Katie Gorka, the first woman ever elected Fairfax County Republican Committee chairman, is charging hard out of the gate to advance the GOP’s prospects this November.
More than 500 delegates elected Gorka to a two-year term with 68.9 percent of the vote at the GOP’s biennial convention April 6 at Lake Braddock Secondary School in Burke.
Gorka long has been a Fairfax GOP greeter, door-knocker, poll watcher and election official in Dranesville District. She in 2022 co-founded Catholics Engaged for Fairfax and in 2023 was elected to the McLean Community Center’s Governing Board.
Gorka previously worked at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, where she sought to combat terrorism and human trafficking, and for the Heritage Foundation, where she aimed to give parents more control over their children’s education. She also co-authored with Mike Gonzalez a recently published book, “NextGen Marxism: What It Is and How to Combat It.”
Gorka spoke to the GazetteLeader in this edited April 12 interview.
Why do you support Donald Trump for the presidency? “Well, first of all, he is the nominee and because I think his policies are what the country needs. I think in his first tenure he secured the border, he helped the economy to grow, he grew jobs, he kept the nation safe and he kept us out of war.”
What will be the most pivotal issues in the November election? “The economy, No. 1, and immigration. I think illegal immigration is becoming an increasingly big issue. In Fairfax County, I don’t think people are happy about the [county’s] proposed tax increase. Crime is becoming more of an issue and illegal immigration, and the strain it’s putting on our resources. I think what’s happening in the schools is not making people happy.”
Why is that? “I think people are seeing a decline in the quality of teaching and a rise in education being politicized, and they don’t like that.”
What GOP values and policies do you think will resonate with immigrants? “Fairfax County is kind of unique in the sense that 30 percent of our population was not actually born in this country. We have a lot of legal immigrants here and what I hear from them is they came here for the opportunity, for the freedom, for the top-quality education, for the meritocracy. I think these are some of the top things they’re concerned about.”
What about the GOP will appeal to them? “I think that the GOP stands for hard work, freedom, being able to get ahead. Family, I think, is important for the GOP, as it is for the immigrant population.”
What are your views on early voting? “The fact that Virginia has three periods of 45 days each for early voting this year is absolutely absurd. It’s a tremendous burden on the taxpayer [and] all the thousands of volunteers that you have to have to staff that early voting, and there’s absolutely no reason for it. We’re not living under COVID restrictions anymore. Why we have early voting to this extent is just beyond me, but as long as these are the rules, we’re not going to get into power unless we play by these rules.”
Why should GOP voters cast their ballots early? “The problem is the rate at which Democrats are voting – probably at least 3-to-1 more times are voting early, compared to Republicans. What happens is, if on Election Day it’s a rainy or snowy day, Republicans immediately lose what’s probably 20 percent of their voters. Also, life happens. People just maybe don’t show up. So I think it’s really important that Republicans vote early. We’re also emphasizing, for anyone who has trouble getting to the polls, to apply for an absentee ballot.”
Any Democratic messages you plan to counter? “They’re trying to hammer home a message about abortion, but we’re going to be responding with an emphasis on just how extreme their abortion position is. The fact that Virginia Democrats want a full-term abortion – they want abortion up until the moment a child is born – which is just brutal and inhuman.”
Any economic issues you’ll stress? “The Democrats are doing so much to raise taxes and make Virginia difficult for business owners and taxpayers. I think the Republicans have a very clear contrast to that. What Gov. Youngkin has done for the economy and his tax cuts have been tremendous for Virginia’s citizens. We want to keep pushing down that road.”
How have Democrats been able to expand dominance in Fairfax County?“I think Democrats have targeted Virginia because it’s a key state and Fairfax County is very important within Virginia. It’s absolutely been targeted and received a lot of money from outside sources . . . Democrats have always painted themselves as the party of immigrants. I think a lot of immigrants have initially gone to the Democratic Party, but what I hear more and more is that the Democratic Party is out of step with the values of immigrants. I would argue that immigrants are going to be flocking away from the Democratic Party.”
Any changes or reforms you’re planning for the county GOP? “No. We’re going to continue building out our grass roots. I just have to say, there’s a lot of excitement and enthusiasm among Fairfax Republicans to really roll up their sleeves and work hard to win back Fairfax County.”
