Barbara Comstock's Electoral Connection

Through her website, https://comstock.house.gov/, Barbara Comstock has an easily accessible "media center" tab, which allows constituents to easily view news, press releases, social media accounts, and photos.

Barbara Comstock and Social Media ...

Congresswoman Comstock has a fairly extensive social media reach, with both active Facebook and Twitter accounts.

Follow @RepComstock on Twitter here! 

Like @RepBarbaraComstock on Facebook here! 

Follow @repbarbaracomstock on Instagram here!

Advertising
Congresswoman Comstock released a series of commercials in her re-election campaign of 2016, many of which attacked opponent LuAnn Bennett. By highlighting her accomplishments, and downplaying Bennett's, Comstock was able to build a favorable name among her constituents, even if there was little actual content to the ads. In this short video, Comstock features key issues that she stands for, but elaborates very little on each point. Her name is also repeated often to build more name recognition. 

Credit Claiming

One example of credit claiming for Barbara Comstock is her introduction of House Bill 321, or the Inspiring the Next Space Pioneers, Innovators, Researchers, and Explorers (INSPIRE) Women Act. This bill, which aims to connect entrepreneurs in the STEM fields with girls from K-12, was introduced by Comstock, and after passing in both the House and the Senate, will next go to the President. By introducing legislation, Comstock is showing that she is doing something that is beneficial to her constituents. Even if the bill wouldn't have passed, the simple introduction relays to voters that Comstock is personally responsible for new legislation. 

Position Taking

Congresswoman Comstock displayed Mayhew's definition of position taking when she co-sponsored recent House Bill 1022, or the Federal Employees Paid Parental Leave Act of 2017. By co-sponsoring a bill like this, she is showing that she supports something that may interest her voters, and is showing exactly where she stands on an issue. 

In the CNN interview below, Representative Comstock is displaying Mayhew's theories of advertising, credit claiming, and position taking. By displaying her name and image, she is advertising, by showing her voters she's involved she is credit claiming, and by commenting on the issue she is position taking. 

Finances

In looking at Congresswoman Comstock's finances, spending in personnel compensation and travel remained fairly stagnant from 2015 to 2016. Her big increase in spending came in 2016 through her franked mail use. In 2015, Comstock spent $2,055.38 on franked mail, and in 2016 (an election year), she spent $63,582.23.

Press Releases

Directly through her website, constituents have easy access to viewing Congresswoman Comstock's press releases. Recent releases include her statement on the GAO Metro Report, and a statement concerning Speaker William Howell's retirement. 

Electoral Circumstances

Last Election

In the 2016 election, Representative Comstock faced Democrat LuAnn Bennett in the race for the House. Comstock won the race with 52.9% of the vote, narrowly beating Bennett who garnered 47.1%. 

Upcoming Elections

There are numerous factors that could contribute to Representative Comstock's incumbency, or her removal, in the 2018 election. For one, Virginia's 10th District is beginning to lean more Democratic in attitude. For example, in the 2016 Presidential Election, Virginia's 10th voted for Hilary Clinton with 52.2% of the popular vote, compared with Donald Trump's 42.2%. In the 2012 Presidential Election, Mitt Romney narrowly won with 50.8% of votes, compared with Barack Obama's 49.2%. This could be an indication that Comstock's district will vote for a Democratic to take the House seat in 2018. In addition to these factors, the national attitude and political climate closer to the election may determine if Comstock will receive re-election. Historically, "the President's party has lost ground in the House 36 of 39 of midterms since the Civil War". With this, according to public opinion and views of President Trump, the House could easily flip, meaning that Representative Comstock might face a tougher election in 2018.

In one of LuAnn Bennett's campaign videos shown here, Bennett describes Comstock with being closely aligned with Donald Trump in political views. If this comparison shows any truth, it could be detrimental to Congresswoman Comstock's re-election prospects in 2018. 

The Primary in Virginia's 10th...

One interesting factor that could also contribute to Representative Comstock's removal from the House Seat in 2018 is the voting process used in Virginia. For primary elections, a hybrid primary process is used by the State of Virginia. Through this process, a voter doesn't need to be a member of the candidate's political party in order to vote for them in the primary. This further complicates Comstock's chances, and yields that Republicans may even vote for a Democratic House member, if national attitude toward the Republican party declines. 

Campaign Finances

2013-2016 Sources of Funds

• Individual Contributors - $5,189,934 - 59%
• PAC Contributors - $2,833,503 - 32%
• Candidate Self-Financing - $0 - 0%
• Other - $709, 877 - 8%

Altogether, from 2013-2016, Representative Comstock spent a total of $8,683,881. According to the last report, Comstock has no debt incurred in her campaigning or expenditures, which yields that she is in good financial standing.

In the 2016 election, Congresswoman Comstock had significantly higher funds than her opponent. Comstock raised a total of $5,256,693 and spent $5,258,955. This compares to almost double of LuAnn Bennett's $2,821,066 raised and $2,819,672 spent.

Blog 2 - District Profile

Virginia's 10th District

Population: Virginia's 10th District has a population of 807,670, with 399,762 males and 407,908 females. 

Major Cities: Major cities of Virginia's 10th District include Winchester, Berryville, Leesburg, Ashburn, Sterling, and Manassas. 

Party and Presidential Election: 

• Barbara Comstock is a registered Republican
• For the 2016 Presidential Election, Comstock endorsed Marco Rubio while he was still in the running.
• After President Trump's video of his lewds comments of women, Representative Comstock denounced Trump and called for him to step down.
• It is unclear who Comstock voted for in the 2016 Presidential Election.

(https://ballotpedia.org/Barbara_Comstock)

Demographics

Race:

• White: 571,749
• African American: 55,652
• American Indian or Alaskan Native: 2,250
• Asian: 113,994
• Hispanic: 105,618

Income:

Of the 264,870 households that make up Virginia's 10 District ... 

• 7,634 make less that $10,000 a year
• 16,642 make $35,000 to $49,999 a year
• 59,610 make over $200,000 a year

The median household income is $114,793, and the mean household income is $147,609 a year. 

Age: 

The median age is 37.9 years, and the population over age 18 is 590,870. 

Major Industries and Companies

Technology, manufacturing, agriculture, wineries, and breweries are major industries that make up Virginia's 10th District. Peach and apple orchards not only provide valuable exports for the district, but a major draw for tourism within the area. Tourism also thrives from the Appalachian Trail and Manassas Battlefield National Park, a Civil War battlefield. Two major companies, Kraft and Hood Milk operate out of the district, and provide many jobs for the region as well. 

(https://comstock.house.gov/about/our-district)
This promotional video highlights Manassas Battlefield National Park. 

Congresswoman Barbara Comstock (R-VA10)

Biography

(http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=C001105)

Political Party: Republican 

Born: June 30, 1959 in Springfield, Massachusetts 

Education: 

• BA from Middlebury College in Middlebury, Vermont
• JD from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.

Family: 

• Husband - Chip (teacher in Fairfax County schools)
• Children - Dan, Peter, and Caity 

Religion: Catholic

(https://comstock.house.gov/about/full-biography)

Residence: McLean, Virginia 

Post-House Careers: Before being elected into the U.S House of Representatives, Barbara Comstock worked for U.S. Senators Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts and Representative Frank Wolf of Virginia. At other points in her career, she worked as a private practice attorney, a staffer for the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and as a staffer at the United States Justice Department. Directly prior to her beginnings in the U.S. House, Comstock served as a member of the Virginia State House of Delegates. 

(http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=C001105)

House of Representatives: Barbara Comstock was elected into the United States House of Representatives as a Congresswoman from Virginia's 10th District in November of 2014. She continues to serve in the U.S. House today. 

(https://www.gop.gov/member/barbara-comstock/) 

Election: Comstock announced her run for U.S. House when incumbent Frank Wolf disclosed his retirement in 2014. By establishing herself early on as a strong Republican, Comstock was able to garner 54% of votes to win the seat for her district. 

(http://www.politico.com/story/2014/04/barbara-comstock-virginia-victory-106055) 

View one of Congresswoman Comstock's campaign commercials here

Virginia's 10th District: Virginia's 10th District has a population of 807,670 and includes Loudoun County, Clarke County, Frederick County, parts of Fairfax County, Prince William County, and the cities of Winchester, Manassas City, and Manassas Park. 

(https://www.census.gov/mycd/) 

Committee and Subcommittees: 

• Transportation & Infrastructure Committee
• Science, Space, & Technology Committee
• Subcommittee on Research and Technology (Chairwoman)
• House Administration Committee

(https://comstock.house.gov/about/full-biography)

Notable Achievements: 

• Founded the Young Women's Leadership Program, which pairs high school and middle school age girls with women leaders of various careers and professions
• 2015 recipient of the Barbara K. Olson Woman of Valor Award
• 2016 recipient of the Leadership Award from The Women's Center of Vienna, Virginia 
• Founder and founding partner of two small businesses
• Corallo Comstock
• Comstock Strategies 
• Director of Public Affairs for the U.S. Department of Defense from 2002 to 2003

(https://comstock.house.gov/about/full-biography) 

Sponsored Legislation:

As a member of the 114th and 115th Congress, Congresswoman Comstock has sponsored many key pieces of legislation, including the Research and Development Efficiency Act, the Surface Transportation Research and Development Act of 2015, the Student Loan Relief Act of 2015, and the "INSPIRE" Women Act. As the chairwoman of the Subcommittee on Research and Technology and founder of the Young Women's Leadership Program, Comstock has taken a special interest in bills and amendments of this nature. 

(https://www.congress.gov/member/barbara-comstock)