A little over a month after his reelection for a sixth term, Del. Les Adams, R-Pittsylvania County, on Tuesday announced he’ll resign from the House of Delegates when his current term ends next month.
Within hours, two prominent area Republicans announced their candidacies to replace Adams – Will Pace, a longtime member of the Chatham Town Council and the town’s former mayor, and Henry County small-business owner Eric Phillips.
Later on Tuesday, Gov. Glenn Youngkin set a special election for the 48th House of Delegates District for Jan. 9.
“It has been a tremendous privilege to represent the people of Pittsylvania, Henry, and the City of Martinsville over the course of the past decade, and I will always be grateful to them for affording me that honor,” Adams said in a statement.
In a letter to Paul Nardo, the clerk of the House of Delegates, Adams wrote that despite his reelection in the newly redrawn 48th House District last month he will decline to take the oath of office to be seated with the new General Assembly, “so that I may make myself available for another position of service.”
Adams, an attorney and native of Pittsylvania County who lives in Chatham with his wife, Melanie, and their two sons, did not cite a reason for his resignation. But members of the legislature who are attorneys by trade are often recommended for judgeships.
Adams was first elected in 2013 to represent the 16th House District and has served five terms. In addition to his leadership role on various House committees, he was recently the vice chairman of the Virginia State Crime Commission and of the board of trustees of the Center for Rural Virginia. He is also a member of the Virginia Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission.
Adams said in his statement that as “a son of Southside Virginia,” he deeply valued the time he was able to serve and of what has been accomplished during his decade in the legislature.
“There has never been a moment when I did not appreciate the significance of this role within our system of self-government,” Adams said. “In my stewardship of this office, I strove to consistently display dignity and respect to my constituents and colleagues alike, even during contentious debates, while remaining true to my principles and the communities I represented.”
Adams’ resignation won’t change the power balance in the House of Delegates, where Democrats will hold a 51-49 majority come January. The 48th House District leans heavily Republican, and Adams ran unopposed in the November election. In 2021, Youngkin, the GOP gubernatorial nominee, won the district with 68% of votes.
A new law required Youngkin to set a special election to be called within 30 days of a vacancy, and with Jan. 9 he opted to pick the earliest possible date, as Adams’ term is set to expire that day. That bill was sponsored by state Sen. David Suetterlein, R-Roanoke County, after a state Senate seat in Southwest Virginia stayed vacant for the entirety of a General Assembly session following the death of Sen. Ben Chafin, R-Russell County.
Pace and Phillips are the first GOP candidates seeking to fill the vacancy left by Adams.
Pace has previously served on Chatham’s town council, as the town’s mayor and as the chairman of the Pittsylvania County Republican Committee since 2016. He has also chaired the 5th Congressional District Republican Committee and is currently working as the legislative assistant to Del. Otto Wachsmann, R-Sussex. He also is a member of the Virginia Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission.
For his House of Delegates bid, Pace has been endorsed by numerous Pittsylvania County officials, including Sheriff Mike Taylor, Commonwealth’s Attorney Bryan Haskins, County Treasurer Vincent Shorter and former County Clerk of Court H.F. Haymore.
In a statement released on Tuesday, Pace called himself a “true conservative who will fight for the people” of Pittsylvania and Henry counties and the city of Martinsville in the House of Delegates.
“The left aims to restrict our right to bear arms, keep parents out of their children’s education, and defund our police. In Richmond, I will fight back against the liberal agenda and work with fellow conservatives and Governor Youngkin to make Virginia a better place to live, work, and raise a family.” Pace said, adding that he is running to continue on “the conservative leadership that Les Adams has given our district over the past 10 years.”
Phillips has also been endorsed by notable Republicans from the area, including Sen. Bill Stanley, R-Franklin County; Del. Danny Marshall, R-Danville; and Del. Wren Williams, R-Patrick County.
Phillips currently serves on the board of directors for the Boys and Girls Club of the Blue Ridge, the chamber of commerce and the Uptown Partnership. He is the chairman of the Martinsville Industrial Development Authority, and he has political credentials as the chair of the Henry County-Martinsville Republican Committee and as a member of the Republican Party of Virginia’s governing board, the State Central Committee.
“I am excited for this opportunity to represent Southside and Southwest Virginia. Now more than ever, our community needs a fighter who will stand up for our rural values and promote the economic development renaissance that is gaining momentum in our district,” Phillips said in a statement Tuesday.
