Politics & Government

'Bedrock Conservative' Pits Simple Campaign Against Petersen

Culipher runs on a platform that calls for tax cuts, shorter commute.

At a Glance

  • Born: Sarasota, Fla.; moved to Maryland at age 2
  • Education: Bachelor's degree from John Hopkins; law degree from Tulane University
  • Family: Married, three children
  • Occupation: Full-time mom; lawyer; former adjunct law professor at American University
  • Public office: None

When Gerarda Culipher moved to Oakton three years ago, she and her husband wanted the strong school system for her expanding family.

But with that move came a jammed commute on the Orange Line — or Interstate 66 or Route 123 or other countless routes in Northern Virginia — as she practiced law and served as adjunct professor at American University in Washington, D.C., up until the birth of her third child, who is now 9 months old.

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Now as the Republican state Senate candidate for the 34th District, she is running on the platform, "Cut your taxes, cut your commute, for your family."

"My campaign strategy, my platform, is absolutely just instinctual," the 35-year-old said. "It's experiential. I just took my experience and what I had heard on the Metro and from other working moms and dads seriously."

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As a self-described bedrock conservative — endorsed by Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli (R) — Culipher said she believes it is possible to lower taxes and fix transportation issues in Northern Virginia. Keeping taxes low entices new taxpayers, whether corporate or individual, she said.

"So instead of burdening with a tax increase on the folks who are here, you create a favorable tax environment to bring more people in and the revenues do go up," she said. "It's an age-old story with Northern Virginia that our tax dollar goes to a destination, and the issue is how can we best advocate for Northern Virginia to get that dollar back. To say you need to increase the pie is one position. But another position might rightly be that maybe the pie is fine, but we just need to make sure we have an appropriate portion of that pie."

Looking back on her journey to candidacy, Culipher said she probably should have seen it as an eventual destination, as she was always involved in politics. In high school, she started a Republican club. She was a member of the College Republican at Johns Hopkins University. In law school, she participated in the Federalist Society.

Beyond extracurricular activities while in school, Culipher has volunteered for numerous campaigns on the local, state and national level, including the successful Bob McDonnell campaign in 2008.

But did she dream of being a politician? "Heck no!" she said.

After the McDonnell race, Culipher saw a need in Northern Virginia politics: women.

"I just felt that in Northern Virginia specifically, from my own personal experience, there were just so many well-educated, impressive, accomplished women professionals, and yet we weren't seeing enough of that fresh, important voice in the chamber," she said. "The problem was, nobody was asking them to run. So, I started to ask."

She started the Northern Virginia Women's Caucus, which meets quarterly. At the meetings, she gathers about 15 or 20 women for a presentation on districts with a need for conservative voices.

"Why not make those conservative voices women?" she said.

After a while, she realized she could no longer ask the women to make the sacrifices that comes with a campaign if she didn't do the same. She recalled a conversation with Del. Barbara Comstock (R-34th District) in which Comstock looked at her straight in the eye and said, "Really, Gerarda. When are you going to run?"

"After that, I just knew I had to run for office," she said.

She decided on running for the state Senate seat because all nine of the ones in Northern Virginia are held by Democrats.

"When you look at Northern Virginia, the need for my particular philosophy is very keenly in the state Senate," she said. "It was very clear to me that that's where there was a real need for a diversity of voices."

Looking forward, Culipher faces an uphill battle against incumbent Sen. Chap Petersen (D). On June 30, the last financial reporting date for candidates, she had raised about $37,000 compared to his more than $565,000.

But to Culipher, it's about the 34th District trusting her ideas.

"My opponent and I are as different as they come politically," she said. "I've got pretty clean, simple, conservative ideas about state government. Is that a good fit for the newly designed 34th? We'll find out on Election Day."


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