This coming November 7 registered voters in Virginia’s District 8 will be asked to elect a State Delegate and on the ballot is Republican Max Fisher who will be squaring off against Democrat incumbent Irene Shin.
Originally hailing from Kansas City, Fisher attended Marymount University in Arlington where he studied politics and communications which led to a nearly two decade long career in the aviation industry in the private sector.
Fisher has called northern Virginia home since 2002 and is running on a platform focused on veterans, citizens with disabilities, education, campaign finance reform, adoption and voting rights.
“Max stands as a beacon of common sense values, championing principles such as limited government, individual freedom, and economic liberty. He is committed to preserving these ideals and ensuring they guide policy decisions,” reads his campaign website.
In conversation with Vision Times, Fisher said the reason he decided to run was because he wants to be a true representative of the people.
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“I decided to run because I think what’s really important is that the state legislature is supposed to be representative of the people, representative of the people all around us,” he said adding that, “If we keep having people who are moving in from other areas that don’t have a vested interest in the area, well, that’s not really representative of the community and that’s what we have to change and that was the reason why I got involved.”
Fisher’s opponent, incumbent Irene Shin, moved to Virginia from California and became active in local politics in 2014.
“I think my opponent, she originally was from California and she’s bringing a lot of her self described progressive ideas that don’t have an answer,” Fisher said.
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Bipartisan civil discussion
“I think we have more that we can agree on than we have things that we have differences,” Fisher said adding that, “Everybody goes too far to the left or too far to the right and you have to be able to meet in the middle.”
He argues that lately civil discussion has been lacking in politics and that if elected he will strive to bring civility back to the legislature.
Fisher says that he is not beholden to “the same old political ties and commitments, which means he is free to chart a new course based on what is best for his constituents.”
A long time resident of Herndon, he says he understands the challenges facing the community, particularly that of the veteran community.
Virginia is ranked second in the country for the number of veterans living in the state, amounting to around 721,000 residents.
Fisher argues that “We need to take steps such as reducing taxation on retirement pay, improving education initiatives, reducing business administration and license fees, and improving health care for Veterans and their families.”
Citizens with disabilities and education
Fisher is an advocate for citizens with disabilities and says that the income ratio of benefits in the state need to be overhauled.
“Citizens should not have to quit jobs in order to save disability benefits,” he says, adding that, “They shouldn’t need to disclose the condition or be restricted from the reasonable accommodations to vote or participate in other civic affairs.”
Concerning education, parental participation is important for Fisher who argues that “There has to be parental participation in children’s education.”
“Having a working relationship between teachers, understanding curriculum, and mutual understanding of reasonable accommodations has to be done with mutual communication,” he says, adding that, “We must consider passing a parent’s bill of rights to ensure that school boards do not hide life changing information regarding your children.”
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Campaign finance reform and voting rights
“Ignoring the problems don’t make things better,” Fisher says, who acknowledges that there has been talk around campaign finance reform for years, however little has been accomplished.
“The General Assembly has formed subcommittees to address the issue, but with nearly no meetings and zero action, it’s just missed opportunities of being idle,” he says adding that one reason he is running is to “make a change and find solutions that can be agreed to on both sides of the aisle.”
Fisher is an advocate for voters rights and supports efforts to make voting more accessible and more secure in order to protect the integrity of elections.
“We should have common sense voting regulations across the commonwealth to make sure the rights of every legal voter are supported,” he says, adding that more support for people with disabilities needs to be implemented.
“Persons with disabilities should never have to disclose the reasoning for their accommodations,” he argues.
Fisher supports voter I.D. laws, calling it “simply common sense.”
“We have to show ID to go to a music festival, buy a drink, board an airplane, make financial transactions, and we need to make sure elections are safe and secure,” he says.
Virginia’s general and special elections are slated for Nov. 7, 2023. Early voting began on Sept. 22. For more information, visit www.maxfisherforvirginia.com or contact Fisher directly.
