Del. Danny Marshall, R-Danville, has announced that he will not seek reelection this fall for his seat in the House of Delegates. Marshall has served for almost 25 years and had a hand in some of the region’s biggest economic development deals and revitalization projects.
Marshall made the announcement via his weekly newsletter. His term will run through the end of the calendar year.
“Let’s not call it a retirement,” Marshall said during a phone interview Wednesday evening. He said he is awaiting an unspecified surgery.
“On the other side of this surgery that I’m going to have done, I hope to be 100%. I’m not one who can sit on the sidelines and watch the flowers grow,” he said. “I’m sure that on the other side, I’m going to be looking for something to do.”
He said he prayed over the decision to run again this year and determined that God was giving him a sign to stay home.
He noted that, over the last 24 years, he, along with the Danville City Council and the boards of supervisors in Pittsylvania, Henry and Halifax counties, have made a lot of progress in turning around the economy in the 49th District. He noted that when he was elected in the early 2000s, the unemployment rate in Danville was double what the state’s rate was and the prevailing wage for workers was about half of what it was across Virginia.
“The whole goal was trying to get the unemployment rate down and get the prevailing wage up,” he said.
He said he’s proud to see Microporous move into the Berry Hill Megasite — that it will bring good-paying jobs with benefits and an increase in tax revenue to support schools and public safety in the area. He also saw Tyson Foods and Caesars Casino bring jobs and tax revenue into the area as well, during his time as delegate.
“I think the best is yet to come,” he said.
In Richmond, legislators offered praise for Marshall’s service.
“Danny won’t retire, he’s too engaged and involved,” Del. Terry Austin, R-Botetourt County, said.
Marshall was Austin’s seatmate when Austin started in the House of Delegates in 2014 when the Republicans had the majority. “Danny was my mentor; of course, I needed a lot of coaching, and he was there to do that,” he said. “Danny’s just truly a good, genuine individual who cares a lot about not just the commonwealth but his constituents back home.”
Austin noted that Marshall is one of the few lawmakers who were able to serve on both the House Labor and Commerce Committee and the Appropriations Committee. “He was very effective in his position on Appropriations and thinking about what his region needed back home,” Austin said, noting that he and Marshall worked on a number of different economic development and transportation projects together over the years. “I could call on Danny to ask for his help and he could call on me to ask for mine,” Austin said. “He’s just a true Southern gentleman and a statesman.”
Del. Terry Kilgore, R-Scott County, concurred.
“Danny’s been that voice for Southside Virginia and he’s been great to work with. He’s going to be really missed, it’s going to be hard to fill the shoes of Danny Marshall,” Kilgore said. “He worked with both sides of the aisle.”
He noted that Marshall has maintained a low profile but has come back to Richmond each year to make a big difference. “Danny really steps up, he knows the economic development game, he knows what we need in rural Virginia — we have to work twice as hard to recruit businesses,” Kilgore said.
Marshall and Kilgore worked for a long time together on the Berry Hill Megasite to make sure that it was ready to go. “He was the main advocate for Berry Hill and you see what came to fruition after years of making those investments,” he said.
Kilgore noted that losing Marshall and the late Sen. Frank Ruff in consecutive years from the General Assembly is a blow to Southside. “We’re just praying for Danny that the health issues that he has, that he gets them rectified and solved and move on,” Kilgore said.
“Delegate Danny Marshall is a true Southside statesman, and I am privileged to call him a friend and mentor,” said Del. Eric Phillips, R-Henry County, in a statement. “Danny’s impact on our region is immeasurable, and the effects of his work will be felt for generations. From the IALR in Danville to the SOVA Berry Hill Megasite and numerous other projects — many of which are still ongoing, like the White Mill project, where he secured funding — Danny has made a lasting difference.”
Danville City Council member Lee Vogler posted on X: “Danny Marshall’s impact on our region will be felt for decades. His fingerprints are all over the comeback we’re experiencing. He’s a great friend & mentor to me. He will be greatly missed in the General Assembly.”
Just months after he was elected to the Danville City Council in 2000, Marshall ran for a spot in the House of Delegates when Del. Whitt Clement announced his retirement. He took office in 2002 and has since won reelection 11 times.
“I viewed each General Assembly session as a chance to make sure the people of Southside Virginia were well-represented in Richmond,” Marshall wrote. “My energies were always directed towards what was best for my constituents — not what was best for my political party.”
Marshall also represented Danville on the Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission, which invests in economic development projects across Southwest and Southside Virginia.
The commission’s investment in industrial parks in this region was the impetus for the Southern Virginia Megasite at Berry Hill, which has now landed the largest economic development project in Southside’s history.
Microporous, a lithium battery ion separator manufacturer, announced its decision to locate at Berry Hill last fall, representing a $1.3 billion investment and promising to create over 2,000 jobs.
“I was so proud to be on hand last year as Microporous broke ground,” Marshall wrote in his newsletter. “To date, the [tobacco] commission has created tens of thousands of jobs and hundreds of millions of dollars of investment in Southside Virginia.”
Early in his career as a legislator, Marshall helped launch the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research in Danville, which serves as a regional catalyst for economic transformation.
Establishing IALR was Marshall’s first bill in 2002, and he pushed to get IALR funding added into the state budget the following year.
“The Institute has been an invaluable catalyst for our economic revitalization in Southside Virginia, and I am proud to have helped get it off of the ground,” Marshall wrote.
He also sponsored a budget amendment for last year’s state budget to allocate $3 million toward a whitewater channel project in Danville, which is working to bolster its recreational attractions.
A Republican primary election on June 17 will determine a candidate to run for the open position, according to a statement from Will Pace, chairman of the Pittsylvania County Republican committee.
“I am confident that come Nov. 4, a Republican will succeed Del. Marshall when his term in office concludes, even though that Republican will have massive shoes to fill,” said Pace in the statement.
Danville council member Gary Miller had previously announced he’s seeking the Democratic nomination.
