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Virginia State Senate
Dave Marsden
State Senate — District 35
Democrat
RESOLUTE Citizen Score
0
/ 100
—
Raw: 0 of 16 dynamic max
· 8 of 49 answered
State tier49 of 50 rubric questions apply at this office level — federal-only questions are marked N/A and excluded from the dynamic max. How tier grading works →
Last verified: · from claim evidence
✝ God First
0/ 70
🏛️ State First
0/ 30
National Rank
#5,156 of 8,957 · bottom 42.4% among candidates with at least one scored answer
See the full rankings →Contact This Official
Reach out directly. Your voice matters. Proverbs 29:2 — When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice.
Next Election
November 2, 2027
Primary · Not up at next scheduled election
— until
Registration deadline: 2026-10-13
Early voting: 2026-09-18 – 2026-10-31
Elections office: (804) 864-8901
Voter status: Check registration
State elections site: Virginia Department of Elections
Official Profile
Religion: Not publicly confirmed (no public source states an affiliation)
Background: VA State Senator, SD-35 (Fairfax County); in the Senate since a Jan 2010 special election (succeeded Ken Cuccinelli); Delegate 2006-2010. 17 years head of the Fairfax County Juvenile Detention Center; appointed Acting Director of the VA Dept. of Juvenile Justice by Gov. Gilmore (R). Chief sponsor of the 2021 VA Consumer Data Protection Act.
VA State Senator, SD-35 (Fairfax); in the Senate since 2010; corrections/juvenile-justice career. [2026-06 RESOLUTE refinement, state tier] Best-documented record in this batch — individual roll-calls pulled from the LIS vote API. SANCTITY OF LIFE: voted YES on the reproductive-freedom amendment (SJ247 SV89, 2025; SJ1, 2026); ReproRising 'A+ Champion'. MARRIAGE: voted YES on the same-sex-marriage amendment (SJ249 SV91, 2025; SJ3, 2026). ECONOMICS: voted YES on SB1 (2026, $15 minimum wage). SELF-DEFENSE: Giffords champion; chief patron of SB496 (2026, locked storage of handguns in vehicles); voted YES on SB749 (2026 assault-weapons + >15-round-magazine ban) and SB495 (2026 red-flag expansion). Family/child-sovereignty, Christian-liberty, public-justice, federal-overreach, border/immigration, voter-ID/mail-in = NO specific public record located, left NULL (conservative FreedomIndex 4% lifetime, consistent with a reliably progressive record; its two 'freedom-aligned' credits — SB851 rainwater harvesting and HB158 45-day cap on executive emergency orders — are process votes that do not map to the rubric's economic cells and are not scored).
Category Breakdown
Candidate affirms life begins at conception and personhood from conception
FALSE (0)[1]
1 claim
Voted yes on SJ1 (Virginia Senate abortion-rights constitutional amendment, 2026 Regular Session), which passed 21-18 on a straight party-line vote, placing a 'fundamental right to reproductive freedom' amendment on Virginia's November 2026 ballot. The amendment allows unrestricted abortion through the second trimester and broad third-trimester exceptions, rejecting personhood from conception.
- Virginia Legislative Information SystemOfficial
- BallotpediaCenter
Candidate has voted for or sponsored state legislation moving toward abortion abolition (e.g., heartbeat ban, total ban) — not merely restrictions
FALSE (0)[2]
Candidate opposes state funding for embryonic stem-cell research and supports state IVF embryo-protection laws
Not yet verified
Candidate opposes state physician-assisted suicide laws and opposes state Medicaid death-panel rationing
Not yet verified
Candidate has never accepted abortion-industry PAC funding for state-legislative or statewide-office campaigns
Not yet verified
Candidate affirms marriage as exclusively the lifelong union of one man and one woman as instituted by God
FALSE (0)[3]
1 claim
Voted yes on the Senate version of the same-sex marriage constitutional amendment (SJ249/HJ9, 2026 session) placing a measure on the November 2026 ballot to enshrine same-sex and interracial marriage in Virginia's constitution, overturning the existing one-man-one-woman constitutional definition.
- BallotpediaCenter
- WikipediaEncyclopedia
Candidate opposes state recognition of same-sex marriage / civil unions / domestic partnerships, and supports state non-recognition resolutions where federally permitted
FALSE (0)[3]
Candidate has voted for state legislation affirming biological sex (bathroom/locker access, sports participation, minor gender-procedure bans)
Not yet verified
Candidate supports state no-fault divorce reform and pro-marriage policy (covenant marriage option, waiting periods, etc.)
Not yet verified
Candidate opposes promotion of LGBTQ+ identity in state-funded schools, state agencies, and state corporate-partnership programs
Not yet verified
Candidate has voted for state school-choice (vouchers, ESAs, charter expansion) and supports state homeschool freedom statutes
Not yet verified
Candidate has voted for state law requiring parental notification + consent on minors' medical, mental-health, and gender interventions (incl. school counseling referrals)
Not yet verified
Candidate has voted for state law restricting CRT/SOGI/comprehensive-sex-ed/gender-ideology curricula in K-12
Not yet verified
Candidate has voted for state age-verification laws on pornographic content and state criminal penalties for sexualizing minors
Not yet verified
Candidate has voted for state RFRA-style protections for faith-based adoption + foster agencies; opposes state-mandated SS-couple placement
Not yet verified
Candidate affirms the right to publicly profess Christ in all spheres (workplace, military, public office, schools)
Not yet verified
Candidate has voted for state conscience-exemption laws (state RFRA, medical-professional carve-outs, business-owner protections)
Not yet verified
Candidate opposes state-level pronoun mandates + state 'hate speech' laws restricting Christian conviction
Not yet verified
Candidate supports state public-square Christian display protections + state legislative prayer + state Sunday-closure laws
Not yet verified
Candidate opposes state-funded promotion of non-Christian religious displays/curricula/holidays in state institutions
Not yet verified
Candidate has voted for state law protecting cash as legal tender, opposing state-level CBDC pilot programs, and protecting crypto-as-property status
Not yet verified
Candidate supports sound-money policies including gold/silver as constitutional money and audit/abolition of the Federal Reserve
N/A · out of tier
Candidate has voted for state balanced-budget compliance + opposed state borrowing for non-capital expenditures
FALSE (0)[4]
Candidate has voted for state usury caps + state predatory-lending protections + state charitable-deduction parity
Not yet verified
Candidate has voted for state pension/treasury divestment from ESG-aligned funds (e.g., BlackRock) + state anti-monopoly enforcement against financial cartels
Not yet verified
Candidate (state SoS/legislature) has voted for state hand-count requirements / opposed electronic voting machines
Not yet verified
Candidate (state SoS/legislature) has voted for state photo voter ID + citizenship verification at registration
Not yet verified
Candidate has voted to restrict state early-voting windows + tighten state absentee qualifications to verified medical/military
Not yet verified
Candidate has voted against state mass mail-in voting expansion, against state drop-box deployment, and against legalizing ballot harvesting
Not yet verified
Candidate (state SoS/legislature) has voted to ban state acceptance of private election grants ('Zuckerbucks') + state penalties for foreign interference
Not yet verified
Candidate (state) has voted for state-funded border-security measures (e.g., TX Operation Lone Star analog, AZ wall expansion)
Not yet verified
Candidate (state) has voted for state laws requiring local cooperation with ICE deportation enforcement
Not yet verified
Candidate (state) has voted to preempt or punish sanctuary-city policies + ban state cities from declaring sanctuary status
Not yet verified
Candidate (state) has voted for state E-Verify mandate (beyond federal floor) for state employers + state-benefit eligibility verification
Not yet verified
Candidate (state) has voted to restrict foreign ownership of state farmland (e.g., China-buyer prohibitions)
Not yet verified
Candidate supports constitutional carry without permit requirements
FALSE (0)[5]
Candidate (state) has voted against state red-flag laws, mag-capacity limits, AWBs, and registries (or voted to repeal where enacted)
FALSE (0)[6]
1 claim
Consistently backs Virginia Senate gun-control legislation. In the 2026 session, the Senate panel advanced gun-safety bills previously vetoed by Gov. Youngkin — including expanded red-flag law enforcement, safe-storage mandates, and background-check enhancements — on a path Marsden supported as a Democratic member.
- Virginia MercuryLean Left
- Virginia MercuryLean Left
Candidate (state) has voted for state constitutional-carry statute
Not yet verified
Candidate (state) has voted against state universal-background-check schemes
Not yet verified
Candidate (state) has voted to enact / strengthen state Castle Doctrine + stand-your-ground statute
FALSE (0)[5]
Candidate has publicly backed law enforcement and opposed defunding/dismantling police
Not yet verified
Candidate opposes cashless-bail, soft-on-crime, and rogue-prosecutor (e.g. Soros-DA) policy
Not yet verified
Candidate supports victim restitution and proportional punishment of evildoers
Not yet verified
Candidate refuses to treat violent crime as a "public health" excuse to avoid punishment
Not yet verified
Candidate affirms the magistrate's God-ordained duty to bear the sword (Rom. 13:4)
Not yet verified
Official has voted for or sponsored 10th-Amendment nullification or anti-commandeering measures
Not yet verified
Official has declined unconstitutional federal mandates or federal strings on the state
Not yet verified
Official has resisted federal overreach on guns, life, education, or religious liberty
Not yet verified
Official affirms state sovereignty against unconstitutional federal action
Not yet verified
Official has opposed federal capture of state elections, data, or land
Not yet verified
Sources & Evidence
1 Left1 Center4 Right8 Official2 Reference2 Other
Vote Smart — Voting RecordReference
reportcard.familyfoundation.org/Right Advocacy
www.vcdl.org/Right Advocacy
reportcard.familyfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2...Right Advocacy
freedomindex.us/va/Right Advocacy
giffords.org/candidates/dave-marsden/Unclassified
Ballotpedia ProfileCenter
Bias ratings sourced from AllSides and Ad Fontes Media. Classifications for government, reference, and advocacy domains are maintained by U.S.M.C. Ministries; see source_bias.json.
References & footnotes
Every answer above with a [n] marker corresponds to one of the footnotes below. Wayback-archive links preserve the page as it read at our access date so a reader can verify the citation even if the original URL changes or disappears.
- [1]Voted YES on the reproductive-freedom constitutional amendment (SJ247, roll-call SV89, Jan 21 2025; SJ1, 2026); ReproRising 'A+ Champion' — does not affirm personhood from conception. Official
Voted YES on the reproductive-freedom constitutional amendment (SJ247, roll-call SV89, Jan 21 2025; SJ1, 2026); ReproRising 'A+ Champion' — does not affirm personhood from conception.
- [2]ReproRising A+; voted the full pro-abortion-access agenda; opposite of abortion-abolition. Left Advocacy
ReproRising A+; voted the full pro-abortion-access agenda; opposite of abortion-abolition.
- [3]Voted YES on the same-sex-marriage constitutional amendment (SJ249, roll-call SV91, Jan 21 2025; SJ3, 2026) — does not affirm marriage as one man and one woman. Official
Voted YES on the same-sex-marriage constitutional amendment (SJ249, roll-call SV91, Jan 21 2025; SJ3, 2026) — does not affirm marriage as one man and one woman.
- [4]Voted YES on SB1 (2026) raising the minimum wage to $15/hr by 2028 — expansionary fiscal priority, opposite of balanced-budget restraint. Official
Voted YES on SB1 (2026) raising the minimum wage to $15/hr by 2028 — expansionary fiscal priority, opposite of balanced-budget restraint.
- [5]Giffords-endorsed gun-safety champion; record is uniformly pro-gun-control, opposite of permitless constitutional carry. Unclassified
Giffords-endorsed gun-safety champion; record is uniformly pro-gun-control, opposite of permitless constitutional carry.
- [6]Voted YES on SB749 (2026 assault-weapons + >15-round-magazine ban) and SB495 (2026 red-flag expansion); chief patron of SB496 (vehicle locked-storage) — supports the very measures this cell asks the candidate to oppose. Official
Voted YES on SB749 (2026 assault-weapons + >15-round-magazine ban) and SB495 (2026 red-flag expansion); chief patron of SB496 (vehicle locked-storage) — supports the very measures this cell asks the candidate to oppose.
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