Jeannemarie Devolites Davis

After losing two races for the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors to Gerry Connolly, Devolites ran for the Virginia House of Delegates. In 1997, with Tom Davis as her mentor and chief donor[8] she won her race for member of the House of Delegates. She was elected to become the House Majority Whip, the first woman to serve in this position, before being elected to the State Senate.

Davis served one term in the State Senate, losing her run for reelection in 2007. Her district was the most Democratic district held by a Republican in Virginia. Her Democratic successor is Democrat and former Delegate Chap Petersen, whose previous House district is enclaved in the 37th Senatorial District. Her top donor[8] was her husband's Political Action Committee (PAC), the Federal Victory Fund,[9] donating almost $25,000. Tom Davis's other PAC, the Va Victory Fund,[10] had also donated over $92,000 in her House races. Mrs. Davis also received another $55,616[11] from the National Republican Congressional Committee when her husband was the Committee Chair. This RNCC donation was the most donated[12] to any VA candidate not running statewide.

On evaluations from Project Vote Smart,[13] on a scale of 100 from 2004 to 2006, Davis scored 67-100 percent from the Virginia Education Association, 50-71 percent from the Virginia League of Conservation Voters, and 78-84 percent from the Chamber of Commerce. She scored near zero from the Virginia National Organization for Women and all reporting abortion rights groups, 80% from the Chamber of Commerce, and a 94% from the conservative Family Foundation of Virginia.[14]

One newspaper and ten unions or business groups endorsed her 2007 election campaign: [15]

• The Washington Post
• Fairfax Education Association
• Virginia Education Association
• Fairfax Local Firefighters
• Virginia Professional Firefighters
• Virginia chapter of the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association
• Northern Virginia Technology Council
• Fairfax County Chamber of Commerce
• National Federation of Independent Business
• Virginia Association of Realtors
• Virginia Troopers Alliance

She was one of the first hires (as a part-time consultant) for ICG, a firm that assists businesses in obtaining and defending performance under government contracts. At the time of her hire, Congressman Davis was her mentor and campaign manager. ICG Founder and President Don Upson[33] is a longtime friend of Davis. After Devolites was hired by ICG, Davis, then divorced, married Devolites.

The financial benefits between Rep. Davis and his wife, from the ICG job as well as other campaign donations to Mrs. Davis, were highlighted in a June 2007 ethics report "Family Affair"[34] by the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.[35] The report identified ethical questions on financial ties that benefit family members of 64 of the 435 voting members of Congress.

As of December 24, 2008, Davis continues to work for ICG. She reported to The Washington Post that she was paid $78,000 in 2005 for working "10 to 20 hours a week," primarily at home on her cellphone, she said. She made $18,000 a year as a Virginia legislator. Her ICG bio, which continues to describe her as a "Current Virginia State Senator for largest IT district", bio,[32] also is the only one on the ICG website to name a spouse.

During the week of October 22, 2007, the Davis campaign sent out 60,000 campaign flyers accusing Petersen of not disclosing that his former law firm was working on issues that Petersen voted on while in the House of Delegates.[36] The flyer did not mention that Petersen had not been involved in the legal issues for the client. The flyer included a copy of a section of Petersen's Statement of Economic Interest, which he filed while serving in the House. It includes Petersen's home address, telephone number, and the names of his wife and four children. This information was not redacted by the Davis campaign.

Petersen held a press conference on October 26 in front of Davis' headquarters in Fairfax. He said that "words cannot describe the anger I feel" about the flyer, and called it "shocking" that Davis would use his personal information in such a manner. Petersen said that advertising his personal information was not in and of itself a problem, but using his personal phone number and children's identification was not appropriate or safe in an attack ad. Such tactics, Petersen said, endangered his family. Mrs. Petersen complained of receiving two telephone calls related to the attack ad, and police presence appeared at the home, before the family vacated the house. In response, Davis said in her own press conference that because the information was public and included to supporters, it was appropriate for an attack ad. [36] [37] [38][39][40]

Because of the controversy, the Virginia Coalition of Police and Deputy Sheriffs withdrew its initial endorsement of Davis.[38]

Devolites Davis also claimed that Petersen's campaign uploaded a video to YouTube which brought up her daughter's armed robbery conviction of several years ago. However, according to Washington CBS affiliate WUSA, there is no evidence anyone from the Petersen camp uploaded the video.[40]