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Democrat Jill McCabe, a pediatric doctor and medical professional, announced Thursday she will challenge incumbent state Sen. Dick Black in Virginia's 13th District.

McCabe, who has worked at Inova Hospital since 2006 and formerly chaired the Department of Pediatrics, is making her first bid for public office.

A Democrat who had previously announced a candidacy for the Senate's 13th District, Tom Mulrine, is stepping aside for McCabe to swiftly become the nominee.

"I'm running for Senate because I am inspired by the idea of making a greater impact in our community," McCabe, who also chairs the Loudoun Country Day School Board of Trustees, said in a statement. "Healthcare, public policy and business are intersecting now more than ever. I believe that my experience as a health professional, a working mother and an education leader have helped prepare me to tackle the challenges facing the Commonwealth today. From affordable healthcare to full-day kindergarten, we have a responsibility to give our children the very best Virginia has to offer."

The 13th District covers portions of eastern Loudoun and Prince William counties.

Black, one of the most conservative members of the Virginia Senate, defeated Democrat Shawn Mitchell by 14 percent of the vote in 2011. Prior to serving in the Senate, Black was a member of the House of Delegates for eight years.

Correction: This article has been updated to show that Jill McCabe is a former and not current chair of the Department of Pediatrics at Inova Hospital, and that she has worked at the hospital since 2006.

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New Democrat emerges to challenge Sen. Dick Black

Under Liberal Democrat manifesto plans announced today, young people will be able to buy their own home without needing a deposit.

Instead the Rent to Own scheme will help first-time buyers onto the housing ladder by allowing them to build up a share in their home through renting.

This is a revolutionary shift in housing policy that will give young people caught in generation rent a chance at home ownership.

Research shows that home ownership has plummeted for under 35s in the last decade. The percentage of 2535-year-olds owning a home has gone down from 59% to 36%.

Now, rather than being trapped in rental accommodation forever, working young people who are unable to afford a deposit will be able to become home owners.

Our policy builds on ground-breaking work by social enterprise Gentoo Group, who have rolled out a similar scheme called Genie - in the North East and plan to expand into London later this year.

Rent to Own will see first-time buyers steadily build up a share in their home through monthly payments equivalent to rent until they own the property outright after 30 years, just like a normal mortgage.

Under Liberal Democrat scheme, the government would partner with housing associations and other providers to deliver Rent to Own houses where monthly payments are no higher than market rent.

This is forms part of Liberal Democrat plans to deliver 300,000 homes each year, with the government bridging the gap between private sector building and demand.

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Liberal Democrats launch Rent to Own scheme for first-time buyers

TALLAHASSEE, Fla.

The Tallahassee Democrat has hired William Hatfield as its new executive editor.

President and Publisher Skip Foster announced Hatfield's selection Wednesday. Hatfield is currently the editor of the Northwest Florida Daily News in Fort Walton Beach. He will start his new position in April.

The Illinois native moved to Florida in 2000 to take a position as a copy editor and page designer at the Daily News. He worked his way up, eventually becoming editor last year.

Hatfield has a journalism degree from Southern Illinois University in Carbondale and a master's degree in public affairs reporting from the University of Illinois at Springfield.

Hatfield replaces Bob Gabordi, who left the Democrat in January to become executive editor at another Gannett paper, Florida Today.

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Information from: Tallahassee (Fla.) Democrat, http://www.tdo.com

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Tallahassee Democrat hires new executive editor

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has denied any wrongdoing by Liberal Democrat MPs after a party fundraiser faced allegations that he sought to bypass donation laws.

The party's election campaign leader Lord Ashdown acknowledged that Ibrahim Taguri had "serious questions to answer" after the Daily Telegraph reported that he told an undercover reporter posing as a wealthy Indian businessman that he could channel donations via family members and backdate cheques to avoid appearing on public registers.

The party's former chief fundraiser - who has quit as the Lib Dems' general election candidate in Brent Central following the allegations - was also said to have promised big donations could "open doors" and introduced the fake donor to key figures including Treasury Chief Secretary Danny Alexander.

Mr Alexander was recorded at a dinner thanking the supposed businessman for what he was doing, adding: "I won't intrude on the details, but genuinely it will make a difference."

Mr Clegg told LBC radio that the recording showed "Danny being a polite guy, just saying thank you to someone who he has been told is supporting the party".

The Lib Dem leader added: "The idea that Danny or any parliamentarian has done anything wrong is categorically untrue.

"On the issue of Ibrahim Taguri, no cheque has been received by the Liberal Democrats, no cheque has been cashed. If we had received this cheque in question, of course it would have been scrutinised and checked."

Mr Clegg said that, alone among political parties, the Lib Dems had invited the Electoral Commission to examine the processes they have in place to scrutinise donations and been told they were "sound and satisfactory".

He called on the other major parties to come together within six months of the general election to agree new rules for party funding, accusing David Cameron and Ed Miliband of "skewering" his attempts to deal with the problem during this Parliament.

Asked whether individuals could buy access to senior Lib Dems with large donations, Mr Clegg said: "That's ridiculous. It doesn't work like that at all."

Continued here:
Lib Dem quits amid donation claims

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has denied any wrongdoing by Liberal Democrat MPs after a party fundraiser faced allegations that he sought to bypass donation laws.

The party's election campaign leader Lord Ashdown acknowledged that Ibrahim Taguri had "serious questions to answer" after the Daily Telegraph reported that he told an undercover reporter posing as a wealthy Indian businessman that he could channel donations via family members and backdate cheques to avoid appearing on public registers.

The party's former chief fundraiser - who has quit as the Lib Dems' general election candidate in Brent Central following the allegations - was also said to have promised big donations could "open doors" and introduced the fake donor to key figures including Treasury Chief Secretary Danny Alexander.

Mr Alexander was recorded at a dinner thanking the supposed businessman for what he was doing, adding: "I won't intrude on the details, but genuinely it will make a difference."

Mr Clegg told LBC radio that the recording showed "Danny being a polite guy, just saying thank you to someone who he has been told is supporting the party".

The Lib Dem leader added: "The idea that Danny or any parliamentarian has done anything wrong is categorically untrue.

"On the issue of Ibrahim Taguri, no cheque has been received by the Liberal Democrats, no cheque has been cashed. If we had received this cheque in question, of course it would have been scrutinised and checked."

Mr Clegg said that, alone among political parties, the Lib Dems had invited the Electoral Commission to examine the processes they have in place to scrutinise donations and been told they were "sound and satisfactory".

He called on the other major parties to come together within six months of the general election to agree new rules for party funding, accusing David Cameron and Ed Miliband of "skewering" his attempts to deal with the problem during this Parliament.

Asked whether individuals could buy access to senior Lib Dems with large donations, Mr Clegg said: "That's ridiculous. It doesn't work like that at all."

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Lib Dem 'faces serious questions'