Debra H. Rodman (born 1972) is a former member of the

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the East Coast of the United States, Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography an ...

House of Delegates. She was first elected in 2017, and represented the 73rd district comprising parts of

Henrico County Henrico County , officially the County of Henrico, is located in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 334,389 making it the fifth-most populous county in Virginia. Henrico County is inc ...

. Rodman is a member of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

Personal life and career

Debra Rodman was raised in

Coral Gables, Florida Coral Gables, officially City of Coral Gables, is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida. The city is located southwest of Downtown Miami. As of the 2020 U.S. census, it had a population of 49,248. Coral Gables is known globally as home to the ...

. Rodman is an associate professor at Randolph-Macon College, teaching anthropology and women's studies. She travels to Guatemala yearly, where she researches the effects of migration on that country. Rodman also serves as an expert witness for asylum seekers.

Political career

In 2017, Rodman ran for the Virginia House of Delegates for the 73rd district, then held by Republican incumbent John O'Bannon. Rodman defeated three other candidates in a caucus on April 29, 2017 to win the Democratic nomination. In the general election, Rodman defeated O'Bannon by a 3% margin. She raised $373,000 over the course of the campaign, outraised by O'Bannon by nearly $200,000. In 2019, Rodman challenged incumbent Sen.

Siobhan Dunnavant Siobhan Stolle Dunnavant is an American physician and politician serving as a member of the Senate of Virginia. She is the sister of former Delegate Chris Stolle, Virginia Beach Sheriff Ken Stolle, and Virginia Beach Commonwealth Attorney Col ...

for the

Senate of Virginia The Senate of Virginia is the upper house of the Virginia General Assembly. The Senate is composed of 40 senators representing an equal number of single-member constituent districts. The Senate is presided over by the lieutenant governor of Vir ...

's 12th District seat. Rodman narrowly lost the election to Dunnavant on November 5, 2019.

Electoral history

Legislative issues

Rodman ran on and helped pass Medicaid Expansion, which gives health care access to over 400,000 Virginians. She also refuses to take money from Dominion Power or Appalachian Energy. In the 2019 legislative session, Rodman was the chief sponsor for bills to expand LGBTQ equality, voting rights, and increase the tipped minimum wage. Rodman was on the Education Committee, Health, Welfare and Institutions Committee, and Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources Committee.

References

External links

Debra Rodman
at the Virginia Public Access

Project A project is any undertaking, carried out individually or collaboratively and possibly involving research or design, that is carefully planned to achieve a particular goal. An alternative view sees a project managerially as a sequence of even ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rodman, Debra 1972 births Living people People from Henrico County, Virginia Democratic Party members of the Virginia House of Delegates Women state legislators in Virginia 21st-century American legislators Randolph–Macon College faculty University of Miami alumni University of Florida alumni 21st-century American women politicians American women academics