An interesting race is unfolding in Virginia, where Democrats see huge potential to take over the state Assembly but find themselves cursed by the state's Democratic governor, lieutenant governor, and attorney general, who together form a Bermuda Triangle of disgraced politicians.  Conventional political wisdom dictates that Virginia residents would want to clean house, but that said, Virginia has been trending bluer in recent years.  If Republicans are going to win back seats in the hotly contested statehouse, it will take a slate of exceptional candidates to get the job done.

Enter Nick Bell.

Nick Bell is challenging incumbent Democrat Vivian Watts for a spot in Virginia's House of Delegates in the 39th District — a district that includes Annandale and surrounding communities.  While some consider it improbable that any Republican could pull off a political upset in this predominantly Democratic district, Bell has proven himself uniquely capable of generating headlines and buzz surrounding his campaign.  It certainly helps that Nick Bell is the son of distinguished Shakespearean scholar Rosalie O'Connell and former Reagan adviser (as well as personal mentor of mine) Jeff Bell — a man who transformed the world.

As I wrote after Jeff Bell's sudden passing in 2018:

In 1978, Bell launched an insurgent primary challenge in New Jersey against sitting Republican Senator Clifford Case. Case was a four-term liberal Republican Senator who was well embraced by the establishment. Bell was part of a small brigade of radical political insurgents who were determined, as Kemp's Brain Trust, to end the stagflationary economic status quo of the '70s. Bell, along with Jude Wanniski, Arthur Laffer, Lewis E. Lehrman, and a handful of others, were the original Supply-Side.

Bell shocked the political establishment by defeating Case in the Republican primary, and he did it by running a focused campaign on one big idea: that economic growth could be restored by implementing a 30 percent, across-the-board marginal tax rate cut, coupled with restoring integrity to the dollar. Bell's 1978 campaign made him the political pioneer of the supply-side movement.

After Jeff Bell rocked the political establishment with his surprising win over incumbent Senator Case, he went on to face former New York Knicks basketball legend Bill Bradley in the title match.

Although Jeff Bell lost the general election, he ultimately won the debate of ideas when Bradley adopted the bold tax cut plan that Bell had championed on the campaign trail.  Bell's insurgent campaign launched the supply-side movement from the pages of the Wall Street Journal editorial board into mainstream politics, and the rest, as they say, was history. 

Flash forward to 2019: a younger Bell is taking his shot to change the world.

When meeting Nick, one instantly notices his strong resemblance to his father.  Much like his dad, Nick Bell is running a campaign of ideas — most notably championing the pro-life cause, but also staunch opposition to the tolls eating into commuters' earnings in his district.

On a personal note, Nick Bell was talented enough at basketball to play abroad in Spain for three years.  During this time, he sharpened his command of the Spanish language, which he had begun to learn during an extensive mission trip to the Dominican Republic, and when he wasn't on the court, he taught children English in the classroom.

His father, Jeff Bell, shocked the political establishment with a primary election victory — but ultimately lost the general to a superstar athlete.  

Perhaps his son Nick Bell has the hoops skills to win his general election.

Jon Decker is a supply-side community organizer who works for several free-market organizations.