Mark Peake hopes to win senate seat and keep district conservative
LYNCHBURG, Va. (NEWSPLEX) — Mark Peake is the Republican candidate for the 22nd District race. He’s a Lynchburg lawyer, father of five, and says that his top priority is to keep the 22nd District and state Senate Republican.
“The winner of this race will decide the majority of the senate,” he said.
The district has been held by a Republican for more than 20 years, and he said that he doesn’t want a Democrat taking control due to a bill up for vote in the next session.
“Barbara Favola (D) introduced a bill to require gun registration. I am a strong supporter of the Second Amendment. I do not want universal gun registration in the state of Virginia,” he said.
Peake said if he was elected, he would hope to work on a lot of different issues, including job growth, health care, and state trooper benefits.
“The troopers are down 100 to 200 troopers, depending on the reports. Their pay is low, and their morale is low,” he said.
That being said, Peake says his main concern is also the concern of many already in office.
“The biggest concern this immediate session is the budget and how to whittle it down. We have a deficit, so we have to get it into compliance,” he said.
He said that he plans to do that by carefully looking through the entire budget proposal and finding the areas that could be trimmed, which is a trait on which his predecessor Tom Garrett, Jr. prided himself.
“I plan to continue a lot of what he did, which is constitutional, conservative principles, limited government, and a budget hawk,” Peake said.
He also said that if the state Senate has a Republican majority, they will be able to more closely work with their national counterparts.
“President [Donald] Trump has a lot of great policies in mind to make this country great again. I know that’s what I want to do in Virginia, support our local workers, and make sure we look after our own first,” he said.
The election takes place on Jan. 10.