Sen. Amanda Chase Has Said Some Really Wild Things. Now She Wants To Be Governor.

The state senator has attracted attention in the past for her commentary on rape, homosexuality, and Capitol personnel.

State Sen. Amanda Chase (R-Chesterfield), known for making outlandish and bigoted comments, became the first Republican to say she’ll be running for governor next year.

Chase said she is planning to seek the Republican nomination, but she did not rule out running as an independent if “any shenanigans that are pulled.”

Elected to the state senate in 2015, she has repeatedly garnered negative attention for her outlandish and bigoted comments.

Last year she got in a screaming fight with a Capitol Police officer who refused to let her park in a secure area. The officer alleged that Chase became irate during the incident, calling the Senate Clerk Susan Clarke “Miss Piggy,” and complaining that she gets to “park her fat ass up front.”

That kind of speech was ironic coming from Chase, who in 2016 voted for a bill that would require K-12 teachers to inform parents if any classroom materials contain “explicit content.” While discussing the bill, Chase described ‘Beloved,’ Toni Morrison’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel about slavery, as “creating a date rape environment.”

This wasn’t the only time Sen. Chase has shared her controversial opinions about rape. In July, she received national media coverage for comments claiming only naive and unprepared women were ever raped.

Chase has shared some of her more controversial opinions on her radio show. Over the years she referred to homosexuality as “sexual dysphoria,” expressed concern that the ERA treats women like men and expressed support for conversion therapy.

This past November, Chase announced that she would no longer caucus with Virginia Republicans, because she thought the party had become too liberal.

“We’ve expanded Medicaid, raised taxes — that’s not Republican,” Chase said. “These are outside of what the GOP stands for.”