Conservative All-Stars Cuccinelli, James, Obenshain, and O’Quinn lead grassroots army
Charlottesville, VA – Conservative outsider and Republican candidate for governor of Virginia Pete Snyder today announced his campaign leadership team.
Former Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security and Attorney General of Virginia Ken Cuccinelli, Kay Coles James, president of The Heritage Foundation, Senator Mark Obenshain, and Delegate Israel O’Quinn will serve as Pete Snyder for Governor Campaign co-chairs.
Pete Snyder said, “We set out on day one to win this race, and with Virginia’s strongest conservative leaders driving our grassroots campaign, we know we’ll be successful. Like me, they believe we need a conservative outsider and small business champion to take on the establishment and get Virginia leading again.”
Pete continued, “Returning conservative leadership to Virginia is going to be a team effort and I’m honored to have these stalwart conservatives helping me.”
“As someone who has been in the political trenches for many years, knocking on doors, making phone calls, raising money, and growing the party, I am ecstatic to join Pete Snyder’s campaign for governor,” said former Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security and Attorney General of Virginia Ken Cuccinelli. “Pete has done all of those things for many years, for many candidates, and we have all gotten to know Pete’s commitment to the first principles of this country – principles that are the very motivation for me to engage in the political arena in the first place. Sadly, those principles are under assault today, and I believe Pete is the best candidate for governor to defend them in Virginia.”
“I am thrilled to endorse a proven conservative leader in Pete Snyder,” said Kay Coles James, president of The Heritage Foundation. “As our next governor, Pete will bring the change we desperately need in Richmond. Pete’s a results-oriented problem solver who can pull Virginia out of the mess that we are currently in. I look forward to working with him to reopen our schools and rebuild Virginia’s economy.”
“Pete Snyder is a strong conservative leader who will always put Virginia families first,” said Senator Mark Obenshain. “I am proud to serve as a co-chair for Pete’s campaign. Together we are building a strong, grassroots team that will bring much-needed new leadership to Richmond.”
“Pete Snyder’s record of success in business is exactly what we need to get Virginia’s economy back on track,” said Delegate Israel O’Quinn. “Pete is the leader we need to recover from this pandemic, get our kids back in the classrooms, and emerge stronger than ever.”
Former Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security and Attorney General of Virginia Ken Cuccinelli
Former Deputy Secretary and Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli led the nation in pushing back against the Obama administration’s liberal policies. He was the first Attorney General in the nation to file suit against Obamacare’s individual mandate. In President Trump’s administration, Cuccinelli led the efforts to secure the border and to ensure legal immigration into the United States. While serving as a senator in the Virginia Senate representing Fairfax County, Cuccinelli was a conservative stalwart, fighting to limit the growth of government and keep taxes low for Virginia families.
Kay Coles James, President of the Heritage Foundation and former Director of the Office of Personnel Management under President George W. Bush
Kay Coles James has served as the president of The Heritage Foundation since 2018. She formerly served as Secretary of Health and Human Resources under Governor George Allen. Before becoming president of Heritage, James was a lifelong grassroots activist who unapologetically fought for conservative, American values at the local, state, and national level. She also served on the Virginia Commonwealth University board of visitors, where she and her fellow board members led the effort to fulfill the university president’s goal of making VCU a leading research institution in Virginia. James was born in Portsmouth, VA.
Senator Mark Obenshain
Senator Mark Obenshain (R – Rockingham County) is one of the most influential conservative leaders in the Virginia State Senate, having acheived major conservative victories on key issue areas like property rights and criminal justice reform. Obenshain has been politically active practically his entire life. He has served as the chairman of two local Republican committees, been a delegate to every Republican state convention since 1980, and was a member of Virginia’s delegation to the 1980 Republican National Convention, which nominated Ronald Reagan. He has worked on the campaigns of virtually every Republican nominee for state and local office since he began practicing law in Harrisonburg in 1987, and he serves as the President of the Richard D. Obenshain Foundation, named after his father.
Delegate Israel O’Quinn
Delegate Israel O’Quinn (R – Bristol City) was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates on November 8, 2011. O’Quinn is a rising star in the Republican Party and the recipient of The Business Journal’s Top 40 Under 40 award, as well as Emory & Henry College’s Young Alumnus of the Year award. He is a member of the House Labor and Commerce and Privileges and Elections Committees. While at Emory & Henry College, Israel played on the varsity baseball team and graduated with degrees in Political Science and History. He is also a graduate of Patrick Henry High School in Glade Spring, Virginia.
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Pete Snyder announced his candidacy for Governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia in January 2021. Pete is a small business champion and conservative outsider committed to exposing the systemic incompetence in Richmond and disrupting the status quo. Pete is a small business owner, an innovator, and a problem solver. A true pioneer, Pete started his first company, New Media Strategies, the first social media marketing company in the country, when he was 26 years old. Over the years, as an angel capital investor and CEO of Disruptor Capital, Pete has helped found and grow many small businesses in Virginia and across the country.
When those in charge in Richmond failed to lead us during this pandemic, Pete and his wife Burson stepped up. Together and with the help of friends and neighbors the Snyders created the Virginia 30 Day Fund, a zero-overhead, non-profit organization that has helped save more than 1,000 small businesses across Virginia and more than 2,500 small businesses across America. Their 30 Day Fund efforts have raised more than $40 million to date, and every single dime of that goes to help keep hard working heroes afloat and their small business dreams alive. This is the very kind of new leadership, new energy and innovative thinking Pete will bring to Richmond to restore common sense and get Virginia leading again.
Pete, who has been a World Championship level certified BBQ judge (which the Washington Post’s Politifact rated as “100% True”), is the proud owner of Pete’s Pig Rig, the most infamous BBQ smoker in the Commonwealth. Pete, his wife Burson, his six-year-old daughter Bee, and their puppies Willie and Waylon live in Charlottesville, Virginia.