Candidate Profile: Mark Warner (VA Senate)

The first person in his family to graduate from college, U.S. Sen. Mark Warner spent 20 years as a technology executive and business leader in Virginia before being elected governor on a promise to move the Commonwealth forward.

As governor, he worked across the aisle to bring 130,000 new jobs to the Commonwealth. He also helped lead Virginia into the 21st century with the installation of more than 700 miles of broadband, connecting nearly 700,000 people to the internet. When he left the governor’s office in 2006, Virginia was ranked as the nation’s best state for business, best managed state, and best state in which to receive a public education.

Members of Virginia’s congressional delegation from both political parties are pressing the U.S. Department of Justice’s internal watchdogs to include two state correctional facilities in the agency’s ongoing inspections during the pandemic.

History will be made Oct. 3 when the state’s largest Historically Black College or University, or HBCU, will host a debate between incumbent Democrat Sen. Mark Warner and Republican challenger Dr. Daniel Gade.

This second debate for the candidates is co-sponsored by Norfolk State University, Visit Norfolk, the Virginia Bar Association, and WAVY-TV 10. The candidates will take on tough topics such as racial disparities, inequities in education and the criminal justice system.

Our Commonwealth’s senior U.S. Senator is reacting to President Trump’s nomination of federal Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the U.S. Supreme Court.  Democrat Mark Warner has warned the next member of the court could help decide the future of the federal law critics label “Obamacare.”  Warner predicts millions of people could have their health care ripped away in the middle of a pandemic.

Mark R. Warner is by no means new to campaigning, but the incumbent U.S. senator said this election has been an adjustment.

The Democrat is seeking a third term in the U.S. Senate but, like every candidate running for office, he has been forced to take a step back from typical door-to-door campaigning in a bid to reduce human contact amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to NSU’s press release, the candidates will debate on “racial disparities and inequities in education, healthcare, economic mobility and the criminal justice system.” NSU is the state’s largest “Historically Black College and University” (HBCU).

Mark Warner’s Senate re-election campaign began airing a new campaign ad on Thursday in the Roanoke market, “Connect,” highlighting Warner’s efforts as governor and in the U.S. Senate to improve fiber optic connectivity and high-speed internet access to Virginians in rural communities

The ad  is part of a seven-figure, eight-week statewide television buy.

The United States Supreme Court announced Friday that Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died at the age of 87 of complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer, and now Virginia lawmakers are reacting to her death.

Senator Mark Warner:

“Our nation has lost a giant. Thank you, Ruth Bader Ginsburg (RBG), for your life of fighting for our most vulnerable and championing true equality for all. History will remember you as a trailblazer and a voice for liberty and equality. #RestInPeace,” he tweeted.

Virginia Senator Mark Warner (D-Va.) cast his ballot Friday in Alexandria, as today marks the first day of early voting in the commonwealth.

Warner was greeted by a small crowd of supporters and campaign staffers, while local media captured the event.

U.S. Sens. Mark Warner (D-VA) and Sherrod Brown (D-OH) are pushing the U.S. Government Accountability Office to report on companies’ increased use of subcontracted and contingent workers for work that used to be performed by direct employees.

This leads to the creation of ‘fissured workplaces’ – environments where primary employers outsource “non-core” business functions to subcontracted firms but still maintain tight control over the outcomes of those subcontractors. This has primarily affected occupations in payroll, accounting, janitorial services, facilities maintenance, security, food preparation, among others.

Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) wants more cybersecurity for school systems after a ransomware attack on a northern Virginia school district.

The ransomware attack hit Fairfax County Public Schools, the largest school system in the Commonwealth with more than 200,000 students and 24,000 staff. The ransomware attack involved the theft of protected information.

In a letter to Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, Warner said the U.S. Department of Education should develop guidance and best practices for K-12 schools and high education institutions.

The IoT Cybersecurity Improvement Act would require the National Institute of Standards and Technology to set best practices for device security. The Office of Management and Budget would then create guidance for agencies to meet or exceed those standards.

The bill would also require the Department of Homeland Security to publish guidance on coordinated vulnerability disclosures for contractors and vendors.

The lawmakers behind this effort – Reps. Will Hurd (R-Texas) and Robin Kelly (D-Ill.), along with Sens. Mark Warner (D-Va.) and Cory Gardner (R-Colo.) – have spent more than three years trying to get this bill over the finish line.