Favor ‘citizen legislators’ in this year’s General Assembly elections
I remember as a child accompanying my father for an overnight trip to Richmond. My father was the local Farm Bureau president and he was joining other members of the organization to lobby members of the General Assembly on issues important to agriculture. The trip was memorable for me, not only because of the time I got to spend with my father, but also because it introduced me to my state’s government.
During this trip my father and I got to meet with our local delegate. This was the first time I had seen our delegate in his official capacity. I was accustomed to seeing him back home at local stores, events or on the side of the road during hunting season. As a child, I perceived this man as someone who lived in our community and had to go to Richmond periodically to do important things. By getting to meet this delegate at the General Assembly, my introduction to Virginia’s citizen legislature began.
Subsequently, I have had the opportunity to meet some other members of the General Assembly. By far, most of these encounters have been with the individuals outside of Richmond and outside their official capacity as legislators. Instead, I have encountered them in their capacity as citizens, whether in their workplace, on the street or at a community event. I have gotten to argue in court against delegates who are attorneys and have sold calves to a delegate who farms.
The Virginia Constitution gives us the framework for a citizen legislature. In Article
IV of the Virginia Constitution, membership in either body of the General Assembly is prohibited to employees of the commonwealth of Virginia or the United States. In addition, the legislative sessions are limited to alternating annual 30-day and 60-day sessions. These provisions ensure that members of the legislature are not full time government employees, but instead are bivocational.
The reality of a citizen legislature is evident in the many political advertisements prevalent this time of year. Candidates not only advertise how they will vote on issues, but also their occupation and their community involvement. You learn that some are farmers, lawyers, teachers, medical professionals or business owners, to name a few job descriptions. Candidates will also promote their service to the community through civil organizations, church membership or social activism.
A benefit of a citizen legislature is that members do not have to depend on staff or others to inform them of the needs of society, but members understand these needs because of their regular participation in society. In addition, a legislator can lean on her occupational experience to help formulate laws that are particular to that field. Furthermore, a legislator who is active in civic and religious causes locally is well positioned to continue those efforts statewide in the legislature.
This November, as voters in Virginia, we will each have the opportunity to select candidates to fill our local seats in the Senate and House of Delegates. The people who are elected will take on, or resume, the role of citizen legislators. As we make this choice, it is important to consider how each candidate will legislate and vote on certain issues.
It is also important that we consider each candidate as a citizen. We need to remember that, if the candidate is elected, the majority of his time will not be in the General Assembly building but at his job, his church or home. These activities will be formative of his decisions as a legislator and how he helps lead our state. They indicate his character and priorities.
Therefore, this November, we all need to be good citizens and vote, and when we vote, to vote for good citizens — who will be good legislators.
Kemper Beasley, III is commonwealth’s attorney of Buckingham, where he resides on his family farm along with his family.