Historic win for campaign finance reform in Virginia as personal use ban passes unanimously

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT:

Kendl Kobbervig, Clean Virginia Advocacy and Communications Director, [email protected], 608-575-8798

February 19, 2025

Historic win for campaign finance reform in Virginia as personal use ban passes unanimously

Richmond, VA– Today, the Virginia General Assembly took a historic step toward restoring public trust in state politics with the unanimous passage of Senator Jennifer Boysko’s Senate Bill 1002 and Delegate Josh Cole’s House Bill 2165. This landmark bill prohibits candidates from using campaign funds for personal expenses, making Virginia one of the last states in the country to address this basic campaign finance loophole.

“This is hopefully just the beginning of a long-overdue transformation in how we conduct politics in Virginia,” said Wes Gobar, the Good Governance Director with Clean Virginia. “The bill’s unanimous passage shows that meaningful change is possible when lawmakers prioritize fairness and integrity over the status quo.”

For years, legislators and advocates have called for stronger campaign finance and ethics reforms to improve Virginia’s national integrity rankings. The passage of this bill, which representatives have introduced to the General Assembly every legislative session for twelve consecutive years, marks a significant tipping point in the fight for accountability and transparency in state elections.

Advocates are optimistic that this victory will pave the way for additional reforms to improve Virginia’s campaign finance laws, including:

• Capping campaign donations to reduce the influence of large donors, corporations and special interests in politics.
• Improving the ability of election officials to ensure the fair and meaningful application of campaign finance laws.

“This is our moment to take bold action to ensure that our elections are fair and our government is accountable to the people,” Gobar concluded.

Click here for photos of current and former legislative patrons from today’s press conference celebrating the passage of the bill. Speakers included Senator Jennifer Boysko, Delegate Josh Cole, Delegate Mike Cherry, Delegate Marcus Simon and Delegate Kelly Convirs-Fowler.

Click here for a recording of the press conference.

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Clean Virginia is a 501(c)4 independent advocacy organization with an associated Political Action Committee, Clean Virginia Fund. Clean Virginia works to fight corruption in Virginia politics in order to promote clean and affordable energy. We are motivated by the core belief that our democracy should serve everyday Virginians over special interests.