Stafford Democrats nominate Joshua Cole to run in 28th District

Joshua Cole is now the official Democratic nominee for the Virginia House of Delegates’ 28th District. He is the first African-American and the youngest candidate to get the Democratic nomination for the District.

The 28th District House of Delegates Democratic Nominating Committee recently canceled an Unassembled Caucus scheduled for May 21 to pick the Democratic Party’s nominee, after one of the two Democratic candidates left the race in April. Cole was the only candidate to file for the nomination, said Thomas W. Kimbrell, chair of the 28th House of Delegates District Democratic Nominating Committee.

Cole’s name will not be on the June 13 Primary ballot, but it will be on the General Election ballot in November, Cole said.

On the Republican side of the November ballot will be one of the three GOP candidates vying for that nomination: Supervisors Paul Milde and Bob Thomas, and former Supervisor Susan Stimpson.

"I am so honored to be the first African-American and the youngest nominated for this enormous and very important task," Cole said. “Those pioneers before me, such as Dr. William Ferguson Reid and Rev. Lawrence Davies, paved my way. I am indebted to them.”

 In 1968, Reid became the first African-American elected to the Virginia General Assembly since Reconstruction, and in 1976, Fredericksburg citizens elected Davies as their first African-American mayor, a post he held for 20 years, Cole noted.

 "It's nice to make history,” Cole added, “but this is not the history we want and need to make. Our goal is much higher and our aim is for Richmond."

Cole is an associate pastor at Union Bell Baptist Church in southern Stafford, and he serves as a behavioral aid for students in the Richmond Public Schools. He also spends time volunteering at the Boys and Girls Club of the Rappahannock Region.

"I want to make a difference," Cole said. "With the new leadership in the White House, I see that our country is heading backwards. Now is the time to step up and take action, to participate in the democratic process. We can't afford not to."

 Cole challenged state House Speaker Bill Howell for his seat in the 28th District on Jan. 12. Howell has since announced his retirement and will not be running for re-election. Appointed by Howell, Cole has served as the personal page for then-Gov. Mark Warner and went on to serve as the Virginia Senate Chamber staff assistant during the 2016 General Assembly, according to the candidate.