WASHINGTON, D.C. — Delegate-elect Janelle Sarauw is setting her sights on a seat on the powerful House Energy and Commerce Committee as she begins her transition to Congress, identifying the Virgin Islands' electricity and healthcare crises as priorities while building relationships with Democratic leaders and preparing for a closer working partnership with incoming Governor Stacey Plaskett.
Speaking with The Virgin Islands Consortium during a break between meetings on Monday, Ms. Sarauw described her first days of congressional orientation as overwhelming, with the demands of establishing an office, assembling a team and understanding the workings of Capitol Hill arriving simultaneously.
“I liken it to dropping me off to college, and I have to gain new friends, find my way around campus, find a place to live,” she said.
Ms. Sarauw, who won the November 3 delegate election with nearly 77 percent of the vote, is participating in orientation for incoming members of the 120th Congress, which begins in January.
While awaiting confirmation of where her congressional office will be located, her team is also discussing the locations of district offices in the Virgin Islands.
“It's really about balancing the personal, the professional, putting the staff together, legislative priorities,” Ms. Sarauw said. “It's overwhelming. But I'm ready.”
One of her most consequential early decisions involves the congressional committees on which she hopes to serve. “My dream is Energy and Commerce,” Ms. Sarauw told The Consortium.
The House Energy and Commerce Committee has jurisdiction over national energy policy, electricity infrastructure, healthcare programs, Medicaid, public health and other areas directly affecting the territory.
“That's where matters of public health fall…we have an energy crisis, and we have a public health crisis,” she explained.
Those issues also feature prominently in the incoming territorial administration's agenda. As previously reported by The Consortium, Governor-elect Plaskett intends to declare a state of emergency involving the Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority upon taking office and seek federal assistance to address the territory's unreliable and expensive electricity system.
Ms. Sarauw's second-choice committee is Agriculture, where she sees opportunities to advance Virgin Islands interests through federal agricultural legislation.
A multiyear farm bill remains unresolved, and Ms. Sarauw believes it may fall to the incoming 120th Congress to complete the legislation. A seat on the Agriculture Committee could provide an opportunity for the territory to seek provisions addressing its needs.
“If she is on the Agriculture Committee, “there's opportunity to tack on some stuff there,” she said.
She also identified financial services, transportation, workforce development and labor as policy areas that could align with her congressional objectives. However, Ms. Sarauw expressed little interest in serving on the House Committee on Natural Resources, which has jurisdiction over territorial affairs.
“I'm not interested in a committee that houses territories,” she said.
Instead, her approach is to pursue assignments where the Virgin Islands' challenges intersect with issues affecting states across the country, potentially creating opportunities for broader congressional support.
To strengthen her prospects, Ms. Sarauw has been meeting with prominent members of the House Democratic Caucus, including lawmakers involved in the party's upcoming leadership transition.
“I have a really good relationship with Pete Aguilar, who is the chair of the Democratic Congressional Caucus, and I'm also really good with Ted Lieu,” she said.
Mr. Lieu currently serves as caucus vice chair and is expected to seek the chairmanship for the next Congress. Ms. Sarauw has also been speaking with Representative Lauren Underwood, who is pursuing the vice chair position. “I've had really good conversations with Representative Lauren Underwood, [who] is vying for vice chair right now,” she said.
The meetings have given the incoming delegate opportunities to explain the territory's circumstances to lawmakers whose support could prove important in advancing federal legislation.
“It's a whole slew of them,” Ms. Sarauw laughed, describing the numerous introductions and discussions she has participated in since arriving in Washington.
“We're all having good conversations, good relationships,” she said, characterizing the exchanges as opportunities to educate other lawmakers about the Virgin Islands.
Her strategy reflects the limitations of the territory's representation in Congress. Although the Virgin Islands delegate may introduce legislation, participate in committees and engage in congressional debates, the position does not carry a vote on final passage of legislation before the full House.
Ms. Sarauw believes that building alliances around challenges shared by other jurisdictions can help overcome some of those limitations.
“Our struggles are really becoming universal at this point,” she said. “Other jurisdictions, especially those that are rural, are experiencing the same issues.”
She expressed confidence that the territory can develop an effective voice despite its limited representation.
“To get the message across, I think we can do that. We can accomplish that.”
An important part of that strategy will involve her relationship with Governor-elect Plaskett, whose congressional seat she will occupy beginning January 3.
Ms. Sarauw described the outgoing delegate as exceptionally helpful throughout the transition, particularly in sharing information and supporting her preparations for the new role.
“Her office has been very helpful in the transition process. She has not been a gatekeeper of information at all,” Ms. Sarauw said.
The two have also discussed the importance of maintaining close communication between the delegate's office in Washington and Government House.
According to Ms. Sarauw, Governor-elect Plaskett shared concerns about the relationship between her congressional office and the outgoing Bryan administration.
“She explained how the present governor treated her as a congresswoman,” Ms. Sarauw said.
“If we're going to be frank about it, he would have meetings in D.C….and she'll be completely unaware,” she recounted, describing what she said Plaskett told her about occasions when Governor Albert Bryan Jr. visited Washington without her knowledge.
Ms. Sarauw said she and the governor-elect intend to avoid such communication gaps when they assume their respective offices.
“We want to establish a closer relationship with the Delegate to Congress and the administration because if they're on different pages, the territory does not benefit from that.”
The commitment could become especially important as the incoming Plaskett-Potter administration prepares to seek additional federal assistance for electricity, healthcare, housing and other territorial priorities.
For Ms. Sarauw, the immediate challenge is transforming the connections made during orientation into an effective congressional operation capable of advancing those objectives.
She said her experience as an NCAA Division I athlete helped establish the discipline and preparation she intends to bring to the role.
“I understand what it means to be prepared,” she said.
As the interview concluded and she prepared to attend another meeting, the incoming delegate delivered a message about her determination to succeed.
“Nobody will outwork me, outprepare me,” Ms. Sarauw declared. “Because I love the VI, I prepared for the VI….I didn't stumble upon this by accident."
