one with Democratic candidate Ghazala Hashmi to talk about her vision for Virginia and why she believes she’s the right person for the job.
You can watch Republican candidate John Reid’s interview here.
Read the full transcript of her interview with Hashmi below.
Thank you so much for jumping on with me.
My pleasure. Thank you.
Ghazala Hashmi
You made history as the first Muslim woman elected to the Virginia State Senate. Can you tell us a little bit about your background and what inspired you to kind of step into this political role?
Well, thank you so much, Abbie. And yes, you know, I spent almost 20 years in the college classroom. My professional background is actually as a professor of literature, and I truly loved the work that I was doing. But I started to see how so many decisions being made at the state level were impacting the lives of my students. Whether it was childcare issues, inability to find affordable housing, the rising cost of groceries, so many of my students were being impacted by what was happening outside, and not what was happening academically, and I felt like I could make a difference. I decided to run in 2019 for the State Senate seat. I’ve been proud to represent Richmond City as well as surrounding localities over the past six years, doing the critical policy work that really impacts the lives of Virginia’s families.
Ghazala Hashmi
What are the top priorities you want to focus on right now, and if you are one day elected?
So as we know, so many of Virginia’s families are being impacted by decisions that are being made in Washington by the Trump administration, by our Republican-led Congress. Top of mind for so many families are the issues around healthcare, particularly Medicaid funding, as well as education, as well as affordability of housing. Those are the areas I want to focus on right away. I’m running against somebody who wants to close down public schools, who has said that there are no impacts [regarding] the Medicaid cuts that we are beginning to see already, the closure of hospitals. That’s why I want to make sure that we’re addressing the issues that are going to impact families.
Ghazala Hashmi
Virginia is a very diverse state, in the way that you can go up to Northern Virginia, and it could almost feel like a completely different world than down here in Southwest Virginia. What are you hearing from voters in Southwest Virginia, and how do you plan to address their top concerns?
So the issues that I’m hearing are the issues that I’ve been working on for six years. You know, I have been part of the Joint Commission on Healthcare, and that is an issue that’s top of mind for residents in Southwest Virginia. The healthcare disparities that we see, the lack of access to hospitals, and clinics, and services, has always been an issue that we’ve needed to address and that we have been working on. So I’ve been working to ensure that we have systems in place, whether it’s through telehealth services, through community health workers, through mobile health clinics, to provide critical and necessary resources to address the issues of healthcare disparities. I’ve also been focused on education concerns. You know, my background is in the community college system, and working with our community colleges, ensuring that their educational programs that lead to career and technical development opportunities, or transfer courses that allow our students to engage in four-year institutions. All of those are areas that are top of mind for families and the work that I’ve been focused on.
Ghazala Hashmi
Healthcare is such a pressing issue this election season. A lot of Virginians are at risk of losing Medicaid coverage. What is your plan to make sure that families don’t fall through the cracks?
Yes, unlike my opponent, who is in full denial that Medicaid cuts are going to impact Virginia, I know that they’re going to impact Virginia. And in fact, in January of last year, as we began our session, I introduced a budget guidance that would address the issues of the cuts that we anticipated, and that we are now seeing, in Medicaid. The one thing we know we need to do, is to address the issue of the Medicaid cuts to our enhanced premium tax credits that are going to essentially harm over 300,000 Virginians who will not be able to afford their spiking monthly cost in paying for health insurance. That is something that we are working on actively through our Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee, as well as through the House budget. This is an opportunity this year as we begin to craft a two-year budget to address the gaps that we are going to see at the state level, and fill in some of those gaps, and the most critical thing that we need to do, is to ensure that our federal leaders, our Republican congressional leaders, fight for Virginia’s families. They have the opportunity to stop these devastating cuts. We need them to do that.
Ghazala Hashmi
I want to touch on abortion and reproductive rights, very key issues election. Where do you stand on access to abortion and reproductive rights, and what specific policies would you push for if you were elected?
Well, sadly, my opponent has compared abortion to slavery, and that is a devastating comparison when we’re talking about issues of critical medical care for so many individuals here in Virginia. And I have been fighting to ensure that we have access to key medical services in Virginia. You know, Virginia’s the last southern state to provide safe and legal access to abortion. I helped to draft the language that’s in the constitutional amendment that would protect reproductive healthcare, the full spectrum of reproductive health care. I also passed, two years in a row, the Right to Contraception Act, which, unfortunately, Governor Youngkin has vetoed twice. We know how critical these medical services and medical care are for hundreds of thousands of Virginians, and working to protect and ensure that we safeguard, not only the individuals that need reproductive health care, but also our practitioners, our medical professionals who provide these services. All of that is essential for us to do in Virginia, and that’s what I’m committed to doing.
Ghazala Hashmi
A lot of Virginians are feeling the squeeze from higher prices. How do you plan to address that concern, specifically for so many people here in Southwest Virginia?
Absolutely. These are critical concerns for all families. And you know, the impacts of the loss of the federal workforce is something that we’re beginning to see in Virginia. It’s not just limited to Northern Virginia, but really all across the state. And coming on the heels of those job losses are also escalating prices. This is an area that I’ve been working on for several years. The first would be housing affordability. We are working to address the rising cost of mortgages and rents. When we increase supply to meet the demand, we lower costs. When we look at innovative programs, such as the bill that I have introduced and championed, [the Faith in Housing for the Commonwealth Act], that allows our faith and nonprofit communities to build affordable housing, we bring costs down. Child care is also an issue that so many of our working families are struggling with. I’ve introduced legislation to ensure that there is affordable and accessible child care. The one thing we know is that child care is also a workforce issue. So, ensuring that our employers are working actively with our state agencies to provide and support their employees as they find affordable child care. That is a plan that ensures that we are able to protect so many of our families. And the the rising cost of goods, of course, they’re connected to global markets, but we need to support our local farmers so that we are able to deliver produce and necessary supplies into our Virginia markets, support our local economies, allow our small businesses to continue to thrive with grants that target specific areas that bring them financial stability in a very, very unstable economic period. Those are things that we can do at the state level.
Ghazala Hashmi
Parental rights, especially when it comes to transgender students and transgender student athletes, have been a very central issue this election, specifically over the past few months. Where do you stand on this topic, and how do you plan to address that if elected?
So you know, the other ticket is oftentimes using these issues to distract us from the real concerns that are happening inside of our schools. When I talk to Virginia’s parents and students, they really want us to focus on what is so critical and essential within a school setting, and that is to make sure we are ensuring that our children can read and write at the appropriate grade level, that they have those critical literacy skills, that they have those critical mathematic and scientific reasoning skills. This is what’s going to move the needle on the success and on the pathways for all of our students. And that’s what Virginia’s parents want us to focus on. And as an educator, I’m determined to improve the outcomes in schools and not let these distractions take away the necessary time and the effort that we need to bring opportunities for all of our children to thrive and to be successful. That’s what’s at stake in this election, it’s having a real education system that makes Virginia’s students competitive, not just on a national stage, but on a global stage. And that’s what the hard and necessary work is in front of us.
Ghazala Hashmi
You’ve led in the polls throughout this race. As we approach election day, that gap has narrowed a little bit. How do you plan to keep up the momentum and entice voters as we kind of turn that final corner?
Well, I’m doing what I’ve been doing for the past 18-19 months, and that is out on the campaign trail. I love talking and meeting with members of the communities, our business leaders, our faith communities, our parents, and our educators. Having those one-on-one conversations is so important. We’re keeping that momentum going. I’m traveling all across the state, and we’ll continue to do that right up until election day.
Ghazala Hashmi
Your running mate, Jay Jones, has faced criticism recently, of course, over the controversial texts that have surfaced from a few years ago. Do you still stand by your previous endorsement of him?
So you know, one thing I’ve been talking to voters all across Virginia is that, they know what’s at stake in this election, and the contrast between the folks who are running on the other side and my team is very clear. Democrats up and down the ballot are committed to fighting for Virginia’s families, especially during this most critical time when the economy is unstable, when jobs are being lost, and the voters I talk to want us to focus on these critical issues. Now, Jay has expressed deep remorse. He has apologized. He’s also asked for forgiveness. I really lean into my own faith traditions, as well as so many of the faith leaders that I’ve talked to, thinking about the opportunities to provide grace and forgiveness. That is something that is incumbent on all of us. And one thing we know, is that all of us denounce political violence. We denounce the efforts to ramp up antagonistic rhetoric. I hope my opponent agrees with me on that, and I hope that he speaks out just as forcibly when he hears his own side present messages of violence and extremism.
Ghazala Hashmi
This is a very historic election on a lot of different fronts, and for you as well. If elected, what would this mean for you on a personal level?
Well, you know, I decided to run for office in 2019 for the first time in order to challenge negative stereotypes, in order to challenge bigotry and Islamophobia. And it is an opportunity to continue to deliver the message, most especially here in the Commonwealth, that Virginia is a place that is increasingly diverse, that is home to so many different communities, so many different ethnicities and voices, and that Virginia is a place that is welcoming. I know when I talk to so many different individuals and various communities, they are delighted that Virginia’s government is reflective of the people who actually live here.
Ghazala Hashmi
Is there anything else you would like to add that I did not touch on as we round that final corner? Election day is just a few weeks away.
You’re right. Election day is just a few days away at this point, and we just want to make sure that every Virginian who has the opportunity to vote, goes out and exercises this critical civil right that they have. This is so critical, especially during this year’s elections, that we ensure that we are demonstrating what our values are and that we’re fighting on behalf of Virginia’s families, ensuring that people have safe and affordable places to live, communities in which they can thrive, and school systems that actually support every opportunity for their children.
Ghazala Hashmi
Thank you so much. I really appreciate your time this afternoon.
Thank you, Abbie.
Ghazala Hashmi