Spotlight on the final races: The unopposed candidates

RICHMOND, Va. (WWBT) - Ahead of Election Day, here’s a look at several of the uncontested races.

Lamont Bagby is running unopposed in Senate District 14, which covers parts of Richmond and Henrico. The former teacher and administrator served in the House since 2015 before winning a special election for his Senate seat.

Bagby, a Democrat, says a top priority is protecting freedoms.

“Put a couple constitutional amendments on the table. One constitutional amendment will enshrine our right to the ballot box. The other constitutional amendment will enshrine a woman’s right to choose,” said Bagby.

In House District 74, incumbent Mike Cherry says education funding is a top priority. The district encompasses a large portion of Chesterfield and some of Colonial Heights.

The Air Force veteran and Republican also says he will work on labor trafficking legislation alongside other safeguards.

“Here in Virginia, until 2012, we had no human trafficking laws at all. I found an interesting loophole last year, and we were able to close that prevented people from offering to buy or sell children,” said Cherry.

Covering parts of Richmond’s southside and Chesterfield County, Mike Jones is the only name on the ballot for House District 77. He’s a pastor turned city councilor, hoping to bring new ideas to the statehouse.

Meanwhile, it’s another unopposed race for House District 78. That’s Richmond’s west end. Long-time lawmaker Betsy Carr wants to help Democrats with this reliably blue area.

And Democrat Rae Cousins is running for House District 79, which spans from Richmond’s northside down to Manchester. The attorney and mother says conversations and compromises are needed these days.

“What I would like to do is go in, reach across the aisle and figure out where we can find some common ground to get work done, and I think that’s the only way we can get work done,” said Cousins.

Another unopposed candidate is Destiny LeVere Bolling in House District 80, which includes parts of Henrico County. The communications director for a federation of unions was looking forward to becoming a new mother soon, but complications changed that.

Now, that experience is fueling her mission to protect abortion access and more.

“That was one of my options at the time. I was really down bad with a high fever and really low blood pressure, and they were very concerned for my health, and so that is huge for me is to make sure women’s health care rights are protected,” she said.

NBC12 reached out to both candidates running in House District 60. That area includes parts of Hanover and New Kent. Neither candidate responded.

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