Lashrecse Aird facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Lashrecse Aird
Aird in 2024
Member of the Virginia Senate from the 13th district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 10, 2024
Preceded by	John Bell (Redistricting)
Member of the Virginia House of Delegates from the 63rd district
In office January 13, 2016 – January 12, 2022
Preceded by	Joseph Preston
Succeeded by	Kim Taylor
Personal details
Born	Lashrecse Dianna Jones (1986-06-22) June 22, 1986 (age 39) Buffalo, New York, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Blaine Aird
Education	Virginia State University (BA) Virginia Commonwealth University

Lashrecse Dianna Aird (born June 22, 1986) is an American politician from the Democratic Party. She makes laws for the state of Virginia. From 2016 to 2022, she was a member of the Virginia House of Delegates, representing the 63rd District. This area includes the city of Petersburg and parts of several counties.

In 2023, Aird was elected to the Virginia State Senate for the 13th District. As a lawmaker, she has worked on committees that handle laws, health, and government spending.

Political Career

Lashrecse Aird was born in Buffalo, New York. Her interest in politics started when she was a student at Virginia State University. There, she met a politician named Rosalyn Dance, who offered her an internship. An internship is a temporary job where students can learn about a career.

Aird worked with Dance all through college. After graduating, she became Dance's legislative assistant, helping her with lawmaking tasks. In 2015, when Dance ran for the state Senate, Aird decided to run for Dance's old seat in the House of Delegates. She won and became the youngest woman ever elected to the Virginia House of Delegates.

In 2021, Aird lost her election for the House of Delegates to Republican Kim Taylor. However, she ran for office again in 2023, this time for the Virginia State Senate. She won the election and took office on January 10, 2024.

Laws and Policies

As a lawmaker, Lashrecse Aird has worked on many new laws and rules for Virginia. These laws cover topics like helping families, education, and the environment.

Helping Families and Workers

Aird has focused on creating laws to support people in need and protect workers' rights.

In 2019, she passed a law that made it easier for families in need to get temporary help from the government. Another law she passed that year helps keep families safe. It allows a parent to ask for a police officer to be present when they are exchanging custody of their children with the other parent.

In 2020, Aird passed a law that requires employers to give their workers paystubs. A paystub is a document that shows how many hours an employee worked and explains their pay. Before this law, employers in Virginia did not have to provide this information.

She also worked on laws about criminal records. One law she passed stops employers from asking about a person's criminal history on a job application. This gives people a better chance of being considered for a job based on their skills.

Education

Aird visits a community after-school program in Petersburg, Virginia on March 20, 2021.

Education is a major focus for Aird. She has worked to get more money for schools in her district and has passed laws to help students.

In 2018, she suggested a change to the state budget to give more money to schools with many low-income students. This program is called the At-Risk Add-On program.

In 2021, she worked on a bill to make sure all school districts that are able to can join the Federal After School Meals Program. This program provides healthy meals to students who stay for activities after school.

That same year, Aird passed a law known as Ban the Box. This law stops most state universities from asking about a person's criminal history on their first application. This gives more people a fair chance to get a college education.

Environment

Aird has supported laws to protect the environment and promote clean energy. She was a supporter of the Virginia Clean Economy Act. This act aims to reduce air pollution from carbon and move Virginia toward using 100% clean energy, like solar and wind power.

In 2019, she passed a law that created the Virginia Clean Energy Advisory Board. This board helps give out loans and discounts to people who want to install solar panels on their homes. This makes it easier and cheaper for more people to use clean energy.

Public Health

Aird has worked to improve health care for people in Virginia, especially for mothers and babies. In 2019, she introduced a resolution to bring attention to the problem of mothers and infants dying from issues related to childbirth.

In 2020, she passed a law to create a state program for doulas. A doula is a person trained to support someone during childbirth. The law also made it easier for patients to get help from a doula.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Aird passed a law to help first responders. The law required the Virginia Department of Health to share health information with emergency workers so they could stay safe while helping others.

Voting Rights

In 2021, Aird was a main supporter of the Voting Rights Act of Virginia. This important law protects the right of all citizens in Virginia to vote. It makes it illegal to prevent someone from voting because of their race or background.

Electoral history