North Shenandoah News

Tara Durant is one of seven candidates endorsed by the American Federation for Children win a primary on June 20 for a statewide seat in Virginia. She will run for a seat to represent Senate District 27 on the Nov. 7 ballot.

"Today, the citizens of Stafford, Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania made their voices heard. I am honored to be your Republican candidate for Senate in the 27th District!" Durant wrote in a June 20 Facebook post. "Thank you to every single neighbor who kept the faith, spread the word and committed to our mission. Together, we will continue the work we’ve started, and I could not be more blessed to share this victory tonight with a phenomenal team. Now, it’s time to unite so we can tear down the Democrats’ brick wall in the Senate and send a Republican majority to Richmond in November!"

“It’s happening,” school choice activist Corey DeAngelis tweeted after the Virginia primaries were held on June 20, according to Old Dominion News. He joined the American Federation for Children in celebrating the seven out of eight total candidates endorsed by the AFC that won in the state’s primary election and will be on the November 2023 general election ballot for positions in the Virginia House of Delegates and Senate. The seven candidates included Durant as well as Emily Brewer (SD17), John Stirrup (HD21), Wren Williams (HD47), Lee Peters (HD65), Mark Earley (HD73) and Mike Dillender (HD84).

Durant is a current member of the Virginia House of Delegates, according to Ballotpedia, having been elected in 2021. She represents District 28. She will run against Democrat Joel Griffin and Independent Monica Gary in the November election.

An AFC press release celebrated the news, congratulating the winners and the growing focus of the state and residents on the issue of school choice for their families and students. “The VFC PAC invested more than $300,000 in state races to support school choice proponents during the 2023 primary,” according to the press release.

The American Federation for Children is an organization that fights for school choice rights for all families at the state and federal level. “When funding for education follows students to the school of their choice, families win,” according to their website. “We believe all parents should have a wide range of high-quality educational options to choose from, regardless of income.”

According to EdChoice.org, Virginia has varying types of options for school choice available to K-12 students. They have intradistrict school choice, allowing families to transfer within their district, and also offers a private school scholarship program. This scholarship is open to families earning less than 300% of the federal poverty line, or students of special needs. The program allocates only $25 million annually to students, an average of $2,918 per student scholarship, which equals about 23 percent of the normal per pupil state spending.

“The education establishment in Virginia has fought the ability for parents to select the best education options for their children, but parents made their wishes clear again at the ballot box this week,” AFC National Director of Government Affairs Ryan Cantrell said, according to the press release. “The victories tonight are just the first step in bringing true school choice to Virginia, and parents are well-positioned to elect a school choice majority in both chambers in November’s general election.”