Old Dominion News

A grassroots political organization is rejoicing after one of its volunteers recently won an election in Virginia. Karen Greenhalgh, a former district captain for the convention, won the 89th House of Delegates District in November.

Chris Walker, a liaison with the Convention of States, said the organization is important because its objective is to implement state-controlled procedure rather than congressional controlled from Article V of the Constitution to plan amendments.

“Once two-thirds of the states call agree on the need and subject, a convention of states will be triggered where commissioners from the states will debate and propose possible amendments that could potentially be ratified by three-fourths of the states,” Walker told Old Dominion News. “First, I wholeheartedly support the subject matter that the Convention of States Project has in its model resolution, [which is] the limiting of the power and scope of the federal government, imposing fiscal restraint on the federal government, and term limits on federal officials. 

"Second, I wholeheartedly support because it because it is state initiated and state controlled," he added. "This very act will greatly help to balance power and restore our great nation to true federalism. Lastly, because Washington, D.C., has amassed such power, a convention of states will serve to decentralize power and spread it throughout the country.”

He added that this method of government is what the nation's framers envisioned.

Walker said that more than 10,000 phone calls were made in Virginia in less than three weeks to spread the word about the election and help people become engaged in the process.

“This year was the first time that the Virginia COS team actively participated in the state elections,” Walker said. “Our activists across the state participated in block walking, phone banking and emailing/texting our extensive database of supporters for candidates that support the Convention of States movement. Our block walking and phone banking efforts were targeted to low-propensity voters. It is important to note that all lists and material were developed and/or procured through Convention of States, without any coordination with the candidate or the campaign.”

Walker added that the process to back candidates that want to rein in the federal government was “exciting.”

“To determine which candidates to support, the Virginia COS leadership and activists across the state identified candidates and legislators that support Convention of States through in-person meetings and candidate surveys,” he said. “This information was combined with other data to determine the competitiveness of the various elections. 

"For those candidates who went on record, through the survey, and that had competitive races the team went to work and knocked on doors and made thousands of phone calls," he added. "Our activists believed they could make a difference and were happy that three of the four candidates got elected.”

According to the organization, it makes the distinction that its members seek an amending convention, in which amendments need to be approved by 38 states before becoming officially part of the Constitution, not a constitutional convention. The COS resolution has been passed in 15 states. Virginia has passed the resolution in one chamber of its Legislature, but has not fully passed it yet.