All results / Stories / Kenneth R. “Ken” Plum, State Delegate (D-36)
Opinion: Commentary: Celebrating Black History
There are ample reasons to be celebrating Black history in Virginia this month and throughout the year.
One of the meaningful traditions that has evolved in the Virginia House of Delegates over the last couple of decades has been the celebration of Black History Month by having a speech each day on the House floor about famous Black persons and their struggles and accomplishments in the Commonwealth.
Opinion: Commentary: Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is!
I have never known a politician who has not promised better schools, quality of life and safety.
Opinion: Commentary: Electrification of Virginia Transportation
In 1998 I chaired a task force of business and community leaders to collectively document what Northern Virginia needed to do to be an “EV Ready Community.”
Opinion: Commentary: Putting Just Into Justice
Under current Virginia law a person who steals something of value less than $1,000 can be punished by up to 12 months in jail with fines up to $2,500 along with any restitution that might be owed.
Opinion: Commentary: Changing Images of Virginia
On the east side of Capitol Square near the Executive Mansion in Richmond is the Virginia Civil Rights Memorial featuring 16-year-old Barbara Johns who led the student walkout that resulted in a civil rights case before the Supreme Court as part of Brown v. Board of Education that found racially-segregated schools to be unconstitutional.
Opinion: Commentary: Insurrection
Last Thursday’s one-word headline in the Richmond Times Dispatch was in such a large font that it extended across the entire width of the newspaper: INSURRECTION.
Opinion: Commentary: A Push in the Right Direction
I can remember every word of the conversation as if it took place yesterday, but it happened in 1959.
Opinion: Commentary: A Green New Deal
In accepting the Democratic nomination for president, Franklin D. Roosevelt promised a “new deal” for the “forgotten man.”
Opinion: Commentary: Redistricting Underway
The Constitution requires that after the federal census every ten years there is to be a reapportionment of legislative districts based on population growth and shifts reflecting “one-man, one-vote.”
Opinion: Commentary: The Work Goes On…
Sonny Bono wrote a catchy tune reminding us that “the beat goes on…History has turned the page, uh huh.”
Opinion: Commentary: Legalizing Pot
When settlers to the Virginia colony in the seventeenth century discovered that they would not be able to walk about and pick up gold as some had been led to believe, they had to look around to find a way to make the colony economically sustainable.
Opinion: Commentary: Time for Being Thankful
Next week is the formal day set aside for thanksgiving.
Opinion: Commentary: Hail to the Chief-Elect
Tears welled up in my eyes last Saturday evening as the President-elect Joe Biden and the Vice President-elect Kamala Harris addressed their supporters and the nation for the first time after having been declared the winners of the presidential election.
Opinion: Commentary: The Results Are In!
This column is being written before election day with a schedule for publication the day after the polls close.
Opinion: Commentary: Mark and John and Amendment One
When the then underdog Mark Warner, whose only experience in political life had been to chair the Democratic Party of Virginia and manage the successful campaign of Doug Wilder for governor, had the courage in 1996 to take on senior senator John Warner in his re-election bid, Mark Warner’s bumper sticker read, “Mark, not John.”
Opinion: Commentary: An Amazing Year
With more than two months remaining in 2020, I can already say that it has been an amazing year in Virginia’s history.
Opinion: Commentary: Vote Yes on Amendment #1
In a campaign that promises “fair maps” by voting yes for Amendment #1 on the ballot this election cycle and the opposition that promises “fair districts” by voting no, there is little wonder that there would be confusion in the minds of voters.
Opinion: Commentary: Keeping Tabs on State Government
The Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission (JLARC) conducts program evaluation, policy analysis, and oversight of state agencies on behalf of the Virginia General Assembly as authorized by the Code of Virginia.
Opinion: Commentary: Virginia Voters Can Contribute to the State’s Progressive Future
The year 2020 has been filled with major ups and downs, but nowhere has the good news been clearer than in the Virginia legislature.
Opinion: Commentary: The House at the Half
The House of Delegates is probably half-way through its virtual Special Session.