Attorney General Candidate Justin Fairfax spoke to the University Democrats Wednesday evening about his professional background and and platform. If elected, Fairfax said he would focus his efforts on increasing homeowner protection and access to safe student loans.
Fairfax, a graduate of Duke University and Columbia Law School, said he prided himself on being a non-traditional candidate, having come from a non-political background. Working as a prosecutor, not a politician, has afforded him valuable insight, he said.
Fairfax’s platform focuses on issues of public safety and economic stability, particularly within the housing system after the recent economic crisis.
“When you lose a house, you don’t just lose a house, you lose that security,” Fairfax said. “[I] don’t think we’ve had the leadership on that issue in Virginia. [I] want to make sure homeowners are protected … and Virginia will be a lot better off.”
In addition, Fairfax hopes to clarify the terms of student loans and guarantee a more reliable student-loan system. Raised by a single mother in an inner-city area, he recounted the importance of his student loans in ensuring he received a quality higher education. In his words, a dependable loan “changed the odds” in his life.
“Federal aid has stayed stagnant, so private lenders have come in…[and] some of those people can be unscrupulous,” Fairfax said. “Some people are going bankrupt right out of college, right when they are supposed to be beginning their lives. We want to make sure people have access to safe student loans.”
If elected, Fairfax would be the first Democrat to hold the office since 1989. Before that is a possibility, however, he must win the June 11 Democratic primary.
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