How Does RPAC Decide Which Candidates To Support In General Assembly Races In The Commonwealth?

You may ask this question when RPAC announces the list of supported candidates before each election: Why did RPAC support candidate Smith instead of candidate Jones?

The answer comes from policies and procedures set forth in RPAC’s bylaws at the local, state and federal levels. 

The endorsement process begins with an evaluation of incumbent Delegates and Senators from Northern Virginia. The local NV/RPAC Trustees, in consultation with the state-level RPAC of Virginia Trustees, measure a legislator’s support for Realtor® issues in these categories:

1. Voting Record on the Realtor® Legislative Agenda:  Each year, your Realtor® associations introduce legislation intended to benefit you and your clients. The Trustees examine how each Delegate and Senator voted on these measures in subcommittee, committee and on the floor of their respective chamber.

2. Patron of a Realtor® Bill: Special consideration is given to those members who agreed to introduce such legislation on the Realtors’® behalf and see it through passage.

3. Patron of a “Good” Bill for Real Estate:  Legislators are given recognition for bills that advance our industry and homeownership, even if those bills were not initially part of the Realtor® agenda for that session.

4. Patron of a “Bad” Bill for Real Estate:  Should a legislator introduce a piece of legislation that would be harmful to Realtors®, that action would be viewed negatively by the Trustees.

5. Committee and Leadership Assignments: Special consideration is given to those members who serve in leadership roles in the House and Senate, as well as to those members who serve on key committees for Realtor® legislation. In the House, those include the Counties, Cities and Towns; General Laws; Courts of Justice; and Commerce and Labor committees. In the Senate, members of the Local Government; General Laws; Courts of Justice; and Commerce and Labor committees are considered. These individuals can exert great influence on the success – or failure – of our legislative agenda.

6. “Relationship” with VAR and NVAR:  Extra recognition is given to those elected officials who are our true champions in the legislature. These are the Delegates and Senators who reach out to Realtors® prior to introducing any legislation that may affect your business, and who work behind the scenes to advance our policy goals with other members of the General Assembly.  Trustees could also consider a “negative” relationship – one in which the official does not wish to work with our industry or actively tries to defeat the Realtor® agenda.

7. Realtor® or Related Industry Member:  Members of the General Assembly who are Realtors® themselves, hold real estate licenses or are affiliated with the industry (such as a mortgage lender or appraiser) are given favorable consideration.

Your state and local RPAC Trustees complete this evaluation early each spring following the close of the General Assembly session.

This year, there are a number of open seats in Northern Virginia. What is the process for deciding RPAC support when there is not an incumbent running in a race?

Candidates for open seats are evaluated on the following:
1. Voting Record from Another Elected Office:  Many times candidates for state office have previously held another state or local position. Any votes taken in that capacity on Realtor® issues, both positive and negative, would be considered by the Trustees.

2. Answers to an RPAC Issues Questionnaire:  Candidates are asked to outline their positions on real estate issues including transportation, affordable housing, growth and development, eminent domain and the environment.

3. Interview with the RPAC Trustees:  In most instances where there are open seats,Trustees ask candidates to come in for interviews and discuss the answers to the RPAC issues questionnaire. This allows candidates to give a more in-depth explanation of their questionnaire answers, and the Trustees gain a better understanding of their approach to legislation and campaigning. During major election years, the Trustees often spend several days interviewing candidates.

As you can see, consideration of a candidate’s political party affiliation is not listed these steps. The process is instead focused on finding those true champions of our industry based on objective measures, regardless of the letter after a name on the ballot.

If you have a question about RPAC that you would like us to address, please contact the Government Affairs Department staff at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . To learn more, visit nvar.com>For Realtors>Government Affairs.

Lisa Vierse May, NVAR Government Affairs Manager, has over ten years of experience in policy, advocacy and political action committee fundraising for trade associations. She previously administered the peer review program for the National Society of Accountants and has a background in history/political science and criminal justice. She has been employed at NVAR since June 2003.You can read more articles written by Lisa here.