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New reporting from WAVY reveals that Republican Jen Kiggans voted against cracking down on predatory loan practices – after taking nearly $20,000 in campaign cash from the industry.
Payday lenders, which are known for grossly overcharging borrowers and sky-high interest rates, are known to specifically exploit service members and veterans. But when Jen Kiggans had the chance to vote for the Virginia Fairness In Lending Act, which would crack down on predatory lending in short-term loans, Jen Kiggans voted no.
Virginia veterans may have been left behind by Jen Kiggans’ vote, but her campaign bankrollers were paid dividends for their investment. During her campaign for state senate, Jen Kiggans took nearly $20,000 in contributions from a Republican PAC that got “substantial financial backing” from the payday loan industry – and then she voted just how they wanted her to.
When reporter Andy Fox asked Kiggans to explain her vote, she literally got up mid-question and walked away, cutting the interview short. As WAVY reports: “11 times, we asked Senator Kiggans why she voted against … the Virginia Fairness In Lending Act. 11 times, she refused to answer, giving statements unrelated to the reasons why she voted no.”
“When Jen Kiggans was given the choice between protecting Virginia’s veterans or doing the bidding of her campaign donors, she chose her donors,” said DCCC spokesperson Monica Robinson. “This is the kind of disgusting ‘pay to play’ politics that makes politics so rotten. Jen Kiggans can’t be trusted to stand up for Virginians and she doesn’t deserve to be in Congress.”
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