Living a life of service has been at the heart of Tonya James.

Whether it’s serving in the Marine Corps, to helping in state and local politics, she has always operated by that mindset. Now, she seeks to take that as she seeks to become the Chair of the Prince William County Democratic Committee. Recently, she spoke with the PW Perspective about past experiences and how it has prepared her for this opportunity.

On Juneteenth, James and several other members of Potomac Supervisor Andrea Bailey celebrated the renaming of Batestown Road in Dumfries. She spoke about what it meant to her personally to see this day come to pass.

“Since I retired from the Marine Corps and decided to make this area my home, just being a part of the community and learning to help support its rich history, especially in eastern Prince William, has been a humbling experience for myself,” said James. “To be able to see local activists who worked so hard to bring it to fruition, it’s just something that makes me remember that it’s what I do everyday is way bigger than myself.”

She reflects on why she decided to run for Chair at this time. “So upon retiring, one of the first things that my mentors told me is to ‘Find what drives you,’ and that’s what I’ve done. I retired at the beginning of [former President Donald] Trump’s presidency. After the 2016 election, I saw so many of my Marine friends that I trained who were still in uniform being very scared.”

“That presidency was a national security threat in itself and how he would interact with world leaders there were concerns. Being in the military you have to be apolitical. I wanted to be that voice for them and talk about what’s at stake. When we have a new commander in chief, the military and their families are the ones quickly impacted by the changes with new laws. The president can send troops to hot zones throughout the world, and I wanted to make sure that as we started to resist Trumpism that I was a voice for active duty military.”

She discusses what happened as a result. “As far as being an activist for military issues in 2017 I started by going to work in electoral politics during the election for [Virginia Governor] Ralph Northam, and [Senator] Tim Kaine.I worked primarily in eastern Prince William County.”

In addition, she was the State Organizing Director for President Joe Biden and Senator Mark Warner, leading them both to historic wins in Virginia. Her efforts led to Senator Warner receiving more votes than any state wide candidates in Virginia’s history.

“After that I went to be the Northern VA regional field director for Tim Kaine, focusing on organizing efforts while also trying to flip and maintain congressional seats. That year we were able to flip CD-10, push Stafford County from red to blue for the first time in over 30 years for the senator.”

During that time, what were some lessons that she learned along the way?

“At the same time, in 2018, I was the senior vice chair of the [Democratic] committee. Not only working as a paid staffer, I was involved in the committee. I was also vice chair of the Brentsville committee. Often times we forget that each magisterial district is different. I understand the needs of the western and eastern side as they are different in priorities. The eastern side, it’s a lot harder to get people involved because they’re more working families. The question is always why the county continues to turn blue but it’s hard to get people involved. We have to make it inclusive. We have to outreach more so that young families can get involved. That’s just being an organizer and learning how to bring these types of volunteers and activists together is going to be key in growing that party here.”

James discusses the need for more progressive voices in local leadership. “I think it’s no secret that voters in Prince William County want to be more progressive and move in that direction. If they didn’t they wouldn’t have given that mandate in 2019 by flipping the school board. It’s important that we start to listen to those progressive voices. We need to make sure we align with their views.”

“If we focus less on what separates us and focus more on what brings us together, it will help us to maintain those progressive voices and change them to activists and eventually candidates. A huge interest is growing the party and also to build the bench of young, well tuned in and tapped in to the issues and concerns of the residents of PWC ready to step up.”

For those that don’t know Tonya James, she emphasizes her vision for the county. “I think it’s important that one, they understand that my number one focus is winning in November while also making sure that each district is growing the party. We’re educating voters on what’s at stake. It’s a huge part of my philosophy in addition to doing outreach. I want people to know that there is a local Democratic committee and we are a big tent. We want to make sure that anyone who wants to be at the table will be at the table, whether they’re in Haymarket, Coles, Occoquan or Dumfries. Every voice can be heard and can play a part. Activism is not a one size fits all. I just want to be a tool to help that.”

Chairwoman Katelyn O. Page released the following statement in support, “The Prince William County Democratic Women’s Caucus believes we need to elect leaders who show up not just for women, but to ensure that our leadership reflects the vision of the community, and respects all voices with the conversation.”

“The Caucus fiercely works to protect the Democratic majority, and many of us have given our time and talent to procure across the Commonwealth and in Prince William County. We believe all will benefit from a diverse leadership body that will champion all our Democratic candidates, elected officials, organizations, and relationships which will advance everyone’s unique issues. We are extremely proud of our Caucus Member candidates, Tonya James for Chair and Rozia Henson Jr. for Vice Chair, and support them to lead our county committee into a win this November.”

The voting will take place this Thursday.