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Suzanne Patrick
Suzanne Patrick was a 2014 Democratic candidate who sought election to the U.S. House to represent the 2nd Congressional District of Virginia. Patrick was defeated by incumbent Scott Rigell (R) in the general election on November 4, 2014.
Biography
Patrick graduated from Randolph-Macon Woman’s College in Lynchburg, Virginia in 1977 with a B.A. in European studies. She went on to earn an M.A. in national security studies from Georgetown University.[1]
Career
Patrick is a retired United States Naval Reserve commander. She served as the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Industrial Policy from 2001-2005. She founded and served as principal at her own consulting business, Suzanne D. Patrick & Company, which provided investment banking and technology search and strategy consulting services to corporate clients.[1] She has served as an aerospace analyst with Sanford Bernstein, and she held senior management positions with Creditanstalt Bank and Ventana Capital Management, LLC. She also founded the hedge fund investment firm New Poland Eagle.[2]
Campaign themes
2014
Patrick’s website highlighted the following priorities:[3]
| “ |
JOBS & THE ECONOMY: From her experience advising international corporations navigating the global marketplace, to starting and successfully running her own small business, Suzanne has the knowledge and skills necessary to spur local economic development and job creation here in Virginia. She’ll support fair trade and use her knowledge of global markets to expand opportunities for our local port. Suzanne believes investments in infrastructure are essential—not only to create jobs now, but also to lay the groundwork for future economic growth. And, she is fiercely committed to maintaining funds for the military facilities that are the backbone of the local economy. MILITARY PREPAREDNESS: Thanks to a lot of political gamesmanship and partisan bickering in Congress, our nation’s and economy and armed services are now feeling the harmful effects of the sequester. Not only are seniors, children, and middle class families taking a hit, the sequester also damages our nation’s military preparedness. Suzanne will work to break the gridlock, end the senseless sequester, and restore the funding our military needs to return to full strength. EDUCATION: For years, Suzanne has actively mentored young women pursuing careers in science, engineering, and the military. Through this work, she sees the ways our current education system is failing the next generation. Too few students graduate with the skills needed to compete in today’s global economy, while too many graduate under the burden of massive debt from student loans. Suzanne believes every American student deserves the opportunity to access a quality, affordable education, and that investments in education are the best investment we can make in our nation’s future economic success. OUR SENIORS: Suzanne firmly opposes any effort to privatize Social Security or turn Medicare into a voucher program. As the primary caretaker for her aging parents, Suzanne understands how important these earned benefits are to seniors on a fixed income. Instead of gutting these programs or subjecting them to the volatility of Wall Street, Suzanne believes in protecting the long-term viability of Social Security and Medicare through strategic investments and common sense reforms so that all seniors can enjoy security, dignity, and access to quality, affordable health care in retirement. POSITION: ISRAEL We have an important and historic relationship with Israel, and one that must be strengthened and maintained through this period of heightened instability and conflict in the Middle East. From the moment Israel became a nation in 1948, the United States has been a strong ally. We were the first nation to recognize Israel, and we have played an important role in continuing to help Israel persevere in a dangerous and challenging region. Israel is the strongest democracy in the Middle East, and Israelis share our values and commitments to democracy and regional security. In this time of change and volatility in the Middle East, we need strong allies like Israel to champion and uphold these values in the region. In Congress, I will fight to strengthen our relationship with Israel diplomatically, military, culturally, and economically so that we work together to build a bright future for both nations. [4] |
” |
| —Suzanne Patrick, http://web.archive.org/web/20140916180528/http://suzannepatrickforcongress.com/priorities/ | ||
Centrist Democrat
The Hill reported that Patrick planned to frame herself as a "centrist Democrat."[5]
Elections
2014
Incumbent Scott Rigell (R) defeated retired U.S. Naval Reserve Commander Suzanne Patrick (D) in the general election on November 4, 2014. Neither candidate faced a primary challenger.
Ballotpedia identified Virginia's 2nd Congressional District as a battleground race because Cook's PVI showed the district as R+2, and Fairvote rated the district as 43.4 percent Democratic. In addition, President Barack Obama won the district by 1.5 percent in 2012 and 1.7 percent in 2008.[6][7]
Election results
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican |  Scott Rigell Incumbent |
58.7% | 101,558 | |
| Democratic | Suzanne Patrick | 41.1% | 71,178 | |
| N/A | Write-in | 0.2% | 324 | |
| Total Votes | 173,060 | |||
| Source: Virginia Department of Elections | ||||
Jumpstart program
Patrick was a member of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's Jumpstart program, which was designed to provide early support to top-tier Democratic challengers.[8]
Endorsements
- Patrick was endorsed by EMILY's List, a group focused on electing Democratic women who support legalized abortion.[9]
Media
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Campaign finance summary
Ballotpedia currently provides campaign finance data for all federal- and state-level candidates from 2020 and later. We are continuously working to expand our data to include prior elections. That information will be published here as we acquire it. If you would like to help us provide this data, please consider donating to Ballotpedia.
Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Patrick has been a resident of Virginia Beach, Va. since 1991. She is the primary caretaker of her aging parents.[1]
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term "Suzanne + Patrick + Virginia + Congress"
See also
- United States House of Representatives elections in Virginia, 2014
- United States House of Representatives elections, 2014
- Virginia elections, 2014
- Battleground Friday: Virginia's 2nd Congressional District
- Called to Serve: 11 female veterans seeking election to Congress
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Suzanne Patrick for Congress, "About Suzanne," accessed March 12, 2014
- ↑ "Bloomberg Businessweek","Suzanne Patrick", accessed August 11, 2014
- ↑ Susanne Patrick for Congress”, "Priorities," accessed March 21, 2014
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ "The Hill", "Former George W. Bush official launches challenge to Rep. Rigell," August 27, 2013
- ↑ The Cook Political Report, "Introducing the 2014 Cook Political Report Partisan Voter Index," accessed November 5, 2013
- ↑ FairVote, "FairVote Releases Projections for the 2014 Congressional Elections," accessed November 5, 2013
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedjump - ↑ The Farm Team, "Emily's List puts Patrick 'On the List'," accessed March 24, 2014
