Meet Charlie

I’m Charlie Schmidt, a progressive Democrat running to represent the 77th District in the Virginia House of Delegates. I’m a former ACLU attorney, a long-time community activist, and a proud SEIU Local 512 member. My life’s work has been centered on one guiding belief: every person deserves dignity, safety, and opportunity.

For years, I’ve stood with my neighbors when their rights and freedoms were under threat. I’ve defended families unfairly targeted by ICE. I’ve advocated for students disciplined without due process in our public schools. I’ve held police departments and local governments accountable when they violated constitutional protections.

But my work hasn’t stopped at protecting civil rights. I’ve also helped strengthen our local economy by supporting entrepreneurs and small businesses. I’ve helped nonprofits across Richmond access the resources they need to serve families and build a better future. As a founding board member of the Interfaith Alliance for Climate Justice, I fought corporate polluters — from cleaning up coal ash sites to opposing massive gas pipeline proposals — and stood up to Dominion Energy to protect air, water and the health of our communities. Now, I’m ready to bring my experience, passion and commitment to the Virginia General Assembly.

Why I’m Running

Across Virginia, families are facing deep uncertainty. We see federal overreach and the use of troops in American cities, and we worry about the safety of our friends and loved ones. Immigrant communities are living in fear of having their families ripped apart. At the same time, working people are struggling with the rising cost of basics — food, housing, healthcare, childcare — and are left wondering how to keep up.

While communities are under attack, our healthcare system is at a breaking point. Health insurance premiums and deductibles are skyrocketing and prescription prices keep climbing. Families are delaying or skipping care because they simply can’t afford it with rural and underserved communities losing healthcare access entirely. Even though Virginia remains the only state in the South that protects abortion rights,our healthcare workers are targets for other states like Texas and Florida with extremist agendas that want to punish our medical professionals for providing abortion services. 

We’re also watching our environment and shared public resources get handed over to the highest bidder. Rural areas are being swallowed up by data centers that are draining our water and driving up our electric bills. Corporations are plowing through natural areas and seizing private land to build pipelines to feed gas power plants, locking us into decades of dependence on fossil fuels when we know there are clean affordable alternatives. While these corporations rake in the profits, our communities and environment are forced to shoulder the consequences.

These challenges are real. They can feel overwhelming.
 

But I am hopeful.

On November 4th, Virginians sent a message to the nation: we are not backing down. We will stand up to authoritarianism. We will protect our most vulnerable neighbors. We will fight for working families. And we will build a future where every child has the chance to grow up in a healthy, safe, and thriving community.

Our Future Is Worth Fighting For

Together, we can protect civil rights, strengthen our economy, defend reproductive freedom, safeguard our environment, and ensure that every Virginian — no matter their zip code or background — has the opportunity to succeed.

Join us.