Clean Government & Ethics
Here’s the Problem
Every elected official faces a clear question and a choice: Who do you fight for?
In Richmond, the answer is far too often “special interests.” Government officials who fight for special interests suppress the voices of everyday Virginans. When we give the special interests a seat at the table, we kick the people out of the room.
Too many politicians in Richmond put special interests first — we see this time and time again with politicians going out of their way for Dominion Energy at the expense of working families. But it’s not just Dominion. We have seen cable companies kill measures to expand rural broadband and corporations spend millions of dollars to influence the political process.
My Plans as Governor
I will fight corruption in politics and elevate the voice of the people. For far too long, special interests like Dominion have dominated to buy elections and tune out the voices of everyday Virginia voters. My plan focuses on campaign finance reform and lobbying restrictions in order to strengthen democracy.
In addition, my plan will:
- Ban political contributions from corporations. Under a Carroll Foy administration, Virginia will follow federal leadership and prohibit corporate donations.
- Limit contributions by individuals, PACs, and party committees to candidate committees in Virginia to the federal limit, currently $2,800 per election.
- Ban lobbyists, their immediate family members, and their employers from making political contributions to candidates.
- Restrict legislators or state elected officials from lobbying for five years after leaving office.
- Require candidates and officeholders to disclose the names and clients of any lobbyist who works on their political campaigns, paid or unpaid, or on transition teams for new officeholders.
My Record & Experience
I have worked diligently to hear directly from my constituents and community leaders through town halls, roundtable discussions, and social media. In responding to their needs, I’ve passed legislation to clean up coal ash, establish a public defenders’ office in my district, and help small business owners advance their entrepreneurial endeavors.
As a Delegate, I:
- Never accepted money from Dominion Energy — and I won’t take their money now.
- Co-sponsored legislation prohibiting public utilities from making non-essential expenditures like lobbying and campaign contributions.
- Co-sponsored legislation prohibiting any candidate from soliciting or accepting a contribution from any public service corporation.
- Supported an effort to create a public financing system for state elections.