WASHINGTON — Thousands of Northern Virginians will pick a new person to represent them in Congress for the first time in more than 20 years. And even though Democrat Jim Moran held the 8th District seat for 24 years, Republican Micah Edmond believes he has a shot in the race against former Lt. Gov. Don Beyer.
Libertarian Jeffrey Carson, Independent Green Gerry Blais III and Independent Gwendolyn Beck are also on the ballot.
The district is the most compact in Virginia — representing Arlington County, Alexandria, Falls Church and parts of Fairfax County.
Edmond challenges the conventional wisdom that there are too many Democratic voters for a Republican to win.
“I think we have a district that is completely different than most people really think about it,” he says. “It’s 43 percent minority, it’s considerably younger relative to other districts, and we have a very high degree of self-described moderates and independents.”
Experts still see Beyer as the favorite.
“I have the proven experience to successfully lead the 8th District after Jim Moran’s 24 years,” Beyer asserts. “Businessman, ambassador, lieutenant governor, working with Democrats and Republicans to try to get things done.”
Beyer and Edmond agree that the economy, jobs and a federal budget would be their top priorities.
“A lot of people haven’t recovered to where they were pre-the Great Recession. Some of that has to do with the federal government, Congress not being able to get a budget,” Beyer says.
“The sequester hurt a lot of Northern Virginians badly, individually and the businesses, too. So we want to get a budget, we want to get rid of the sequester, and we want to really figure out how we’re going to create the 21st century jobs for the next generation.”
Meanwhile, Edmond is “sick and tired” of Congress “kicking the can down the road.”
“My number one priority when I get in is to focus on growing the economy and creating jobs,” Edmond continues. “The best way to do that is to actually enact a stable, long-term budget” for government workers and contractors.
In an interview, Edmond describes himself as a fiscal conservative who “want[s] to control spending” and “find a way to invest in our future,” which includes putting money toward education, transportation and national defense.
The Marine Corps veteran points to his experience as a senior adviser for both the Simpson-Bowles Commission and the Congressional “Super Committee” that was supposed to reach a budget deal to avert the automatic cuts of sequestration.
Edmond claims Beyer is too focused on climate change at the expense of other issues.
“The immediate need is the economy, and the long-term and the mid-term need is the environment,” Beyer responds. “It’s not enough just to create new jobs. That’s important, but we also have to think about sea level rise, about the extinction of species and about saving our planet.”
Beyer says his experience would help him in a Republican-led Congress: “My whole adult life has been trying to work across party lines, [and] find a sensible middle ground that respects everyone’s values.”
“I think humility is a great virtue in everything in life,” Beyer concludes, “so I’m looking forward to being a freshman.”
Follow @WTOP on Twitter and WTOP on Facebook.
