I don’t live in the 35th House District anymore, but the wide-expanse district – which stretches from Bath County, into Highland County, through the western half of Augusta County, to the northeast into a corner of Rockingham County – is still where I spent the bulk of my life.

The district covers 1,963.7 square miles – an area bigger than the state of Rhode Island (1,545 square miles), and not far behind Delaware (2,489 square miles).

There are no cities in the 35th; there are a lot of wide-open spaces and beautiful vistas.

And a lot of good, hard-working folks who have been abandoned by both political parties.

The 35th voted 70.5 percent for Donald Trump and 73.0 percent for Ben Cline in the 2024 cycle, only to see the MAGAs approve what they called a Big, Beautiful Bill that cut healthcare to the point that one of our two regional hospitals, Augusta Health, has had to close down two primary-care centers serving the outer reaches in the 35th.

Hospitals cutting services are just one impact of the trillions of dollars in cuts to Medicaid and Medicare that are on the horizon.

“Please understand that Medicaid funds the Affordable Care Act subsidies that many of our neighbors rely on for health coverage. That includes cancer screenings, mental health services, addiction treatment, and doctor visits for chronic illnesses like diabetes and heart disease,” said Jena Crisler, a medical doctor who lives in Port Republic, in the southeast corner of Rockingham County, and is the Democratic Party nominee in the 35th.