Stosch announces retirement from Virginia Senate

State Senator Walter Stosch (R Henrico), one of the senior members of the Virginia Senate confirmed this morning that he won’t be running for re-election in 2015, bringing to an end a 33-year career in the Virginia General Assembly, including the last 23 years in the Senate.

“I believe in Scripture,” the President Pro Tempore and Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee was quoted as saying. “Ecclesiastes says there is a time and place for everything.”

Stosch, 78, said he spent a great deal of time wrestling about whether to run again, talking with his wife, Eleanor, and other members of his family and close advisors, before making the decision a few days ago.

Stosch said his decision was made early in the 2015 Session so there is ample time for candidates to seek the nomination of the party and campaign between now and November general election.  “This will allow the 200,000 people who live in the 12th Senate District (Henrico and Hanover) to have almost a year’s time to select a successor”, he said.

He is facing possible surgery on a shoulder later in the year but declared that he could nevertheless have won re-election and “I believe faithful stewardship to my constituents over the years would have resulted in their continued support for another election.,” he added.

The announcement creates another open seat for the Virginia Senate and follows the recent retirement announcement of another senior Republican, Senator John Watkins, who like Stosch, will retire at the end of 2015

Stosch also has been a stalwart for the Senate in Virginia, having been the chief patron of such important legislation as the Community College Transfer Grant, Dual Enrollment College Credit Program, the Public Private Partnership Act, many important jobs creation programs and is given credit for successfully eliminating the state income tax on Social Security benefits received by seniors.  He has served as Chairman of or spearheaded a number of government efficiency programs under both Republican and Democrat Governors. 

Retirement from the Senate does not mean being idle.  It is simply not in his nature not to be constantly busy.  The Senator and his wife have two children, four grandchildren and now two young great grandchildren that he is hoping to spend more time with. 

Stosch was first elected to the Virginia House of Delegates in 1983 and in 1992 was elected to the Virginia Senate.

He has risen in seniority to serve as Chairman of the Joint House and Senate Republican Caucus, Senate Majority Leader, Chairman of the General Laws and Technology Committee, Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, Senate President Pro Tempore and is the senior most Republican member of the Senate. 

He is a veteran of the US Army and the only CPA member of the General Assembly.

“For 33 years, I’ve had the greatest privilege of my life representing others in the General Assembly,” he said. “To be able to serve the needs of others is a great satisfaction to me and there isn’t anyone luckier than I am,” he added.

Not having to campaign throughout the spring, summer and fall frees him up to work on issues that are important to him, Stosch said.  “It’s not a retirement decision and I plan to be busy,” he said.

“I will still continue my work in helping young people achieve their dreams through better access to affordable education and in serving my community in other ways.  But, hopefully it will be at a far reduced stress level.”

“I want people to know how grateful I am to serve Virginia” he said. “I want people to know here’s a guy who’s honest, he’s straight forward, always did what he thought was right, stood on principle and did his best.  Also, I’d like people to believe that each of us has a duty to leave our community and our Commonwealth a better place than we’ve found it.  That has been my goal and commitment for the last 33 years.”

Stosch’s long term Legislative Assistant, Karla Boughey, recently commented that “the Senator is one of the most skilled leaders I know of who can bring people in a room who are in total disagreement with one another, lead them in an incisive, non-confrontational, intellectual evaluation of the relevant facts and possible solutions and then have them walk out having reached a consensus. I have seen it time and time again.  He simply has that ability to substitute understanding and compromise for gridlock.” 

He used to say “anybody can vote no or be an obstructionist but leadership demands problem solving, political risk taking and getting things done” she added.

When asked if he had any reflections about the current political climate, Stosch observed the process in Virginia works better than most but in recent years, national, and to a lesser extent Virginia politics, have become increasing polarized along partisan and ideological lines. This polarization has been especially prevalent in the areas of economic and social policy making.  Often, neither party nor ideological view is in the majority, thus good candidates or servants in public office are pulled and tugged in different directions with the real battle for ideas, voters and supporters occurring somewhere in between the extreme positions. “It makes compromise and simply getting things done more difficult but even more important”, he said.