Meet the candidates
Seven Democrats will face off in Virginia’s 1st Congressional District primary election to take on incumbent Republican Rep. Rob Wittman.
The 1st District includes the Historic Triangle area of Williamsburg, Yorktown and Jamestown, Middle Peninsula and stretches west to the Richmond suburbs.
Virginia’s primary elections are Aug. 4. Early in-person voting began June 18 and runs through Aug. 1.
Here are the candidates on the ballot.
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Elizabeth Dempsey Beggs
Age: 29
Employment: Owner, Communications Consulting
Military service: Army
Education: University of Kentucky, political science and communications; MBA, William & Mary
Website: elizabethforvirginia.com
Describe a proposal you would support or introduce to lower healthcare costs for Americans:
I would introduce legislation to end vertical integration in healthcare, where the same corporations own insurance companies, pharmacy benefit managers, pharmacies and healthcare providers. This consolidation reduces competition, drives up costs, and limits patient choice. I would also allow Americans to buy into Medicare through a public option, creating competition in the insurance market and lowering premiums. Additional reforms should include capping prescription drug costs, increasing price transparency, investing in preventive care, and protecting rural hospitals. Healthcare should put patients before profits, and no American should have to choose between getting care and paying their bills.
Would you support stricter conditions for US aid to Israel amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza/Lebanon/Iran? Why or why not?
Yes. Israel has a right to exist and defend itself, but that does not give any government a blank check to violate human rights. I believe the actions being carried out in Gaza constitute genocide, and the United States should not provide military aid without strict conditions tied to international law and civilian protection. I support an immediate ceasefire, the release of hostages, and unrestricted humanitarian aid. U.S. taxpayer dollars should never fund human rights abuses. American foreign policy should be guided by accountability, diplomacy, and the equal value of all human life.
What do you consider the biggest concern of military members and military families at home and how would you seek to address it?
As an Army veteran and military spouse, I believe the biggest challenge facing military families is affordability and stability. Frequent moves, spouse unemployment, childcare costs, housing shortages, and navigating healthcare and benefits create enormous stress on service members and their families. I would expand affordable childcare, improve military spouse employment protections and licensing reciprocity, increase access to quality housing, and strengthen mental health services. I also support expanding access to VA home loans and improving the transition from military to civilian life. Strong families are critical to military readiness, and supporting them must be treated as a national security priority.
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Salaam Bhatti
Age: 40
Employment: Public interest lawyer
Education: Albright College, bachelor’s, political science; Touro University Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law Center; J.D.
Website: salaamforva.com
Describe a proposal you would support or introduce to lower healthcare costs for Americans:
I support the Medicare for All Bill, which would drive down drug costs, eliminate out-of-pocket premiums and deductibles, decrease employers’ costs, simplify the health care system, and give all Americans access to quality health care. To make this work, we need comprehensive immigration reform to bring in more doctors and nurses to meet today’s needs — especially in areas like Lancaster and Northumberland where people need to travel at least an hour to see specialists. They can be given incentives to citizenship for working in underserved areas. To meet tomorrow’s need, we must open more medical schools, undo Trump’s student loan caps for medical school students, increase caps for medical schools, and create more residency opportunities.
Would you support stricter conditions for US aid to Israel amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza/Lebanon/Iran? Why or why not?
Military assistance to Israel — and any nation — must be subject to conditions ensuring the protection of human rights. That’s why we have the Leahy Laws. Israel’s actions in committing a genocide and ethnic cleansing have violated human rights and international law. All aid sent to them must be withheld until the Israeli government has not only stopped committing war crimes but has also held accountable those who enabled this. Our taxes shouldn’t be funding bombing houses, schools, and hospitals overseas — they should be spent building houses, schools and hospitals over here.
What do you consider the biggest concern of military members and military families at home and how would you seek to address it?
Military families are often ineligible for SNAP because Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) counts as income, even though it’s not money they can freely spend. The Military Families Advisory Network’s 2023 study found that one in five military families experience food insecurity, rising to one in four among active duty families. I’d address this by exempting BAH from income calculations, alongside pushing for living wages for servicemembers. Military families also move every few years, meaning repeated costs for deposits and first/last month’s rent. This is difficult to save for on low wages. Over half of actively serving respondents reported paying more than $251 out of pocket monthly for rent or utilities. Nearly 80% pay more than they can comfortably afford for housing. I’d address this by adjusting the BAH formula to increase the amount provided.
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Tim Cywinski
Candidate Tim Cywinski did not respond to The Virginian-Pilot’s voter guide questions before the publication deadline
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Jason Knapp
Age: 51
Employment: Retired naval Officer and aviator; clean energy advocate
Military service: Navy
Education: University of Virginia, bachelor’s aerospace engineering; Florida State University, MBA
Website: jasonknappforcongress.com/
Describe a proposal you would support or introduce to lower healthcare costs for Americans:
Start where families feel it first: the pharmacy counter and the deductible. Let Medicare negotiate drug prices against what other wealthy nations pay for the same medicines, and expand that negotiation far beyond the handful of drugs it covers now. Build public manufacturing for insulin and essential generics so one company can’t hold patients hostage. Cap out-of-pocket costs. And open Medicare as a choice for anyone who wants it, which makes insurers compete on price instead of paperwork. We must protect the hospitals VA-01 depends on. Our rural and critical-access facilities run on thin margins, and when one closes the nearest ER can be an hour away. A fair, predictable Medicare rate keeps those doors open. The test isn’t whether we passed a bill we can call reform, it’s whether a family can afford to see a doctor.
Would you support stricter conditions for US aid to Israel amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza/Lebanon/Iran? Why or why not?
I flew combat missions and know an American weapon carries American responsibility for how it gets used. When we give any country our weapons and our dollars, we are accountable for what they do with them, and to whom. That is not an anti-Israeli policy, it is an American security mandate. The Leahy Laws and Section 502B of the Foreign Assistance Act already bar U.S. assistance to any force that commits gross human rights violations. The failure is that we don’t enforce them. I’d fund and staff that enforcement and apply it evenly, to Israel and to every other recipient, Egypt and Colombia included. Laws held to only one ally is a grievance, held to everyone is a principle. A reckless Iran policy has made Israel and the world less safe. The answer isn’t blank checks, it’s the discipline to use American power in ways that serve security.
What do you consider the biggest concern of military members and military families at home and how would you seek to address it?
The part that never shows up in a budget line: the family carries the service, and we leave too many of them struggling. I lived the military life for 21 years. I watched young enlisted families move every couple years, lose a spouse’s paycheck each transfer, sit on child care waitlists, and some lean on SNAP and food pantries while a parent serves. I grew up on food stamps myself. No military family should need them because we underpaid the person in uniform. So fix what we control. Raise the Basic Allowance for Subsistence to track food prices, and stop the housing allowance from counting as income that pushes families off SNAP. Fund military child care so the waitlists end. Pass license portability so a spouse doesn’t restart a career with every move. And keep the TRICARE and VA promise whole. We ask these families to sacrifice. The least we owe is a stable home and an honest deal.
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Ericka Kopp
Age: 34
Employment: Attorney, Byrne Canaan Law
Education: Virginia Commonwealth University, bachelor’s, forensic science; University of Richmond School of Law, J.D.
Website: erickakopp.com
Describe a proposal you would support or introduce to lower healthcare costs for Americans:
I will support a comprehensive universal healthcare proposal that covers medical, dental, vision, prescription drugs, durable medical equipment, and long-term care coverage for all ages and all families. This system would be funded by a progressive wealth tax on people’s assets exceeding $10 million, taxing large corporations, closing tax code loopholes, and de-scheduling and taxing cannabis. Until this system is approved, we can make incremental changes to address corporate greed in the healthcare industry. I will introduce legislation that limits (if not altogether eliminates) stock buybacks in healthcare and requires transparent pricing of healthcare goods and services. Healthcare companies are profiting off individuals and families in the most unbelievable way. It wasn’t always like this, and it doesn’t have to be this way now.
Would you support stricter conditions for US aid to Israel amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza/Lebanon/Iran? Why or why not?
US aid to Israel must end. Since 2024, the United Nations has deemed many of Israel’s acts to be genocide and war crimes in Gaza. The international community has told Israel to stop for the last two years; as of June 23, 2026, Israel is still committing genocide in Palestine. Israel has been indiscriminately and illegally attacking Lebanon, in violation of the UN Charter, according to the UN in April 2026. Israel has been attacking Iranian civilian infrastructure, another violation of international law. Israel has repeatedly goaded the US into attacking Iran, in June 2025 and since February 2026. The US has spent what could amount up to $1 trillion of American taxpayer money on the war in Iran since its inception. We cannot afford another endless war. We cannot afford to continue funding a lawless regime. We cannot fund genocide. I support eliminating US aid to Israel.
What do you consider the biggest concern of military members and military families at home and how would you seek to address it?
The military has been used as a pawn by Donald Trump, both for his unconstitutional war of choice in Iran and to send troops into the streets of American cities. Trump needs to be held accountable for these actions. As does Pete Hegseth for mass murder in international waters. As the wife and caregiver to a disabled combat veteran, my husband and I have been through the process of applying for benefits. I know how complicated it is. I’m a licensed attorney, and I can’t get through the process. It is designed to fail people and make them give up. There’s too much red tape preventing veterans and their families from using the benefits they’ve earned. We need more support for veterans at home by making this system accessible to them. VA facilities need to be fully funded and staffed, and implement policies centered on veterans and their families rather than making them an afterthought.
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Shannon Taylor
Age: 58
Employment: Henrico County Commonwealth’s Attorney
Education: University of Virginia, international relations; University of Richmond Law School
Previous elected office: Henrico County Commonwealth’s Attorney since 2011
Website: shannontaylorva.com
Describe a proposal you would support or introduce to lower healthcare costs for Americans:
As a prosecutor, I’ve spent 14 years fighting for the people of this community — and I know a threat when I see one. Rob Wittman voted for the largest Medicaid cuts in history, and tens of thousands of Virginians are already paying the price: losing their coverage, seeing premiums double, and hospitals like Rappahannock General are at risk of closure. I support enhancing ACA tax credits and restoring funding for rural hospitals. I support making medical billing transparent so there is no surprise billing, lowering the cost of life-saving prescription drugs by expanding Medicare’s ability to negotiate directly with big pharmaceutical companies so that no one has to choose between the medication that’s right for them and their other basic needs. We must also end insurance practices like requiring prior authorization that allow insurance companies to deny care to Americans.
Would you support stricter conditions for US aid to Israel amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza/Lebanon/Iran? Why or why not?
The loss of life in this conflict is devastating. U.S. military aid must be used responsibly, consistent with American values, international law, and the protection of civilian lives. The United States must play a strong role in diplomacy, humanitarian aid, and de-escalation, and I support long-term peace, security, and self determination for Israelis and Palestinians. Our goal must be a two-state solution with a safe and secure Palestinian state and a safe and secure Israel. As a prosecutor, I have spent my career focused on accountability and protecting innocent people, and those values guide my approach here as well. All parties need to adhere to ceasefire agreements and international law in order for peace to prevail.
What do you consider the biggest concern of military members and military families at home and how would you seek to address it?
Before we send Americans to war, we need a measured and determined process to ensure we do everything we can to avoid putting American lives at risk. What I’m hearing from military families is that right now, they are concerned not only with our involvement in a conflict with no clear strategy, but also with the struggle of supporting their families at home. Rob Wittman has no problem funding endless wars, but when it comes to investing in our schools, our roads, and our healthcare system, he gives us excuses. We should be spending money here at home to improve American lives, not on foreign wars.
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Melvin Tull
Age: 58
Employment: Attorney and founder at Tull Law
Military service: Army
Education: Virginia Tech, accounting; University of Virginia Law School, J.D.
Website: meltullforcongress.com
Describe a proposal you would support or introduce to lower healthcare costs for Americans:
Healthcare is personal to my family. My wife is a pediatrician, and many of the children she treats rely on Medicaid or have parents who are working but struggle with premiums, deductibles, and prescription costs. I support a practical healthcare affordability package that builds on the Affordable Care Act instead of tearing it down. That means protecting Medicare and Medicaid and keeping coverage affordable for working families, allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices, capping prescription costs, and requiring hospitals, insurers, and pharmacy benefit managers to be transparent about what patients are actually being charged. For Virginia’s rural communities, cost means access. I support loan repayment for doctors, nurses, and mental health providers who serve rural areas, expand telehealth (and high-speed internet) and help keep rural hospitals and health clinics open.
Would you support stricter conditions for US aid to Israel amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza/Lebanon/Iran? Why or why not?
I support Israel’s right to exist, defend itself, and live in peace and security. The Oct. 7 attacks were acts of terrorism that murdered civilians, took hostages, and caused immense suffering. At the same time, support for Israel does not mean support for its government. I am troubled by the scale of death and suffering in Gaza and the loss of many innocent Palestinian lives. The humanitarian crisis demands urgent attention. I do not support an arms embargo on Israel. Israel faces real security threats and remains one of America’s closest allies in a volatile region. However, U.S. assistance should be used consistent with American values and protection of civilians. As a veteran, I understand military force is often necessary, but lasting security cannot be achieved through military action alone. Durable peace requires diplomacy, leadership, and protection of innocent people.
What do you consider the biggest concern of military members and military families at home and how would you seek to address it?
I am a veteran, and the biggest concern I hear is whether military families, veterans, and transitioning service members can build a stable life at home—affordable housing, dependable healthcare, good schools, childcare, and a clear path to a good job after service. I would focus on practical support: strengthen VA healthcare and mental health services, reduce backlogs, expand housing assistance, and make it easier for veterans to use their skills in civilian careers through apprenticeships, credentialing, and workforce training. In a district with so many military-connected families, this is also an economic issue. When we support service members and their families, we strengthen our communities and honor the commitment they made to our country.