It’s a battle whose trajectory is somewhere between uphill and kamikaze. But the Republican challenger to state Sen. Adam Ebbin says she, not the incumbent, is walking the path to progress.
“I’m stepping up to bring a fresh perspective to the table, underpinned by a firm belief in the transformative power of technology, the importance of community involvement and the necessity of constructive conversations in politics,” Sophia Moshasha said in a formal kickoff announcement made July 14.
Moshasha, an Alexandria resident, qualified for the ballot in June against Ebbin in the 39th District, which as newly drawn includes large swaths of that city plus the Crystal City/Pentagon City area of Arlington and the Baileys Crossroads corridor of Fairfax County.
Like all the Northern Virginia inner suburbs, the new 39th District would have to be scored reliably Democrat. Ebbin was first elected to the Senate in 2011 after eight years in the House of Delegates.
Moshasha is the co-host of the Virtual Reality/Augmented Reality Association’s podcast and the association’s local lead. If elected, she will advocate for policies that encourage entrepreneurship, such as tax incentives for small businesses and streamlined regulations, the campaign said.
Democrats currently maintain a narrow (22-18) majority in the state Senate, while Republicans hold an equally slim (52-48) majority in the House of Delegates. All 140 General Assembly seats are on the ballot Nov. 7.
Moshasha is one of three Republicans contesting 13 local/legislative races on the Arlington ballot this year. The GOP also has candidates for County Board and the state Senate seat being defended by Democrat Barbara Favola.
