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We’re thrilled with where things stand right now. We’ve gone from a 10-seat deficit to a four-seat advantage, a gain of seven seats.

We arrived here the old-fashioned way: great candidates, hard work and listening to the Virginia voters.

Our campaigns got an earful from people across Virginia.

They don’t like the anti-law enforcement agenda Democrats were pushing, they don’t want to defund the police, and they want answers about the Parole Board.

When Terry McAuliffe said what he did about education, it opened a new door.

We felt certain that House Democrats would begin to distance themselves from that, but they never did.

The same thing happened with House Bill 257. We expected them to walk away from that, but they never did.

What comes next

We’ve gotten away from the way the chamber has been run historically for the past two years. That is going to change.

The public was shut out, debate was cut off at every turn. That’s not healthy for our democracy, and we’re going to change that.

We’re going to ensure that the work product of the House — the bills it passes — aren’t just good policy but also good law.

The days of “Oh, the Governor will send down an amendment to fix it” are over. House Republicans are here to do a job, and we will do it right.

House Republicans, like myself, are looking forward to starting a collaborative process with the incoming Youngkin administration.

We look forward to working with the incoming administration to work on a collaborative policy agenda for the 2022 General Assembly Session.

Our agenda is not going to be a surprise to anyone who followed the campaign.

Lastly, being Thanksgiving week, we thank the Lord for all our blessing and appreciate all opportunities we get to be surrounded by our loved ones. COVID-19 has taught us how fragile time is, especially during the holiday season.

That said, I am thankful for being able to represent you in Richmond, making Virginia the best place to love, worship, work and raise a family. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving.

Del. Tommy Wright can be reached via email at DelTWright@House.Virginia.gov or (804) 698-1061.