Will Hammer
From Ballotpedia
This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.
Will Hammer was a 2017 Libertarian candidate for District 20 of the Virginia House of Delegates.
Hammer ran for Virginia House District 20 in 2015 and for Virginia's 6th Congressional District in 2014. He lost both elections.
Biography
Email editor@ballotpedia.org to notify us of updates to this biography.
Hammer earned a bachelor's degree in economics from Hampden-Sydney College. He co-founded the Hampden-Sydney Classical Liberals, a libertarian group.[1]
Campaign themes
2017
Ballotpedia candidate survey
Hammer participated in a survey created by Ballotpedia. The survey was designed to let our readers know more about the candidates and feel confident that they are voting for the best person to represent them. The survey questions appear bolded, and Hammer's responses follow below.
Who are your constituents?
What is the primary job of a state legislator in your view?
How will you build relationships with members of the broader community? Which groups, organizations, stakeholders will you specifically target?
As a publicly elected leader, who would you emulate? Who do you look up to? Why? What characteristics/values are most important for a legislator?
What is one book you would suggest for someone who wants to understand your political philosophy?
What is your general philosophy when it comes to economics, jobs, and growth? Do you have any more specific ideas related to these concepts?
What kind of legacy would you like to leave?
What should the legislature's relationship with the governor be, and how would you personally work towards actualizing that?
Ideally, what should the government’s role in a state’s healthcare system be? Are there any healthcare policies, actual or hypothetical, that you have an opinion on?
How should the state manage its relations with military veterans?
In regard to economic and business regulations such as the minimum wage and professional licensing, what role do you think the state should play?
What is your opinion on the roles of police officers and protesters, respectively, in the public space? Are there any specific events that have influenced your thinking?
What should the state’s role be in regard to early childhood care? What do you envision this relationship looking like as a child grows older?
How should the state legislature view areas with natural resources (such as coastlines) when developing economic policy?
What would your approach be to issues related to crime and incarceration?
What news sources do you follow? What factors do you consider when selecting a news source? How do you think the public views the media?
How do you think of policies that are targeted at a specific gender? What do you think the state legislature should do in regard to these policies?
How do you think about immigration policy? Are there policies in Virginia or other states that you have opinions on? What about at the national level?
How do you view innovative technologies such as smartphones or self-driving cars? How should the state approach innovation from a technological point of view? What about a business or economic point of view?
Do you have an opinion on the role of campaign finance in legislative politics?
What one reform or policy change is most important to you?
How do you view the current state of transportation and infrastructure in Virginia? What role, if any, should the state have in those two areas?
How do you view the current state of prescription opioid use in America?
What are your views on abortion? How would these views affect you in your position as state legislator?
Describe how you envision the ideal relationship between the state of Virginia and the District of Columbia.
Which areas of spending will you prioritize for funding and support?
What are your thoughts on higher education? What should the state do, if anything, to increase accessibility?
In recent months, monuments in public spaces and what to do with them have been thrust into the news cycle. What is your opinion about what government should do with existing monuments in public spaces?
Should Virginia have a law that requires people to use the bathroom corresponding with the gender on their birth certificate? Are there any policies related to this issue that you have an opinion on?
What is your opinion on Virginia’s K-12 education system? What issues are important and how can the state legislature address them?
What are your views on proposed oil pipelines that would cross Virginia? In general, how should the state legislature address issues related to environmental regulation?
What do you think Virginia’s economy will look like in 10 years? 20 years? What should the state legislature be doing, if anything, to prepare for the future?
What are your views on how Virginia draws lines for congressional and state legislative districts? If you could make changes to the system, what would they be?
What are your feelings on Virginia’s current firearms policies?
What are the major public safety issues that Virginia faces? How can the state address them?
Is Virginia prepared for a natural disaster such as a hurricane or an earthquake? What should the state legislature do, if anything, in anticipation of these events?
What are your opinions on Virginia’s current taxation policies, for individuals or corporations? Is there anything that you would change?
What is your opinion on income disparities in Virginia?
What economic and social differences are there between rural and urban Virginia? How should government policies address different regions, if at all?
What is the ideal relationship between Virginia’s local governments and the state government? What should the state legislature do to promote this ideal relationship?
What is the state of race relations in Virginia and the United States at large? How do you think about the government’s role in race relations, particularly the state legislature?
What should the state’s relationship be with immigrants who are living in Virginia without legal permission?
Who do you think the key stakeholders are in Virginia politics? Do you have opinions on any of these stakeholders or ways in which you would approach them as a state legislator?
| “ | Citizens of Virginia House of Delegates District 20.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | To be the voice of the people at the state level and to protect and promote freedom as much as possible.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | I will show that I am living up to what I ran on and will try to empower individuals as much as possible.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | If I had to select a current elected official that I would emulate, it would most likely be Justin Amash of the US Congress. I look up to him because he stands by his principles and is transparent in his voting, etc. I believe that being honest, transparent, and protecting citizens rights is most important. I want to reduce the size and scope of government and empower the individual.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | Murray Rothbard's "For a New Liberty".[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | I believe that the free market is the most moral and efficient way to allocate resources, capital, and provides the best results. Government regulation, taxes, mandates, and spending just distort the market.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | Even if someone doesn't agree with my stances, I want someone to remember me as a genuine person, honest, transparent, and principled.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | It should be a professional relationship where you work together on issues you agree on and discuss issues that you do not agree on.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | I believe that the free market provides the best product at the best price. Free and subsidized healthcare sounds nice, but when you understand that all the government does is raise cost and make products worse not better, you then realize it's immoral and government should not be involved.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | Believe that veteran relations should be dealt on the Federal level.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | As discuss previously, all government regulations, taxes, and mandates do is distort the market. Minimum wage and licensing is just another barrier to entry into the market.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | Protesters should be able to protest, but if you damage property or aggress against someone and cause bodily harm then police should be able to arrest obviously.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | I want to reduce or eliminate the state's role in about every aspect of our lives.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | Legislatures should not develop economic policy unless it is reducing or eliminating previous intrusions of the government into the economy.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | I believe that our criminal justice system is broken. Too many people are incarcerated for non-violent crimes. We have the highest incarceration rates in the world, which is absurd. The drug war and war on terrorism has militarized our police, allowed for systematic discrimination, and made people fear the cops. I would be looking to reduce incarceration as much as possible through marijuana legalization, mandatory body cameras for state police, longer and better training for cops statewide including conflict resolution, and end civil asset forfeiture.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | I like to follow as many news sources as possible because I realize that they all have their own agenda for the most part.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | I believe that everyone should be allowed a level playing field but this does not come from state legislature or any other government body.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | I am for open borders. I believe in the freedom of movement. Just as walls and methods are used to keep people out, they can be used to keep people in.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | The state should allow innovation to happen and get out of the way. We would be even further along in regards to technology and innovation if the government would get out of the way. Technology and innovation allows for more efficient and cheaper results, it's a net positive.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | I believe in transparency and that voters should be provided information such as who donated, how much, and how it was spent. The only issue is that most voters are low information voters and just vote party.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | It's hard to select just one reform or policy change, as I have a long list of them. But I believe that marijuana legalization would have the greatest effect. It is not just a stoner issue, it involves all aspects of our lives. I could write a book on all the positives. To keep it short, the positives of marijuana legalization: substantially lower incarceration rates, reduces police militarization, reduces other liberty trampling police policies, keeps families together, ends vicious cycle of in and out of prison because of your record, creates a whole new industry, possibly 1000s of jobs, innovation, medical research, opioid and alcohol dependence reduction, greatly reduce cartels and gangs, greatly reduce violence, decrease expenditures for incarceration and police, and so on.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | It is a huge cost. I believe that the free market can provide better and cheaper results. This does not mean tolls on every road. There would be many ways to fund privatizing roads and infrastructure. One of my ideas for this is to lease out segments or whole interstates or highways to power companies with the agreement that they maintain a safe road, etc. These power companies can install solar panels in the medians, kinetic energy capture devices, or even better solar roads. Solar roads would provide a safe surface to drive on as they do not need as much maintenance as asphalt, can heat up to melt ice and snow, can illuminate road lines which makes them more visible, they would be able to harness the energy from the roads, protect property rights because no need for eminent domain, and it would be a green energy technology that could replace traditional methods.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | As discussed in an earlier answer, legalization of marijuana can greatly reduce opioid usage in America. Drug companies do not want marijuana legalization because that would be a potential replacement for their own products.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | Personally, I do not know if I could decide to have an abortion. But, I believe that a woman has the right to get an abortion. It should not be government funded or subsidized, but legal. If you make it illegal, it will still happen but just will make it happen in possibly unsafe and sanitary places, risk the woman's health, and have more unwanted children that will either be neglected, put up for adoption, or in and out of foster homes. I believe we should eliminate adoption fees and other regulations that make adoption expensive.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | We should be fighting to curb the federal government's intrusion into every aspect of our lives.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | I want to cut spending across the board. Throwing money at a problem via government does not resolve it. Government spending is inefficient and should be reduces, more money should stay in the individuals pockets as they know how to spend their own money best.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | The state does not need to do anything to increase accessibility. Government has already subsidized higher education, which has allowed for costs to skyrocket and strap a whole generation with a mountain of debt. If anything, it needs to stop distorting the market with subsidized loans, etc. The answer to this is not "free" higher education or more accessibility.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | Most of the monuments that this question is referring to were built during Jim Crow era and Civil Rights era. It is very evident what the intentions were as there has been a systemic racism within government, as seen through the various laws and policies (drug war, gun laws, etc). I say we should should allow for the locale to vote on whether or not to remove. Personally I think you could remove monuments and auction them off to highest bidder and if someone wants it they can buy it and display it on their private property or a museum, etc. Removing monuments is not erasing history.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | No. I do not want police checking my birth certificate every time I need to use a public restroom...[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | I believe that we need to localize education as much as possible. Put the power back to the teachers and parents. Get rid of standardized testing as it does nothing to increase the children's education. But I also do not believe we need to spend something like $10,000 on each student. Again, throwing money at a problem does not fix it.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | I believe in property rights. Therefore, I am against the use of eminent domain, especially when used to benefit private companies.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | Depends on the state legislature's policy. I hope that Virginia could be a beacon of freedom and prrosperity, but there are many special interest and the duopoly that Democrats and Republicans have on politics allows for this broken system to perpetuate. The government would best serve Virginian's if it allowed for innovation to continue unimpeded and for the market to be free.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | It's pure cronyism. Politicians shouldn't be allowed to select their constituents. I don't care which major party is in power, they will use it to benefit their party and not Virginians. I am a huge proponent of independent commission to draw districts. I would also like to see more representatives so that they can serve less people. The less people they represent, the closer you are to the legislative process.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | I believe in Constitutional carry.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | The biggest public safety Virginians face is its own government. We are overtaxed, over regulated, and too many non-violent citizens are considered criminals because of the ridiculous laws that we have.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | I believe that government never does a good job at preparing or and helping after a natural disaster. Private charity and citizens help each other out fast and effectively. You can look at all the major natural disasters and you see the good in humanity and the failure of government, with people driving 1000 miles and rescuing people on their own dime or collecting food and water and providing them to those affected. Even with being overtaxed, Americans are some of the most generous people in the world and donate a lot of time and money to charitable agendas, just imagine what mutual aid and charity would look like if the average person didn't have 1/3-1/2 of their income extorted.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | As stated previously many times, we are overtaxed and over regulated. I would work hard to reduce taxation on Virginians and corporations with the goal to completely eliminate both.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | My opinion is that income disparities increased the more the government taxed and regulated the markets. The government increases the cost of doing business and benefit corporations because they can afford to lobby the various governments to write regulations that benefit them. In a free market corporations wouldn't hold that same power, they are exist because of government protection. When you have so much power centrally (federal and lesser extend state) it invites cronyism. Politicians are bought and paid for by various special interests and corporations. When you eliminate a lot of the powers and decentralize government as much as possible, then you will not see that. Between that and the Federal Reserve devaluing the US Dollar some 97% since its inception, inflation caused by that and various market distortions thanks to government regulations and taxes, you get great income disparity and people in debt with no savings.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | I believe that decentralization is best. Localization of governments is far superior than centralized governments.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | State government should allow for local governments to take over many of the responsibilities and law, but the state government should make sure that the local government doesn't do anything that would trample on its citizen rights.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | I believe that the government has had a negative role in race relations. A lot of government policies through the years has been systematically racist. As discussed before, I believe ending the drug war would be a great step forward.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | As stated before, I believe in the freedom of movement and migration. If you didn't have such a huge welfare state, then this discussion wouldn't matter at all.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
| “ | I believe that the key stakeholders unfortunately are special interests and corporations. You look at campaign donations of state legislators and their voting record follows. It's cronyism and sad. Legislators should be looking out of the citizens, individuals, not their own wallet and corporations. If elected, corporations would know that it would be wasted time trying to lobby me. I would most likely not receive any donations from corporations or other special interests as they understand that since I am a Libertarian I have a strict idea of the role of government and cannot be bought because I actually have principles, but if they did I would not accept their donation. Though you may not agree with those principles, you will know where I stand and know that I am not a crony.[2] | ” |
| —Will Hammer | ||
Candidate website
Hammer’s campaign website highlighted the following issues:[3]
| “ |
Economy: |
” |
Elections
2017
General election
Elections for the Virginia House of Delegates took place in 2017. All 100 house seats were up for election. The general election took place on November 7, 2017. A primary election took place on June 13, 2017. The filing deadline for primary election candidates was March 30, 2017. The filing deadline for non-party candidates and candidates nominated by methods other than a primary was June 13, 2017.[4] Incumbent Richard Bell (R) defeated Michele Edwards (D) and Will Hammer (Libertarian) in the Virginia House of Delegates District 20 general election.[5]
| Virginia House of Delegates, District 20 General Election, 2017 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  Richard Bell Incumbent |
54.57% | 14,344 | |
| Democratic | Michele Edwards | 42.60% | 11,197 | |
| Libertarian | Will Hammer | 2.83% | 745 | |
| Total Votes | 26,286 | |||
| Source: Virginia Department of Elections | ||||
Democratic primary election
Michele Edwards ran unopposed in the Virginia House of Delegates District 20 Democratic primary.[6]
Ballotpedia will publish vote totals here after they become available.
| Virginia House of Delegates, District 20 Democratic Primary, 2017 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | ||
| Michele Edwards | ||
Republican primary election
Incumbent Richard Bell ran unopposed in the Virginia House of Delegates District 20 Republican primary.[7]
Ballotpedia will publish vote totals here after they become available.
| Virginia House of Delegates, District 20 Republican Primary, 2017 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | ||
| Richard Bell Incumbent | ||
2015
Elections for the Virginia House of Delegates took place in 2015. A primary election was held on June 9, 2015. The general election took place on November 3, 2015. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was March 26, 2015.[8] Richard Bell was unopposed in the Republican primary. Will Hammer ran as a Libertarian candidate. Bell defeated Hammer in the general election.[9][10]
| Virginia House of Delegates, District 20 General Election, 2015 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | Richard Bell |
75.9% | 10,758 | |
| Libertarian | Will Hammer | 24.1% | 3,425 | |
| Total Votes | 14,183 | |||
2014
Hammer ran in the 2014 election for the U.S. House to represent Virginia's 6th District.[11] He received the Libertarian nomination.[1] Will Hammer lost the general election on November 4, 2014.
Election results
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Bob Goodlatte Incumbent |
74.5% | 133,898 | |
| Libertarian | Will Hammer | 12.3% | 22,161 | |
| Green | Elaine Hildebrandt | 11.9% | 21,447 | |
| N/A | Write-in | 1.2% | 2,202 | |
| Total Votes | 179,708 | |||
| Source: Virginia Department of Elections | ||||
See also
- State legislative elections, 2017
- Virginia House of Delegates elections, 2017
- State legislative special elections, 2017
- Virginia House of Delegates
- Virginia State Legislature
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namednom - ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 2.17 2.18 2.19 2.20 2.21 2.22 2.23 2.24 2.25 2.26 2.27 2.28 2.29 2.30 2.31 2.32 2.33 2.34 2.35 2.36 2.37 2.38 2.39 2.40 2.41 2.42 2.43 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ wmhammer.com, "Issues," accessed August 10, 2017
- ↑ Virginia Department of Elections, "Candidacy Requirements for the November 7, 2017 General Election," accessed March 21, 2017
- ↑ Virginia Department of Elections, "2017 November General Unofficial Results," accessed November 7, 2017
- ↑ Virginia Department of Elections, "2017 June Democratic Primary," accessed July 6, 2017
- ↑ Virginia Department of Elections, "2017 June Republican Primary," accessed July 6, 2017
- ↑ Virginia State Board of Elections, "2015 November Election Calendar," accessed January 2, 2015
- ↑ Virginia Board of Elections, "2015 Primary election results," accessed September 1, 2015
- ↑ Virginia Board of Elections, "2015 General election candidates," accessed September 1, 2015
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedrun
Current members of the Virginia House of Delegates
Leadership
Speaker of the House:Don Scott
Majority Leader:Charniele Herring
Minority Leader:Todd Gilbert
Representatives
District 1
Patrick Hope (D)
District 2
Adele McClure (D)
District 3
Alfonso Lopez (D)
District 4
District 5
District 6
R.C. Sullivan (D)
District 7
District 8
Irene Shin (D)
District 9
Karrie Delaney (D)
District 10
Dan Helmer (D)
District 11
David Bulova (D)
District 12
Holly Seibold (D)
District 13
Marcus Simon (D)
District 14
Vivian Watts (D)
District 15
Laura Jane Cohen (D)
District 16
Paul Krizek (D)
District 17
Mark Sickles (D)
District 18
Kathy Tran (D)
District 19
Rozia Henson (D)
District 20
District 21
Joshua Thomas (D)
District 22
Ian Lovejoy (R)
District 23
Candi King (D)
District 24
Luke Torian (D)
District 25
Briana Sewell (D)
District 26
Jas Singh (D)
District 27
Atoosa Reaser (D)
District 28
David Reid (D)
District 29
District 30
Geary Higgins (R)
District 31
Delores Oates (R)
District 32
Bill Wiley (R)
District 33
Todd Gilbert (R)
District 34
Tony Wilt (R)
District 35
Chris Runion (R)
District 36
Ellen Campbell (R)
District 37
Terry Austin (R)
District 38
Sam Rasoul (D)
District 39
Will Davis (R)
District 40
Joseph McNamara (R)
District 41
Chris Obenshain (R)
District 42
Jason Ballard (R)
District 43
Will Morefield (R)
District 44
Israel O'Quinn (R)
District 45
Terry Kilgore (R)
District 46
Jed Arnold (R)
District 47
Wren Williams (R)
District 48
Eric Phillips (R)
District 49
Danny Marshall (R)
District 50
Tommy Wright (R)
District 51
Eric Zehr (R)
District 52
Wendell Walker (R)
District 53
Tim Griffin (R)
District 54
Katrina Callsen (D)
District 55
Amy Laufer (D)
District 56
Thomas Garrett (R)
District 57
David Owen (R)
District 58
Rodney Willett (D)
District 59
Buddy Fowler (R)
District 60
Scott Wyatt (R)
District 61
Michael Webert (R)
District 62
Nick Freitas (R)
District 63
Phillip Scott (R)
District 64
Paul Milde (R)
District 65
Joshua Cole (D)
District 66
Bobby Orrock (R)
District 67
Hillary Kent (R)
District 68
Keith Hodges (R)
District 69
Chad Green (R)
District 70
Shelly Simonds (D)
District 71
Amanda Batten (R)
District 72
Lee Ware (R)
District 73
Mark Earley (R)
District 74
Mike Cherry (R)
District 75
Carrie Coyner (R)
District 76
Debra Gardner (D)
District 77
Michael Jones (D)
District 78
Betsy Carr (D)
District 79
Rae Cousins (D)
District 80
District 81
Delores McQuinn (D)
District 82
Kim Taylor (R)
District 83
H. Wachsmann (R)
District 84
Nadarius Clark (D)
District 85
Marcia Price (D)
District 86
Aijalon Cordoza (R)
District 87
Jeion Ward (D)
District 88
Don Scott (D)
District 89
N. Baxter Ennis (R)
District 90
Jay Leftwich (R)
District 91
Cliff Hayes (D)
District 92
Bonita Anthony (D)
District 93
Jackie Glass (D)
District 94
Phil Hernandez (D)
District 95
Alex Askew (D)
District 96
District 97
Michael Feggans (D)
District 98
Barry Knight (R)
District 99
District 100
Robert Bloxom (R)
Democratic Party (51)
Republican Party (49)
