Debra Rodman
Member of the Virginia House of Delegates
from the 73rd district
In office
January 10, 2018 – January 8, 2020
Preceded byJohn O'Bannon
Succeeded byRodney Willett
Personal details
Born1972 (age 51–52)[1]
Tallahassee, Florida[1]
Political partyDemocratic[1]
SpouseDarryl Lowery [1]
Children2[1]
ResidenceHenrico, Virginia[2]
Alma materUniversity of Miami
University of Florida[1]
ProfessionAnthropologist and professor[2]
CommitteesAgriculture Chesapeake and Natural Resources; Education; Health, Welfare and Institutions[1]
Websitewww.debrarodman.com

Debra H. Rodman (born 1972) is a former member of the Virginia House of Delegates. She was first elected in 2017, and represented the 73rd district comprising parts of Henrico County. Rodman is a member of the Democratic Party.

Personal life and career

Debra Rodman was raised in Coral Gables, Florida.[2] Rodman is an associate professor at Randolph-Macon College, teaching anthropology and women's studies.[2] She travels to Guatemala yearly, where she researches the effects of migration on that country. Rodman also serves as an expert witness for asylum seekers.[2][3]

Political career

In 2017, Rodman ran for the Virginia House of Delegates for the 73rd district, then held by Republican incumbent John O'Bannon. Rodman defeated three other candidates in a caucus on April 29, 2017 to win the Democratic nomination.[4] In the general election, Rodman defeated O'Bannon by a 3% margin.[5] She raised $373,000 over the course of the campaign, outraised by O'Bannon by nearly $200,000.[6] In 2019, Rodman challenged incumbent Sen. Siobhan Dunnavant for the Senate of Virginia's 12th District seat.[7][8] Rodman narrowly lost the election to Dunnavant on November 5, 2019.[9]

Electoral history

Date Election Candidate Party Votes %
Virginia Senate, 12th district
Nov 5, 2019[10] General Siobhan Dunnavant Republican 39,700 50.76
Debra Rodman Democratic 38,364 49.05
Date Election Candidate Party Votes %
Virginia House of Delegates, 73rd district
Nov 7, 2017[11] General Debra Rodman Democratic 14,697 51.48
John O'Bannon Republican 13,803 48.35

Legislative issues

Rodman ran on and helped pass Medicaid Expansion, which gives health care access to over 400,000 Virginians.[12] She also refuses to take money from Dominion Power or Appalachian Energy.[13]

In the 2019 legislative session, Rodman was the chief sponsor for bills to expand LGBTQ equality, voting rights, and increase the tipped minimum wage.[14]

Rodman was on the Education Committee, Health, Welfare and Institutions Committee, and Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources Committee.[15]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Bio for Debra H. Rodman". Virginia House of Delegates. Retrieved 2018-05-22.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Wilson, Patrick (December 30, 2017). "Randolph-Macon associate professor among wave of Democrats who flipped Republican seats in Va. House". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Retrieved May 22, 2018.
  3. ↑ Kruszewski, Jackie (January 22, 2018). "Settling in: Behind the scenes with two rookie Henrico legislators as they adjust to life in the Virginia General Assembly". Henrico Citizen. Retrieved May 22, 2018.
  4. ↑ Martz, Michael (April 29, 2017). "Democrats nominate Debra H. Rodman to face Delegate O'Bannon". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Retrieved May 22, 2018.
  5. ↑ Lappas, Tom (November 7, 2017). "Blue crush: Democrats celebrate key Henrico wins". Henrico Citizen. Retrieved May 22, 2018.
  6. ↑ "House of Delegates District 73, 2017 Election". Virginia Public Access Project. Retrieved July 14, 2019.
  7. ↑ Wilson, Patrick (March 11, 2019). "Del. Debra Rodman joins Democratic primary for Dunnavant's state Senate seat". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Retrieved July 14, 2019.
  8. ↑ Wilson, Patrick (June 11, 2019). "Democrats choose Del. Debra Rodman to take on Sen. Siobhan Dunnavant". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Retrieved July 14, 2019.
  9. ↑ Freeman Jr., Vernon (November 5, 2019). "Republican Siobhan Dunnavant wins tight race for State Senate District 12". WTVR. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  10. ↑ "State Senate District 12". www.vpap.org. Retrieved 2019-11-09.
  11. ↑ "Elections: House of Delegates District 73". www.vpap.org. Retrieved 2019-07-15.
  12. ↑ Moomaw, Graham (March 30, 2018). "For Va. House Democratic freshmen, Medicaid expansion vote is payoff to 2017 campaigns". Retrieved July 15, 2019.
  13. ↑ Zullo, Robert (November 9, 2017). "Thirteen candidates who refuse Dominion money win seats in the General Assembly". Retrieved July 15, 2019.
  14. ↑ "2019 Session: Delegate Debra Rodman". Virginia's Legislative Information System. Retrieved July 15, 2019.
  15. ↑ "2019 Session: Delegate Debra Rodman". Virginia's Legislative Information System. Retrieved July 15, 2019.
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