E. Wayne Powell of Richmond has been officially declared the Democratic nominee in Virginia’s 7th Congressional District, which includes Orange County.
Abbi Easter, the 7th Distrct chair, was notified April 11 by David Hunsicker of Lake of the Woods that “I am officially releasing my delegate candidates … and will no longer be a candidate…”
As a result, the assembled caucus scheduled for Saturday, April 14, in Orange and the 7th District Democratic Convention scheduled for Saturday, April 28, in Henrico County have been cancelled.
Mr. Powell will oppose Eric Ivan Cantor in the November general election.
Powell supports full funding for Medicare and Social Security. He would support ending tax breaks for the top 1 percent of wage earners and ending oil subsidies. The ending of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq as soon as possible should be a top national priority, he said. He said he supports health-care reform and immigration reform.
“In my view … fixing Washington would be in large part accomplished by defeating Eric Cantor,” Mr. Powell said. He said Cantor is someone “who embodies much of what is wrong with the political system as it operates in our country today.”
A native of Richmond, Powell served 30 years as an active-duty and Reserve Army officer in intelligence.
He has spent 31 years as a trial attorney, since 1999 as president of Powell & Parrish, a Midlothian-based law firm. During the 1980s, Powell was an assistant attorney general and deputy commissioner of the Virginia Worker’s Compensation Commission.
Mr. Hunsicker confirmed on his Facebook page that he had dropped out of the race. “I have seen the delegate numbers from the counties, and it would seem that only a series of both unusual and lucky events could now allow my candidacy to move forward. So that the various chairs and committees don’t have to hold caucuses and a convention with little value, I wish to suspend my campaign for the Democratic nomination for Congress from Virginia’s 7th Congressional District. I am a Democrat first and a candidate second. Mr. Powell, I wish you well in your efforts to prevail against Eric Cantor. ”
Eric Cantor, the House majority leader, is largely responsible for the ineffectiveness of the 112th Congress by undermining the spirit of co-operation and compromise so necessary to the strength of a Democracy. Cantor’s slavish loyalty to special interests and his own raw ambition have effectively left Orange County without representation.
Henry Lee Carter, chair of the Orange County Democratic Committee, confirmed the cancellation of the Orange County caucus, saying, “To those who agreed to serve as Orange County delegates, we appreciate your willingness to serve and give up two Saturdays to accomplish this task.”
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