Good afternoon and thank you all for coming.

First, I want to say how proud I am to be a Democrat and how proud I have been to serve in Virginia's House of Delegates along side some of the best Democrats in the nation. I am also proud of having represented the people of the 57th District in the longest continuously operating legislature in the country.

Throughout my career I have advocated for those without a voice. Governor Gilmore recently wrote an op-ed piece in the Richmond Times Dispatch in which he piously proclaimed that Republicans nurture mountain climbers - that the GOP encourages people to use their god given talents to achieve their dreams. This is all well and good, but what he failed to mention is that we are not all faced with the same mountain and that not all people have adequate tools available to climb their personal mountain. I believe that in a society as prosperous as ours we can and must ensure that everyone has a chance to scale his or her mountain.

For example, we must ensure that all of Virginia's children have access to health insurance. We can't allow their futures to be jeopardized because of an administration indifferent to their needs.

We must provide a good education for ALL of our children. Not just those in "good" school districts, not just those with extraordinary academic gifts, and not just for those who plan to go to college.

Over the past several years, I have been struggling to overcome the Gilmore administration's stubborn apathy regarding adequate funding for remediation programs. This year my efforts were undermined by Gilmore's obsession with the car tax. My bills to help each and every student get over their mountain were killed because of lack of money.

My job is not finished. Therefore, I am here to announce that I am running for re-election to the Virginia House of Delegates.

"Politician" has become a dirty word in our society and I believe that this is most unfortunate. I hope that I do honor to politics, to the Democratic Party, and to the people of the 57th District. I look forward to working closely with Governor Mark Warner and the rest of the Democratic team that will be elected in November. After eight years of Republican rule and the recent budget fiasco the people of Virginia deserve a return to effective government.

Thank you.

Mitch Van Yahres (Announcement to Seek Another Term, electronic mail, March 19, 2001).