an AcComplished leader

Hailed by the New York Times as part of "a major revolution in racial politics in America."


  • Led the Anti-Casino campaign that defeated Mayor Stoney and his cronies
  • Recognized as an early champion of women's rights
  • Helped create bipartisan, biracial coalitions that have improved Richmond and Virginia
  • Initiated budgetary reforms, helping make VA the "Best Managed State" in the country
  • Advised Wilder, Kaine and Warner on educational and financial reforms
  • Recognized leader in making city government more transparent and accessible


Richmond needs change now.

There's a reason why I'm the only candidate who not only opposed Stoney's Casino, but led the No Casino campaign against it. I have the right priorities. After public safety, job #1 is to fix the Richmond Public Schools. Senator Kaine and I have worked for 15 years on this. But RVA elected leaders - Democrats all - see a taxpayer subsidized baseball stadium or Casino or patronage jobs for their cronies as a more important priority.  That's wrong. City government finances are out of control fueled by the wrong priorities.


RVA’s kids have to come first. 


We are failing to teach the basics in school, and we have elected leaders who forgot the basics of how to lead a city. Most people know me through my having been Doug Wilder's campaign manager in his historic efforts. But my record, as you will see, has achievements in public finance, women's rights and local government reforms.  If you're tired of RVA's status quo politics that keeps taxes too high and educational learning too low, then I ask for your vote. We need new leadership; it's time for a change.

GolDMan in the News

Press release: Council candidate Goldman says today’s RTD editorial AGAINST a property rate tax cut is COMPLETELY WRONG AND BADLY REASONED: “RTD editorial advocating against a property tax rate cut shows the editorial board is out of touch. The record ...

The RTD editorial today against a property tax rate cut is completely wrong and badly reasoned. The people of Richmond can’t afford the record high taxes and record high spending that has happened over the last eight years. This tax and spend mentality falls the hardest on the people who can least afford it. Taxes and spending need to be cut. NOW. The RTD editorial board says that because the city has been so badly mismanaged, with no oversight from Council, we can’t afford to change tax and spending policies until we fix the mismanagement.  This is simply the most bizarre reasoning I have ever come across in all my days in state and city politics. 

In terms of cutting spending, we should start by slashing the amazingly bloated salaries and pension benefits all across city government going to the political allies of those politically connected special interests and partisan interests. The RTD seems to forget it is the people’s money, not the government’s money. I stand by my call for cutting taxes and cutting spending… NOW.

Promoting Schools

“Paul Goldman, the political strategist and former Virginia Democratic Party chairman, has for years pushed the concept of extending those tax credits to the rehabilitation of schools. By modernizing older, existing schools, you avoid the expense of building new ones--especially high schools that around here would now cost in excess of $50 million to construct. You also avoid having to find and buy the land while pursuing the time-consuming and often rancorous planning and construction process.”
https://www.kaine.senate.gov/in-the-news/new-life-for-schools 

Promoting Diversity

On a cloudless late October day, Paul Goldman steered his cluttered compact through noontime traffic in the Confederate capital and contemplated the storm gathering on his personal horizon. Goldman, a transplanted New Yorker who had almost single-handedly managed Douglas Wilder’s historic campaign for lieutenant governor of Virginia, knew that victory astonishingly was within grasp. Seven days remained, however, and forces were massing that, in a week, might crush Wilder’s hopes of becoming the first black elected to statewide executive office in the South in the 20th Century. 
https://aliciapatterson.org/margaret-edds/doug-wilders-campaign/ 

Promoting Responsible Spending

“The Paul Goldman plan to modernize our schools rightfully recognizes that we spend a disproportionate share of the taxpayers’ dollars on big salaries for bureaucrats at the expense of fixing problems like crumbling schools.”
https://richmondfreepress.com/news/2018/mar/10/leadership-school-modernization-requires-hard-deci/

Promoting Tax-Credit

“THE PERSON MOST RESPONSIBLE for promoting this tax-credit policy idea beyond the confines of Maggie L. Walker is Paul Goldman, a longtime Democratic political strategist in Virginia, who has championed this proposal's merits for more than a decade.”
https://prospect.org/education/fixing-infrastructure-schools/ 

Richmond casino opponent wins lawsuit over voter registration lists

Officials on Thursday are unveiling plans for a Richmond resort, casino and entertainment complex that will be on the ballot in November.


An opponent of plans to build the $562 million Richmond Grand Resort and Casino has won a federal lawsuit against the state Board of Elections after the department would not hand over voter registration lists...


https://richmond.com/news/local/government-politics/richmond-grand-resort-and-casino-paul-goldman/article_e3e8d83a-71d2-11ee-b42b-37980419e8e2.html

Goldman's
Goals

Restructure the broken budget, finance and bond policies

Every RPS student graduates college ready or with a job skill

10% overall reduction in city taxes

Empower city neighborhood civic associations

$50,000,000 cost reduction in city government

A professionally competent and educated chief administrative officer

Merit only in hiring and awarding city contracts

Vote Goldman

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Leader

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Change In action.

Please read. I need your help on this campaign related matter

All of you know me, and know why I’m running for Council. We need someone to hold city government accountable.  I am the only candidate running who led the fight against the Casino, who opposed building a 100% taxpayer funded baseball stadium when we have the oldest public school facilities in the Commonwealth, who wants to cut taxes, fees and utility costs 10%, who believes we need to do a better job prioritizing public safety, who wants to end the cronyism and patronage politics that dominate Richmond city government, and who has long been a recognized leader in promoting  not just women’s rights and civil rights, but equal rights for all.


So: permit me to ask two favors of you.


First, if you’re on Facebook, I need you to follow me at Goldman for Council.


Second: if you live in the First District, please consider letting the campaign put a Goldman For Council yard sign in your yard. They were just received today from the sign company.  Just email me the address.


Yesterday I received support from key Republicans.  When you add that to the endorsement from the Richmond Crusade for Voters, and my having been Chair of the Virginia Democratic Party, I’m likely the first candidate in a long time for Council to garner such a biracial bipartisan coalition. I have proven over the years that I can not only create these coalitions, but galvanize them to make positive changes to move RVA and Virginia forward.


PG

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