Del. Sam Rasoul said Wednesday he no longer will accept special interest PAC or lobbyist campaign contributions or any donations of more than $5,000 from individuals or businesses.
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He claims to be the first member of the current Virginia General Assembly who will not accept special interest PAC donations.

The Roanoke Democrat has previously accepted more than $60,000 in campaign donations from health care, beer, wine, telecommunications, education associations and other special interest groups. Some of the larger donations come from the Virginia AFL-CIO ($4,500), the Virginia Association of Realtors ($2,500), Blue Ridge Beverage Co. ($2,000), Appalachian Power Co. ($2,000) and the Virginia Education Association ($2,000), according to the Virginia Public Access Project.

Rasoul relies on special interest money far less than many of his General Assembly colleagues. According to VPAP, only about 10 percent of his campaign cash since 2015 has come from companies and trade associations that have a lobbyist.

At the end of 2016, Rasoul had about $110,000 in the bank, some of which came from PACs and special interest groups. Rasoul will keep that money. The solution isn’t perfect, but is a step forward when it comes to campaign finance reform, Rasoul said.

No Democratic or Republican challengers have emerged to oppose Rasoul in this year’s election, which means he won’t have to spend much on campaigning for re-election in the fall. He represents a Democratic stronghold in urban Roanoke.