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<h2>Privacy Policy</h2><h4>How We Use Your Information</h4>When you provide your contact information through this site, the Daniel Gray for Congress campaign uses it to send you news and information about the campaign’s activities, solicit your participation in volunteer activities and other events, and for related uses.&nbsp; We use your email address to send such information by email, and may use your telephone number to call you or send text messages for these purposes.Your information will not be shared with third parties/affiliates.<h4>Text Message Terms and Conditions</h4>Text messages from the Daniel Gray for Congress campaign provide subscribers with updates, event invitations, donation asks, and voting reminders.You can cancel the SMS service at any time. Just text “STOP”. After this, you will no longer receive SMS messages from us. If you want to join again, just sign up as you did the first time and we will start sending SMS messages to you again.Message frequency varies. As always, message and data rates may apply for any messages sent to you from us and to us from you. If you have any questions about your text plan or data plan, it is best to contact your wireless provider.<h4>Amendments and Consent to This Privacy Policy&nbsp;</h4>We retain the right to amend or otherwise update this Privacy Policy at any time. If we change our policies and practices, we will post the changes in our Privacy Policy so that you are always aware of them. With this knowledge, you can make an informed decision about whether you wish to provide personal information to us.&nbsp;<h4>How to Contact Us&nbsp;</h4>If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or would like to opt out of future contact, please contact us at <a href="mailto:info@abigailspanberger.com">info@grayforva.com</a>.

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<h3 style="text-align: left;">Teamwork makes the dream work!</h3>Together we can chart a new course for the Democratic party.

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<h2>August 4, 2026</h2>

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<h3>Let's make this country work for everyone</h3>A platform is not just a list. It is not just a voting record that an incumbent points to when they run for re-election. It is the priorities that your Representative should work tirelessly to achieve.

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About Daniel Gray

<h2 style="text-align: left;">Daniel Gray is a hardworking and caring leader who will bring bold ideas to the House of Representatives.</h2><h5>Leadership and Service</h5><img src="https://run.imgix.net/49fc4de0-c6fd-4d2e-ab5c-a4089fb3e789/ed056632-b9e9-40b8-9c36-a04e5f3775cc/ed056632-b9e9-40b8-9c36-a04e5f3775cc.jpg?ixlib=js-3.8.0&amp;bri=0&amp;con=0&amp;sat=0&amp;high=0&amp;shad=0&amp;usm=0&amp;rect=294%2C479%2C1052%2C1209&amp;w=1500" alt="" caption="" align="right" alignwidth="37" tiltdirection="right" variant="framed"><h4>Daniel is a leader in the communities he is a part of. He serves on Arlington's Energy Committee, which advises the county on how to become more sustainable, and he has completed training through the Leadership Center of Arlington. He is president of his condo board and also serves on the board of directors for his local community choir.</h4>Before aging out of the organization, he also served on the board of directors for Arlington Young Democrats. Daniel has volunteered at political fundraising events, written postcards to voters, and knocked on doors across the county to help elect Democrats.Daniel believes public service is one of the highest callings. He cares about this community and wants to serve you as Representative.<h5>Professional Life</h5><h4>Daniel earned his Master of Public Policy from Oregon State University and works as a renewable energy program manager.</h4>In this role, he helps renewable energy developers site projects on and near federal lands.<h5>Personal Life and Community Involvement</h5><img src="https://run.imgix.net/49fc4de0-c6fd-4d2e-ab5c-a4089fb3e789/bc3f6c3d-ca86-4cbe-bedb-f1ef06cf18ef/bc3f6c3d-ca86-4cbe-bedb-f1ef06cf18ef.jpg?ixlib=js-3.8.0&amp;bri=0&amp;con=0&amp;sat=0&amp;high=0&amp;shad=0&amp;usm=0&amp;rect=0%2C0%2C835%2C577&amp;w=1500" alt="" caption="" align="left" alignwidth="40" tiltdirection="left" variant="framed"><h4>Daniel lives in Arlington and sings in a local community choir, which has helped him develop a stronger sense of belonging and make Arlington home.</h4>Daniel is also a trained volunteer with Court Appointed Special Advocates. In this role, he is appointed by a judge to advocate for children who become involved in the legal or foster care system.In his spare time, he enjoys walking the dogs along Four Mile Run with his girlfriend.<h5>Early Life</h5><h4>Daniel grew up in the Pacific Northwest and now calls Northern Virginia home. His parents taught him the value of hard work, an appreciation for the outdoors, and the inherent dignity of every person. His mom's side of the family has roots in Virginia going back more than twelve generations, and some of Daniel's earliest and favorite memories are catching fireflies in his grandmother's backyard in Southwest Virginia.</h4>Daniel earned his Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy from the University of Oregon. He attended college with the help of Pell Grants and by working in the food service industry. While in college, he also served on the board of the College Democrats.Following in his older sister's footsteps after college, he spent two years in rural Japan teaching English to high schoolers. The experience deepened his appreciation for other cultures and expanded his horizons.After returning to the states and earning his Master of Public Policy from Oregon State University, in 2018 he packed his life into two suitcases and moved to the DMV to pursue his dreams.

Good leaders listen more than they talk. Daniel Gray wants to earn your trust and your vote, and listening to the issues you care about won't just translate into a voting record. It will be what he works tirelessly to make a reality.

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<h2>The Democratic establishment is not delivering.</h2><h4>We are in deep trouble as a country. Trump is back in office. The dream of home ownership is receding out of sight for the next generation of Americans. Two-thirds of Americans believe the government is corrupt. What about this is working?</h4>Yes, Democrats need to take back Congress in the midterms, but this business-as-usual approach to politics is inadequate. Democrats need to retool for a new era. We need new and bold ideas to fight the authoritarian right and deliver results that make people's lives better.The Democratic establishment simply does not have answers for the problems we are facing. It's time for a new generation of leadership in the House of Representatives.

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In the last ten years, our publicly held national debt has more than doubled, going from $13 trillion to more than $30 trillion. The chart below shows that in the last ten years our debt-to-GDP ratio has increased from 100% to 120%, and projections show it only continuing to go up.<img src="https://run.imgix.net/49fc4de0-c6fd-4d2e-ab5c-a4089fb3e789/9f46e993-9ad9-43bf-8ff2-26325ee77b80/9f46e993-9ad9-43bf-8ff2-26325ee77b80.png?ixlib=js-3.8.0&amp;bri=0&amp;con=0&amp;sat=0&amp;high=0&amp;shad=0&amp;usm=0&amp;rect=0%2C0%2C1000%2C600&amp;w=1500" alt="" caption="" align="center" alignwidth="42" variant="framed">Debt is not inherently bad, but this trend is simply not sustainable, and it is not fair to future generations who will be left holding the bag.Deficit spending should be used for things like major infrastructure investments, and in emergencies like financial crises, pandemics, or times of war. Instead, we are going into debt in the ordinary course of running the government. We have run a deficit every single year since 2001, starting in the billions and now running into the trillions.We are now paying more than $1 trillion per year just in interest on the national debt. That accounts for 13% of the entire federal budget, and exceeds even what we spend on national defense. This ever-increasing line item for interest on our debt crowds out our ability to spend on the priorities we care about.The growing debt burden affects the entire economy. It increases interest rates, making it more expensive to get a loan to buy a home or car. It slows wage growth and economic growth. And, perversely, the higher interest rate caused by the growing national debt makes servicing the debt that much more expensive.<h4>Start a serious conversation about the national debt</h4>We cannot ignore this growing problem. We need to raise awareness about the issue and have difficult discussions about how to address it.

Our country is on an unsustainable financial path, and we need to have a serious conversation about our national debt.

Address the National Debt

The five day workweek has been the standard since it was codified by the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938. At the time, it was revolutionary.Since then, labor productivity has more than tripled. What's more, the 40 hour workweek is based on an outdated family model where one partner in a couple worked outside the home while the other stayed home and did all domestic labor. Today, the majority of relationships involve both partners working outside the home.<h4>Make the 32 Hour Workweek Standard</h4>Dozens of countries and thousands of companies have done pilot programs for a 32 hour workweek with no reduction in worker pay.Research has shown that it improves employee wellbeing by reducing burnout, increasing job satisfaction, and improving mental and physical health. Companies benefit as well, seeing reduced attrition rates and no loss in productivity or, in some cases, increased productivity. In the largest study yet, which included 141 companies, 90% of companies that participated in the 6-month pilot program kept the four day workweek.This will not be a one-size-fits-all policy, and it will be important to ensure it can be equitably implemented both for salaried and hourly workers.

Our economic productivity has tripled since the 40 hour work week was standardized almost 100 years ago, and workers deserve to see the benefit through better work-life balance.

Four Day Work Week

In May of 2025, Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill" (OBBB) passed the House of Representatives by one vote (215 to 214).OBBB cuts more than $1 trillion from SNAP, Medicaid, and other programs for low-income Americans. It gives $1 trillion in tax cuts to the richest 1% of Americans. It nearly triples ICE's budget. It will increase budget deficits by an estimated $3.4 trillion over the next 10 years. It is a moral monstrosity.We could have stopped it. Unfortunately, eight members of Congress have passed away since the last midterms, and all were Democrats. Their average age was 75 years old. Our current Congressional session is the third oldest in the history of our country.Just in 2025 alone, three Democrats in the House of Representatives passed away prior to the May vote. OBBB passed by one vote. This is no way to run a country, especially considering the stakes right now. We need to be better than this.The argument in favor of gerontocracy would be if it worked well. But Congress is not working well.<h4>Establish an Age Limit of 75 for Serving in Congress</h4>The Constitution already sets a minimum age for members of the House of Representatives: "No Person shall be a Representative who shall not have attained to the Age of twenty five Years [...]"It is fair and reasonable to set an upper age limit of 75 years on members of Congress. In fact, 80% of Americans support an age limit for federal elected officials. Capping service at 75 years of age gives Representatives fifty years to contribute their talents and energies to this country, and then make way for the renewal that is at the heart of our democracy.

Our current Congressional session is the third oldest in the history of our country, and we could have stopped part of Trump's agenda but for three Democrats passing away in the House in 2025. This is no way to run a country.

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Age Limits in Congress

Incumbents enjoy an enormous advantage during re-election. This is due to a few reasons:<ul><li>Name recognition.</li><li>Ability to fundraise. As the cost of Congressional campaigns has reached into the millions, the ability to fundraise has gotten even more important.</li><li>Constituent services, which builds goodwill with voters.</li><li>The Franking Privilege, which allows incumbents to send taxpayer-funded mail to constituents and provides free name recognition and communication.</li></ul>The incumbency advantage is so powerful it leads to incumbents winning re-election 95% of the time. An incumbent simply announcing re-election clears the field of most contenders. Here in District 8, the current incumbent has run unopposed in three out of the last four elections.This reduces the healthy competition that gives voters choices and keeps our democracy strong. It reduces accountability by allowing incumbents to win re-election on their enormous built-in advantages rather than their merits. Often, voters feel a sense of resignation about voting for the incumbent, but the current primary system leaves them little choice.<h4>Reform primaries to reduce the incumbency advantage</h4>We need to reform primaries to counteract the incumbency advantage. One option is to implement an Open Primary Top Two system. This system allows all voters to vote for any candidate of any political party in the primary, and the top two vote-getters advance to the general election.

The incumbency advantage is too powerful, and it crushes the healthy competition that gives voters real choices.

Reform Primaries

<h4>Protect access to reproductive and gender affirming healthcare</h4>We need to codify into federal law the protections that were lost when Roe v. Wade was overturned and ensure everyone has access to the gender affirming care they need.<h4>Pass the Paycheck Fairness Act</h4>The gender pay gap persists, and we need more action from Congress to address it. Passing the Paycheck Fairness Act will strengthen the Equal Pay Act of 1963 by requiring employers to justify pay disparities, prohibiting retaliation against workers who discuss their pay or challenge pay discrimination, and limiting employers’ reliance on salary history.<h4>Fund medical research</h4>Medical research is biased against women in myriad ways:<ul><li>Women are underrepresented in clinical trials.</li><li>Conditions that affect women, like menopause and endometriosis, are understudied.</li><li>Laboratory research often relies on male test animals and cells extracted from men.</li></ul>The results hurt women every day. Women experience adverse drug reactions approximately twice as often as men. Symptoms of things like heart attack, which can show up differently in women, are more likely to be missed because diagnostic knowledge is based on male subjects. Medical advances and breakthroughs for conditions affecting women remain undiscovered.In 2023, the Biden Administration launched the Initiative on Women's Health Research to address these equity issues, and we need to push to implement the goals of that Initiative.<h4>Build Bigger Restrooms</h4>Our built environment discriminates against women in many ways. Women have different physiological needs than men, and pubic restrooms that have the same number of stalls for men and women do not take this into account. Building codes currently require a minimum number of stalls, but builders have no financial incentive to go beyond that. We don't have to accept this unfair and unequal status quo.The National Institute of Standards and Technology should study the right ratio of women's and men's restroom stalls and publish it as recommended best practice for new buildings. The government should require new federal buildings be built to this standard and incentivize, through tax credits and other means, these best practices in private sector building design and construction.

Women's lives continue to be limited by unfair and unequal treatment, and Congress needs to take action.

Gender Equity

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"Daniel Gray is excited to officially announce his candidacy in the Democratic primary for Virginia’s 8th Congressional District."

Campaign Launch Press Release

House prices are up 60% since 2019, and rent prices are up more than 30%. These shocking increases have left roughly one-third of all American households, including half of all renters, housing cost burdened, meaning they spend more than 30 percent of their gross income on rent or mortgage payments. The pandemic exacerbated the problem, but the housing affordability crisis has been growing for decades. People are seeing the American Dream of home ownership evaporate in front of their eyes.We simply have not built enough houses to keep up with demand. Fixing the supply shortage and restoring affordability will require building an additional 2-5 million houses.<h4>Improve Construction Productivity</h4>It is not just that we have not built enough homes. Incredibly, the productivity of home construction is no better today than it was in the 1950s. By contrast, overall labor productivity has more than tripled in the same timeframe. Home building is stuck in the previous century.<h4>Revolutionize Home Building with Modular Construction</h4>Using modular construction to build housing has the potential to unlock productivity gains that will make homes more affordable. Modular construction involves producing segments of homes in a factory setting and assembling them onsite. Sweden has made major strides in this area, and we should study what they have learned and bring the best parts of it back to this country.<h4>Standardize and Streamline Building Codes</h4>Due to the 10th Amendment, building codes and land use regulations are determined at the state and local level. This has its benefits, but imagine if cars needed to be built differently and built onsite in each state and locality. The federal government does not create building codes, but the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) should develop recommendations for how to standardize codes across jurisdictions to increase building construction productivity.<h4>Use New and More Efficient Building Materials</h4>New materials like cross-laminated timber have the potential to reduce the cost of building construction. NIST should develop recommendations for how building codes should be updated to allow for the greater use of these materials.

We have a housing affordability crisis in this country, and the government needs to respond to it with the urgency, scale, and boldness required in a crisis.

Housing Affordability

"Another Democratic challenger is seeking to unseat longtime Rep. Don Beyer in this year’s election."

Beyer picks up another challenger, an Arlington resident, in Democratic primary

We are facing serious challenges in this country, and your Representative needs to be working as hard as they can to make a difference. Each and every year that the problems facing our country worsen, you deserve an apology and an explanation from your Representative of what they tried, why it didn't work, and what they will do differently next time.<h4>Publish an annual scorecard</h4>Every year, Daniel will publish the top priorities he intends to work on. At the end of each year, he will produce a scorecard that explains the efforts he made, what he learned, and what he intends to do differently next year. He will rate himself on each priority and publish the scorecard. Voters will be able to compare annual scorecards to track the effort he is making on each priority across time.You shouldn't have to sift through hundred of press releases, news articles, and votes to understand the work your Representative did during their term.The status quo now is that Representatives aren't so much re-elected on their performance as on the incumbency advantage, which results in incumbents being re-elected 95% of the time.

You deserve to know the efforts your Representative made toward achieving our priorities, what they learned in the process, and what their next steps will be.

Annual Scorecard

Our institutions are suffering from a legitimacy crisis. Roughly half of the public does not trust the government, and two-thirds believe it is corrupt. This lack of trust enables authoritarian demagogues like Trump to gain power. We must fight to restore faith in our institutions, because the fate of our democracy hangs in the balance.<h4>Make government regulation nimbler</h4>Even during the Biden Administration, too few homes were built. Too little green infrastructure was built out to facilitate the energy transition. Every year that passes where we underbuild, the problems get worse. We as Democrats believe in the power of government to improve people's lives, but we cannot be reflexive defenders of government and regulations when they are stopping us from building the better future we need.Government must be able to act. It must be able to improve people's lives. Otherwise, the legitimacy crisis has no chance of improving. That is why we must make government regulation nimbler.<h4>Get money out of politics</h4>Nearly 75% of Americans want limits on the amount of money individuals and organizations can spend on political campaigns. The huge amount of money in the system creates not just the potential for corruption, but, just as importantly, the perception of corruption by the public. Addressing this issue is a complex challenge, but we must act on it with the urgency required by the legitimacy crisis.<h4>End stock trading by members of Congress</h4>Members of Congress trading stocks leads to actual corruption through insider trading and the perception of corruption, which corrodes faith and trust in the institution. The Restore Trust in Congress Act was introduced in 2025 to ban stock trading, and should be pushed for.

We have a legitimacy crisis in this country, and we must reform government to address it.

We are the only developed country in the world that doesn't have paid parental leave.We already know paid parental leave is good for employees and employers:<ul><li>Reduces stress and improves wellbeing for mothers.</li><li>Promotes father-infant bonding and greater paternal engagement with caregiving.</li><li>Reduces infant and child mortality rates.</li><li>Increases employee retention rates and increases job satisfaction.</li></ul>13 states and Washington, DC have already implemented comprehensive family leave plans, and ten more states have adopted voluntary plans through the private insurance market. Most federal employees are also eligible for 12 weeks of paid parental leave.Access to paid parental leave should not depend on what company you work for or what state you live in. It is something every new parent in this country deserves. <h4>Implement National Paid Parental Leave</h4>We need 12 weeks of paid parental leave for both new mothers and new fathers. We should study the best aspects of the state-level plans and incorporate them into a federal program.

Having a child is one of the biggest events in a parent's life, and every parent deserves 12 weeks of paid parental leave.

Paid Parental Leave

“Another Democratic challenger is seeking to unseat longtime Rep. Don Beyer in this year’s election. Daniel Gray, an Arlington resident and energy and sustainability program manager, announced yesterday (Sunday) that he is seeking the Democratic Party’s nomination for Virginia’s 8th Congressional district.”

Beyer Challenger Throws Hat in Ring

"U.S. Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) is taking on challenges about his age and the possibility of a dramatically different constituency as he seeks reelection.

Beyer faces challenges on his age and possible redistricting shakeup in reelection bid

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<h4>Bring an equity lens to every decision</h4>Every single member of Congress should use their power and influence to make our country a more equitable and inclusive place. Daniel will bring an equity lens to every vote in the House of Representatives. This includes proactively seeking out those who would be most affected by a potential new law or policy and listening to them.Equity starts with the hiring decisions made for the candidate's campaign and once in office. Daniel commits to the <a href="https://arena.run/pledge">Progressive Hiring Pledge</a>, which outlines ten actionable steps to make hiring practices more equitable.

Every member of Congress should use their power and influence to create a more just and equitable society, and that starts with viewing every issue through an equity lens.

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