Michelle4Va

Michelle Maldonado for Delegate

I STAND WITH YOU.

Family, Community, and Commitment

Michelle’s tireless advocacy for constituents defines her time in Richmond. Her focused, detailed efforts on legislative committees drives progress on core priorities as she works in parallel to continually improve access to critical resources.

Informed positions—across all issues—make Michelle a fierce champion for the communities she represents. Her knowledge and conviction are powerful tools, both during legislative debate and throughout the year.

Issues

Affordable Housing

Affordable housing for all Virginians

Affordable housing is a serious problem across Virginia. Localities across the Commonwealth use a variety of policies to address this problem, and Michelle believes our state government has the responsibility to help. While land use and development decisions typically are made at the local level, the State can take proactive steps to encourage affordable housing options, through policies like requiring affordable housing in state-funded infrastructure projects.

Virginia is struggling to find the right approach to this crisis. One program offers offset credits via the Virginia tax code, while several northern Virginia counties offer affordable housing financing and zoning incentives for developers. Whether using these or other programs, we need to develop a cohesive strategy that will guarantee a year-over-year increase in our affordable housing supply. As Delegate, Michelle works hard to ensure that all people of Virginia—from working families to seniors on fixed incomes—can have safe and secure home rentals and home ownership.

Education

Education that reaches every child and supports every teacher

Michelle believes that every child in Virginia deserves access to high quality public education. As a parent whose been highly active in her own child’s education, Michelle believes in the power of teachers and parents working together to make sure their students are well supported and can learn, achieve, and thrive in our schools.

Investment in education is the key to a competitive future and security of our community, region, and Commonwealth. By prioritizing education, Virginia will attract and retain a diverse workforce, helping families to thrive.

As Delegate, Michelle works closely with local officials and education leaders, as well as with her colleagues in the General Assembly. She consistently advocates for common sense solutions to the problems facing our schools. When we address issues like ventilation in all school buildings, higher pay and collective bargaining rights for teachers, universal pre-K, and free community college for Virginians, we help to minimize education debt and increase access for all.

Jobs and the Economy

An economy that works for all Virginians

As a small business owner, Michelle understands how the post-pandemic job market and economy are impacting our ability not just to earn a living, but to make ends meet. As a working mother, Michelle also understands the need to prioritize affordability and access to quality childcare, especially our families with limited financial resources.

This means that, as Delegate, Michelle fights for paid family medical leave and paid sick leave for all Virginians. She champions workers’ rights, LGBTQ+ and immigrants rights, opportunities for small businesses, access to a living wage, and workforce training. This approach will generate job growth, both now and as we transition to a greener, more competitive, equitable, and diverse economy. The goal is to give all working families and businesses a chance to prosper in Virginia.

 

Environment

Protecting our environment for our future and a green economy

Virginia is a forward-thinking community, and we know that by protecting our environment we invest in our future. We all need to do our part to help address today’s climate change and environmental crises. This includes cleaning our streets and highways, converting to electric vehicles, creating more bicycle lanes, utilizing recycled materials in innovative designs, and promoting alternative energy sources.

Michelle will continue to build from the Virginia Clean Economy Act to explore new solutions. She believes in a creative, comprehensive approach that could integrate green mobility options, aim to decrease our carbon footprint, and consider smart local land development and use—all while addressing environmental justice issues in our Commonwealth. 

Technology, Infrastructure, & Innovation

Taking bold action on infrastructure to build our future

Our infrastructure is aging, inefficient, and insufficient. Northern Virginia’s population is growing, and we need efficient, balanced, and affordable options to improve our transportation and infrastructure. Michelle is committed to making bold investments in our infrastructure whether through state or federal funds, local programs or grant funding sources. These include rail extension, traffic flow improvements, and the repair and upgrade of roads. She also supports adopting energy efficient vehicles, increasing the number of charging stations, and considering green design alternatives that improve the quality of life for everyone.

The many ways we improve and modernize infrastructure will include important new and emerging technologies. As a former tech lawyer and Founder of the bipartisan Technology and Innovation Caucus, Michelle understands how to balance the need for innovation and competitiveness with protection of Virginia families and businesses with the preservation of privacy and the mitigation of unintended impacts across our communities.

Affordable Healthcare

Affordable healthcare accessible to all communities

Affordable and accessible healthcare is a right, not a privilege. Michelle knows that the health and wellbeing of each individual is critical for a strong family, community, and Commonwealth. As Delegate, Michelle wants healthcare to be both accessible and affordable for you and your family. She supports protecting women’s reproductive rights, expanding funding and resources for mental and behavioral health services, and works hard to bridge the healthcare gap across lower income families, women, and communities of color.

Michelle works hard to bridge the healthcare gap, and fights to put needed services in place. She also advocates for policies that allow schools and businesses to thrive in a way that is supported by science and upholds the safety of our community.

Criminal Justice

Criminal Justice reform and partnering with the First Responder community

Too many Virginians are trapped in a cycle of poverty, criminality, and incarceration. Citizens caught in this cycle are robbed of the chance to become good neighbors and community leaders. Now is the time for us to come together to address this issue, reforming our criminal justice system to end unfair sentencing and related circumstances.

Michelle welcomes partnerships with our law enforcement, educators, mental health professionals, and community leaders to address these systemic issues. She works to augment, not defund, important community bridge-building programs with members of our first responder and front-line communities. Key examples of this model are the co-responder programs in the City of Manassas and Prince William County, which partner mental health clinicians with law enforcement officers to respond to those emergency calls that may be mental health- and substance abuse-related.

Michelle is committed to accountability as well as reform.  She advocates for responsible gun ownership, addressing school-to-prison pipeline issues, and ending private prisons and mandatory minimums for non-violent felony crimes. She supports creating mechanisms to inhibit local municipalities from hiring (or continuing to employ) law enforcement professionals who have a history of civil rights violations.

Good Government

Promoting good government

As Virginians, we pride ourselves on good government. What we have always regarded as prudently limited good government is failing to keep pace with the demands of a modern, growing Commonwealth. An influx of money into our campaign finance system is one byproduct of our state’s growth and economic success. With no giving caps and only a U.S. citizenship requirement for campaign contributions, money continues to flow into the system—even from individuals and corporations who have business before the General Assembly. 

Michelle supports common-sense good government reforms. These include reasonable campaign contribution limits, streamlined ballot access laws, closing loopholes to ensure constituents receive the services they deserve, and conflict of interest disqualifications. Such reforms will help ensure that special interests don’t obscure the will of the people of Virginia. 

Resources

Community Services: Phone List
Services
  • Alcoholics Anonymous: 800-208-8649
  • Gang Response Intervention Team (GRIT): 703-792-5392
  • Juvenile Probation Intake: 703-792-6200
  • Narcotics Anonymous: 703-532-1255
  • Novant Health PW Medical Center: 703-369-8000
  • Police/Non-Emergency: 703-792-6500
  • Prince William County Public Schools (PWCS) Tip Line: 703-791-2821
  • Prince William County Community Services
    • Manassas: 703-792-7800
    • Woodbridge: 703-792-4900
  • PWC Department of Social Services
    • Manassas: 703-792-7500
    • Woodbridge: 703-792-4300
    • Night Phone: 703-792-6500
  • PWC Helpline: 703-368-4141
  • Sentara Northern VA Medical Center: 703-523-1000
  • Virginia Cooperative Extension Parent Education: 703-792-6288
  • Youth for Tomorrow Crisis Intervention
    • Bristow: 877-938-4543
    • Woodbridge: 703-659-9863
Useful Links
Legislation and Representation
Transportation