Only two precincts in Richmond are in House District 27. They lie in the area of South Side near Chesterfield County, which comprises the lion’s share of the district.

Republican incumbent Delegate Roxann L. Robinson, a 65-year-old optometrist who has represented the district since 2010, is facing a challenge by Democrat Debra D. Gardner, a former state and city of Richmond employee who now has a consulting firm.

The district has long been a Republican stronghold, but Delegate Robinson won re-election in 2019 by less than 200 votes. It has been listed by the Virginia Public Access Project as one of the most competitive races this fall.

Delegate Robinson has used her time in the House of Delegates to push for education reform and was appointed by former Gov. Terry McAuliffe to consolidate and reorganize the Standards of Learning tests that all Virginia public school students take. She is a member of the House Education Committee.

Delegate Robinson also has signaled her support for tax reform, aiming to lower taxes for Virginians.

Ms. Gardner, a Chesterfield resident for more than 30 years, previously served as deputy director of the Virginia Department of Corrections and before that as executive director of the Virginia Commission on Virginia Alcohol Safety Action Program.

Ms. Gardner also was a deputy chief administrative officer for the City of Richmond, overseeing social services, juvenile justice and parks and recreation, but was dismissed in a shakeup in early 2017 when Mayor Levar M. Stoney first took office.

She ran a close but unsuccessful race for the Clover Hill District on the Chesterfield Board of Supervisors in 2019.

Ms. Gardner currently works as a life coach and is the founder of D2G-Coaching, a consulting firm that focuses on executive training and social work.

Her key issues during the campaign are COVID-19 recovery, criminal justice reform and access to affordable health care.

As of Sept. 30, Ms. Gardner has outdistanced Delegate Robinson in fundraising, according to the Virginia Public Ac- cess Project. Ms. Gardner has raised $753,313 while Delegate Robinson has raised $522,416.