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Politics & Government

Businesswoman Runs Independent Campaign for State House Seat

Diane Blais produced a singing Youtube video to get the word out about her campaign.

Fairfax businesswoman Dianne Blais is running an independent, internet-savvy campaign for the 40th District House seat against longtime incumbent, Republican Tim Hugo. 

Blais (rhymes with play), of Fairfax, was until recently the vice president of a small, Northern Virginia electrical-installation firm. She decided to run as an independent candidate against Hugo—who is something of a Northern Virginia political powerhouse—over frustrations about the direction of state government. 

The 40th district is a slender column of an electoral area stretching northwest from the Occoquan Reservoir to Haymarket. It includes Clifton, parts of Centreville, Virginia Run, Catharpin and Sudley Springs. The district is generally considered Republican, going for Sen. John McCain in the 2008 presidential election and for Gov. Bob McDonnell in the 2009 state gubernatorial race, according to information compiled by the Virginia Public Access Project, a nonprofit organization that promotes transparency in government. 

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Hugo has served in the Virginia House of Delegates since 2003 and in 2007 beat a well-funded Democratic opponent by taking 57 percent of the 15,227 votes cast. Besting the entrenched delegate won’t be easy, Blais said. 

“Oh, I know it’s more than an uphill battle,” Blais said at a campaign stop on Saturday at the . “Things don’t have to be this way. I think I can give an independent voice in Richmond.” 

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Hugo has major bucks, amassing almost $300,000 in a campaign war-chest for the election, built on considerable contributions from major players like the Virginia Bankers Association, Appalachian Power Company and JP Morgan Chase (of New York City), according to election financial records. Blais has just about $3,000. 

“It’s not about the dollar and shouldn’t be about the dollar,” Blais said. “I don’t need 20 mailings to come to my house to decide on a candidate. I should be able to figure out who to vote for with just one mailing.” 

Knowing that she can’t outspend Hugo, she has taken to the internet, producing a whimsical Youtube video (in which she sings in support of her candidacy) that accumulated almost 9,000 hits. She underlines the grassroots elements of her effort as she aggressively markets her campaign on Facebook and Twitter. 

On the issues, she strikes a moderate tone. She wants to take the politics out of the way House and Senate districts are redrawn, which usually preserves the status quo for the incumbents. She is a big supporter of mass transit and thinks a light rail train from Haymarket to Vienna, which would parallel Interstate 66, would be a better idea than roadway expansion projects. She thinks the area should create more green jobs and that local government should have more authority to fix their own problems with no interference from Richmond. 

Skyler King, a George Mason University government student and campaign volunteer, said he supported Blais because she offered an alternative set of ideas.

 “She isn’t focused on playing politics,” King said. “She’s an independent voice and she can look at the issues and make a logical decision. We should be able to take the amount of money we spend and spend it a little better.” 

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