General President Edward Kelly joined members of the Virginia Professional Fire Fighters (VPFF) in Roanoke, Virginia, to rally support for Abigail Spanberger, the Democratic nominee for governor.
Kelly praised her strong pro-fire fighter record in Congress, including her leadership as the lead Democratic cosponsor of the Social Security Fairness Act – bipartisan legislation repealing the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO).
“46,000 Virginians got a new lease on life. Those people that were struggling month-to-month got close to $300 million because of the work of Congresswoman Spanberger,” said Kelly. “Her service to our country has been second to none, and her service as the next governor of Virginia will be second to none.”
Longtime Virginia state Senator John Edwards, as well as Roanoke Mayor Joseph Cobb were also in attendance.
Her service to our country has been second to none, and her service as the next governor of Virginia will be second to none.
General President Edward Kelly
Spanberger, who is facing Lt. Governor Winsome Earle-Sears in the election, earned the endorsement of the VPFF earlier this year.
“Our endorsement comes as a result of Abigail’s commitment to ensure fire fighters have the tools and resources necessary to protect the citizens of our commonwealth,” said VPFF President Robert Bragg, who also spoke at the event.
Spanberger thanked Virginia’s fire fighters and first responders, stressing how proud she was to have earned their endorsement.
“You run toward danger when everyone else is running away,” she said. “Our leaders have an obligation to support the emergency personnel who put the commonwealth and the lives of our fellow Virginians ahead of themselves. I’m proud to stand here with you today.”
She also reflected on her role in the successful repeal of WEP and GPO, describing the effort as an example of her governing philosophy.
Our leaders have an obligation to support the emergency personnel who put the commonwealth and the lives of our fellow Virginians ahead of themselves. I’m proud to stand here with you today.
Democratic Nominee for Governor Abigail Spanberger
“Everywhere I go, I meet people who are impacted. People whose lives have been changed for the better because they’ve been pulled out of poverty,” she said. “Even though I’m now running for governor, I talk about this because it’s a question of approach. When I got to Congress, people said those provisions have been in place for 40 years, and for 40 years people tried to change it. And for 40 years, they haven’t been able to do it – it is what it is.”
But Spanberger and her colleague, then-Rep. Garret Graves (R-LA), refused to take no for an answer.
“The harder it is, the more worthy of a cause it is. We committed to it, and we got it done. When people say something is too hard, it’s because nobody has worked hard enough to get it done,” she added.
During her three terms representing Virginia’s 7th district, Spanberger sponsored several IAFF priority bills, including the Federal Fire Fighter Pay Equity Act, the Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act, and legislation to expand the National Firefighter Registry for Cancer.
“No matter what we leaned on Abigail for, she stood tall,” said Kelly.
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