The Virginia Public Access Project released a video Wednesday comparing the demographic makeup of the Virginia General Assembly to the population of the state its members represent.
Click the thumbnail to watch the video.
VPAP, a nonpartisan, non profit group that takes on projects to "improve public understanding of money's role in Virginia politics," among other initiatives, completed the comparison based on the most recent U.S. Census data.
It looked at how the assembly stacked up "on characteristics such as education attainment, gender, military service, and ethnicity," among others.
The Virginia General Assembly has 140 members; the state has some 8 milion citizens.
"The video seeks to increase public understanding of Virginia's part-time citizen legislature," the organization writes.
According to the U.S. Census data used by the project, Fairfax City's population is younger and more likely to have been born in other countries than the General Assembly as a whole.
Other notable differences: The state legislature has more military veterans and representatives with four-year degrees than Fairfax City; Fairfax City is home to about three times as many women as the population that serves in the General Assembly.
- Four year college degree: Fairfax - 29.4 percent, Assembly - 88 percent
- Born outside the U.S.: Fairfax - 25.4 percent, Assembly - 3 percent
- 65 years or older: Fairfax - 13.7 percent, Assembly - 25 percent
- Military veterans: Fairfax - 11.2 percent, Assembly - 28 percent
- White, not Hispanic: Fairfax - 61.4 percent, Assembly - 85 percent
- Female: Fairfax - 50.7 percent, Assembly - 18 percent
Could the General Assembly makeup better represent Fairfax City and Virginia? How? Tell us in the comments.
I know exactly what you are trying to get out of this very loaded question. Whitney Roades, If you want more women in the Virginia General Assembly, just run yourself. Quit ginning up division and controversy. Is there something specifically wrong with the men that represent Fairfax? Do you have a problem with men? You know what, I'm a woman and I've lived in Fairfax my whole life (Fairfax City until I was 11 and just outside the city limits until now)...and I'm a staunch conservative. Do you think I should run for the Virginia General Assembly?