Terry Kilgore has been a Republican member of the Virginia House of Delegates since 1994. During that time, there have been four years in which the GOP controlled the governor’s office and both chambers of the legislature. For two years, Democrats held complete control.
In the other 23 years, Republicans and Democrats have shared power in Virginia, as they will this year. That has given Kilgore, currently House majority leader, a perspective on state government that is increasingly rare.
“Unlike the federal government, state governments have to do certain things. We have to pass a budget. We have to keep government running. We have to fund police officers and teachers and etcetera, so we have to try to come to a middle ground on a lot of issues,” Kilgore said in an interview with Stateline. “I have to tell my caucus every day, ‘You’re not going to get 100% of what you want … a half a loaf is better than no loaf.’”
