Elizabeth Guzman, a Democratic candidate for the House of Delegates, seeks to reclaim a legislative seat in the 22nd District, currently held by Republican Ian Lovejoy. Guzman, who last ran for office in 2023 in a contentious Democratic Primary for the Virginia State Senate, narrowly lost to State Senator Jeremy McPike (D-29, Prince William, Stafford) by just 50 votes.

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Delegate Ian Lovejoy (R-22, Prince William County) has introduced a suite of legislative proposals targeting the rapid proliferation of data centers in Northern Virginia, addressing concerns about campaign finance, land use, and energy infrastructure. The legislation, rooted in what Lovejoy calls "common sense reforms," aims to tackle issues of public confidence, community impact, and the strain on utilities.

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Delegate Ian Lovejoy (R-22, Bristow) updated his legislative priorities at the end of the first week of the 2024 Virginia General Assembly.

Lovejoy emphasized his focus on two key issues: limiting the siting of data centers near certain areas and addressing potential conflicts of interest among local elected officials involved in land use proceedings.

Siting of Data Centers in Residential Areas:

Lovejoy introduced an amendment to the Code of Virginia, specifically adding a new section to address the siting of data centers. According to the proposed amendment:

– Any local government land use application required to build a data center must be approved only for areas one-quarter mile or more from federal, state, or local parks, schools, and property zoned or used for residential purposes.

The amendment came after the Prince William Board of County Supervisors in  2023 approved a data center complex on 990 acres next to Manassas Battlefield National Park and another next to a densely populated neighborhood at Linton Hall and Devlin roads in Bristow.

Disclosures in Land Use Proceedings:

Lovejoy also proposed amendments focusing on disclosures in land use proceedings.

– Members of the board of supervisors, planning commission, and board of zoning appeals involved in land use proceedings must fully disclose any business or financial relationships with the applicant or title owner of the land in question.

– A disclosure includes relationships within the 12 months before the hearing, and any member with a business or financial interest or a specific relationship shall be ineligible to vote or participate in such cases.

– Penalties, as a Class 1 misdemeanor, are outlined for individuals knowingly and willfully violating these disclosure provisions.is the most severe class of misdemeanor offenses and may include up to 12 months in jail and up to a $2,500 fine.

The proposed amendments aim to enhance transparency in land use proceedings by requiring elected officials to disclose relevant relationships, thereby minimizing potential conflicts of interest.

Lovejoy is serving his first term as a House of Delegates member. He previously served on the Manassas City Council.

The 2024 General Assembly session ends on March 10, 2024.

Delegate-elect Ian Lovejoy: “Today the office of Delegate-elect Ian Lovejoy announces the launch of an aggressive constituent services outreach campaign ahead of the 2024 general assembly session. Dubbed “50 Ways in 50 Days” this initiative is described as an “idea-raiser” – designed to solicit feedback from residents of House District 22 regarding legislative priorities, issues facing our district and region, ways our office can engage the public and more.”

“Residents are encouraged to share any ideas they have to improve our community with the program hoping to gather a minimum of 50 good ideas.”

Lovejoy won the November 7 General Election to represent the district, which includes portions of western Prince William County, including Bristow.

Juke Box Diner in Manassas hosted the Fox News Channel’s morning show “Fox and Friends,” which did a series of live reports from the diner on Wednesday, July 5, 2023.

Gov. Glenn Youngkin, who came to the diner to appear on the show, talked about education and talked to Potomac Local News about the importance of hiring more police and supporting them in the field.

“Police officers want to work in places where the department has their backs,” Youngkin told PLN in an exclusive interview after his TV appearance. The governor pointed to a partnership between his administration and Petersburg, which has led to a strengthened police department in the city, and a successful recruiting effort leading to “nearly zero” vacancies, the governor said.

Crime is a key campaign issue for the upcoming November 7 General Election (early voting begins September 23, 2023). In Prince William County, violent crime is up 70% since 2019.

“We also have to hire prosecutors who will prosecute,” Youngkin added. Since 2020, monthly direct criminal indictments have fallen from 300 to about 70 under Commonwealth Attorney Amy Ashworth.

Ashworth, a Democrat, is on the ballot this November, challenged by Republican and former Prince William County Assistant Commonwealth Attorney Matt Lowery. Last week, business owners filed into a county police station to talk about the uptick in crime along the Sudley and Balls Ford roads corridors outside Manassas, where many fear for their safety.

All seats on the Prince William Board of County Supervisors, which can hire and fire the county’s police chief, are up in November, too.

During Wednesday morning’s TV broadcast, reporter Griff Jenkins asked diners whether or not Youngkin should run for president. Both replied “no,” and said he should continue focusing on governing Virginia. Youngkin, whose been governor since 2022, is the first Republican to win to occupy the governor’s mansion since 2013.

Bobbie MacDonald woke up, saw the TV crew broadcasting from the nearby diner, and drove down for breakfast. “I would tell the county supervisors that there are big issues in this county right now, crime included. We don’t come into Manassas that often or go to the eastern end of the county. We stay in our little area,” said MacDonald, whose lived in Catharpin since 2005.

Republican candidates Ian Lovejoy, a former Manassas City Councilman running for the newly-created House District 22 in western Prince William County, and John Stirrup, a former Prince William County Supervisor running for the newly-created 21 House District, came to the event. Youngkin encouraged both to “campaign hard” and focus on public safety issues.

No one from the Manassas City Government stopped by for breakfast.

Juke Box Diner owner Joe Attyah said producers at the Fox News Channel asked him if they could broadcast from his restaurant. “It’s a good opportunity for us to get out the message about our business,” said Attyah, who also owns a second Juke Box Diner in Annandale.

The diner, at 8637 Sudley Road, has a classic 1950s decor and serves breakfast all day.

Hillary Clinton posted to Twitter today, urging Democrats to organize and flip three seats in the House of Delegates.

The former First Lady reminded her followers that Democrats only need three seats to regain control of Virginia’s House of Delegates.

Clinton: “There are no off-years! Democrats only need to flip three seats to regain control of the Virginia state House. Plug in with @onwardtogether groups and friends like @swingleft, @runforsomething, @dlcc, and more to learn how to help.”

Republicans had controlled the 100-member House of Delegates since 2022 when the party won a three-seat majority in the same election that saw Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin, Republican Lt. Winsome Sears, and Republican Attorney General Jason Miyares sweep the commonwealth’s only statewide offices.

There are several competitive House of Delegates races were watching in our area. In Prince William County, House District 21 encompasses the Sudley and Bull Run areas west of Manassas, out to Gainesville. Republican John Stirrup, a former Prince William Board of County Supervisor member, and political newcomer Josh Thomas, a Democrat, is seeking the seat.

House District 22 encompasses the area south of Manassas and west out to Nokesville, Republican Ian Lovejoy, a former Manassas City Councilman, and political newcomer Travis Nembhard are vying for the seat.

Neither district has an incumbent.

In Stafford County and Fredericksburg, were watching Districts 64 and 65, both with no incumbents. In the 64th, it’s Republican Paul Milde, a former Stafford County Supervisor and political newcomer Leonard Lacey. The district spans a swath of the middle of Stafford County.

In the 65th, Democrat Josh Cole is looking to regain a seat in the House of Delegates after losing in 2021 to Republican Tara Durant. Cole faces Republican Lee Peters, a political newcomer.

Durant is the Republican nominee for the 27th Senate District — of the most closely-watched races in the state — and is not seeing election to the House of Delegates. Durant faces Democrat Joel Griffen and Stafford County Supervisor Monica Gary, running independently.

Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares visited Prince William County on Wednesday, May 24, 2023.

Miaryes: “I had the pleasure to speak at Ian Lovejoy’s campaign kickoff in Manassas last night! As a Councilman, entrepreneur, and small business owner, @IanTLovejoy has served his region for over a decade and knows what Virginians want.”

Lovejoy: “Standing room only tonight at Bristow Manor- thank you so much to everyone who came out to support our kickoff. Special thanks to Attorney General Jason Miyares and House Speaker Todd Gilbert and everyone for the huge showing of support.”

Lovejoy (R), a former Manassas City Councilman, is running for the House District 22 seat, which has no incumbent. The district includes Nokesville and the area south of Manassas.

The following day, Miyares went to Manassas to announce children in Virginia middle schools will receive child ID kits.

An attorney and political newcomer, Travis Nembhard (D), will challenge Lovejoy for the seat.

Ian Lovejoy, the former Manassas City Councilman, announced a bid for the Virginia House of Delegates District 22 seat for the November General Election.

Lovejoy (R) had been seeking the Virginia State Senate seat for District 30, which encompasses Manassas. With the announcement, Lovejoy withdrew his bid for the District 30 seat, leaving it without a Republican vying for the seat.

Democrat Delegate Danica Roem, who represents portions of Prince William County and Manassas and Manassas Park cities, is running for the District 30 seat, opting not to seek re-election to her House of Delegates seat.

Lovejoy is set to be married, and he and his wife recently purchased a house in Bristow, which prompted the decision to run for the House of Delegates, he told PLN. In 2019, Lovejoy failed for the House of Delegates, losing to incumbent Lee Carrer (D).

District 22 has no incumbent and leans Republican. It includes portions of Prince William County, south and west of Manassas, including Bristow, Buckhall, and Nokesville.

Lovejoy said he’ll campaign on economic issues, including the rising costs of groceries and other goods taking its toll on residents, keeping parents engaged in education, and on land-use issues in the face of the ongoing debate over data centers being built in Prince William County.

Roem and State Senator Chap Petersen (D-Fairfax) have introduced bills this General Assembly session to slow the development of the Prince William Digital Gateway — more than 800 acres next to Manassas National Battlefield, where data center construction has been approved by the Prince William Board of County Supervisors.

Roem says she’s “adamantly opposed” to data centers, while Petersen wants the study on the adverse effects server farms will have on the region’s water quality. The centers require massive amounts of water to cool servers, while conservationists argue data center construction requires leaving forested areas, prompting more sediment to flow into the region’s drinking reservoir.

Lovejoy told PLN the Prince William Board of County Supervisors should pay attention not only to these bills but also to the angst among county residents who opposed the data center project and suing to overturn it.

“Unfortunately, it’s rising to the level of state action,” said Lovejoy. “The local leaders should pay attention or risk losing some of their land-use authority to the state.”

Here’s Lovejoy’s campaign announcement.

Ian Lovejoy announced his intention to seek the Republican nomination for the 22nd District in Virginia’s House of Delegates.

“Virginia needs leaders in the General Assembly who will fight to make our communities safer, work to lower taxes, and put parents first when it comes to their children’s education,” said Lovejoy. He added: “In the House of Delegates I will always put my constituents before special interests, opposing legislation that leads to overdevelopment, working to cut taxes, and expanding opportunities for Virginia families.”

Lovejoy resides in the Victory Lakes subdivision of Bristow with his fiancée Nancy Edmundson. Previously, Lovejoy served on Manassas City Council, and is owner of Reliant Hiring Solutions – a national recruitment firm specializing in law enforcement recruitment.

About House District 22

House District 22 is a new district – with no incumbent – drawn as part of the Commonwealth’s 10 year redistricting process. It combines portions of the former 50th, 51st, 13th and 31st House Districts- with he 50th being the largest contributor.

Ranked as a Republican Leaning district, HD22 will be crucial in securing the House of Delegates this year. It encompasses the the communities of Nokesville, Bristow, and portions of Manassas.

Correction: Lovejoy lost his 2019 bid for state office to former Delegate Lee Carter.