Profile: Jim LeMunyon, 67th District Delegate Candidate

At a Glance

• Born: Elizabeth, N.J.
• Education: Bachelor's from Valparaiso University; master's from University of Wisconsin
• Family: Married; three children
• Occupation: Technology entrepreneur/consultant
• Public office: Delegate in 67th District since 2009

Del. Jim LeMunyon (R) may have been hired by the constituents of the 67th District to represent them in Richmond for two months out of the year, but he treats it like a full-time, year-round job.

"I think I'm making on an hourly basis less than minimum wage," he laughed.

A detail-oriented person, the 52-year-old incumbent delegate likes to be familiar with the specifics of an issue before drafting legislation and rallying cosponsors. In his opinion, it's not possible to get anything significant done without putting in the work during the other 10 months of the year.

But he enjoys the work and believes he's the best person to hold the seat, touting his "what you see is what you get" demeanor and his disinterest in politicking for politicking's sake.

A clear Republican in his stances and voting record, LeMunyon said it's a matter of adhering to his own belief system and not party posturing. He welcomes the opportunity to work with Democrats on legislation, and seriously considers all bills that come before regardless of the party affiliation of the sponsor.

"I can honestly say that I don't think I've woken up since being elected with the idea in my head, 'How can I go make a Democrat look bad?'" he said. "I'm waking up in the morning thinking, 'What can I get done?'"

Northern Virginia has been home to the LeMunyon family for 28 years. When he first moved to the area, he thought he and his wife would not be here for long because they were both from the Northeast. But when it came to decide whether they wanted to stay, they could not think of a better place to live.

He and his wife Robin liked the Fairfax County school system for their three children, along with the number of choices and opportunities that come with living in such an affluent area.

"The quality of life has always been great around here. There's just a lot you can do," LeMunyon said.

Avid music lovers, he and Robin spend much of their summers in the lawn seats of Wolf Trap revisiting the bands they loved growing up. If the right band drops by Wolf Trap, one might see the couple put their swing dancing lessons from last summer to good use — perhaps an opportunity LeMunyon would rather let pass him by, as he claims he is the weaker partner of the two of them.

It's the quality of life he and his wife have enjoyed for nearly 30 years that he'd like to maintain for his constituents, while fixing up the aspects of Northern Virginia he has always had a problem with, namely traffic.

His primary focus in his first term has been on transportation, and he plans to continue to work on solving congestion problems in Northern Virginia. He listed education and fiscal responsibility as other priorities for his second term, if elected.

With a bachelor's degree in physics and mathematics, and a master's degree in meteorology, LeMunyon did not think politics would be in his path. He had always been interested in politics, so when the opportunity to work for former Rep. Ed Zschau (R-Calif.), he found a way to mix his interest in technology and science with politics because of the specific technology issues Zschau had to deal with being the representative for Silicon Valley.

More than 20 years later and with one term in the House of Delegates under his belt, LeMunyon is not ready to be forced to the sidelines. He sees much more work to be done, and gains personal gratification when he sees his legislation pass through the General Assembly.

"It's nice to see the governor sign a bill and know that something's going to be better. And frankly, it's nice when people send you an email once in a while and say, 'Thanks for doing that because it made my life better,' even if it was just filling somebody's pothole," he said.