{{Short description|American politician (born 1945)}} {{Infobox officeholder | honorific_prefix = | name = Toddy Puller | honorific_suffix = | image =Ofa-va-sacramento-opening (33) (7732101490) (cropped).jpg | caption = Puller in 2012 | state_senate = Virginia | district = 36th | term_start = January 12, 2000 | term_end = January 13, 2016 | preceded = Joseph V. Gartlan, Jr. | succeeded = Scott Surovell | state_delegate2 = Virginia | district2 = 44th | term_start2 = January 8, 1992 | term_end2 = January 12, 2000 | preceded2 = Gerald Fill | succeeded2 = Kristen J. Amundson | birth_date = {{Birth date and age | 1945 | 1 | 19}} | birth_place = Cedar Rapids, Iowa, U.S. | death_date = | death_place = | resting_place = | birth_name = | party = Democratic | spouse = {{nowrap|Lewis Burwell Puller, Jr. {{small|(died 1994)}}}} | children = Lewis, Maggie | alma_mater = Mary Washington College | occupation = Consultant | committees = {{unbulleted list |{{longitem|Rehabilitation and Social Services (chair)}} |Commerce and Labor |Courts of Justice |Local Government |Rules}} | website = [http://www.toddy.org/ www.toddy.org] }}
'''Linda Todd "Toddy" Puller''' (born January 19, 1945) is an American politician. A Democrat, she served in the Virginia House of Delegates 1992–1999 and was elected to the Senate of Virginia in November 1999. For sixteen years she represented the 36th district, made up of parts of Fairfax, Prince William and Stafford counties.<ref name="sov">[http://sov.state.va.us/SenatorDB.nsf/23b0c13df27a5ef585256fc7004febb2/21028f91c9c0a25885256aa000719996?OpenDocument Senate of Virginia bio] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090115144934/http://sov.state.va.us/SenatorDB.nsf/23b0c13df27a5ef585256fc7004febb2/21028f91c9c0a25885256aa000719996?OpenDocument |date=January 15, 2009 }}</ref><ref>The Stafford County portion was only added after the [http://www.vpap.org/offices/state-senate-36/redistricting/ 2011 redistricting].</ref>
==Personal life==
Puller's father was a United States Army officer. She received a B.A. degree in Art History from Mary Washington College in 1967, after which she taught elementary school in Woodbridge, Virginia.<ref name="webbio">{{cite web | title = About Toddy | work = Virginia State Senator Toddy Puller | url = http://www.toddy.org/about | accessdate = 2014-03-07}}</ref><ref name="hod1999">{{cite web|title=Virginia House of Delegates; Session 1999; Puller, Linda T. (Toddy) |publisher=Virginia House of Delegates |url=http://dela.state.va.us/dela/Membios.nsf/94f6e9b9c9b5678f85256b1b00732227/3a9fb8b217315faf85256b35005f9d98?OpenDocument |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110524064058/http://dela.state.va.us/dela/Membios.nsf/94f6e9b9c9b5678f85256b1b00732227/3a9fb8b217315faf85256b35005f9d98?OpenDocument |url-status=dead |archive-date=2011-05-24 |accessdate=2009-01-27 }}</ref>
Puller married Lewis Burwell Puller, Jr., son of United States Marine Corps Lieutenant General Chesty Puller. Her husband lost both legs in the Vietnam War and spent years fighting depression. He committed suicide in 1994, two years after winning a Pulitzer Prize for his autobiography, ''Fortunate Son''. A biography of Lewis Puller includes this comment, :It was primarily through the patience and unflagging love of his wife (to whom the book is dedicated) that Puller was able to survive his recuperation. Not that that love was untested: at their initial reunion, Puller, confined to a wheelchair, instructed his five-months-pregnant wife to divorce him rather than be burdened by a cripple. Toddy persevered, helping Puller through law school and assisting him in his unsuccessful bid for a seat in Congress. It was the failure of this Congressional run that drove Puller to heavy alcoholism and, ultimately, to attempt suicide--only to be saved, once again, by his wife. "Toddy," observed New York Times reviewer Herbert Mitgang, "is something of a heroine in the story; her loyalty makes the author seem like a very fortunate husband."<ref>"Lewis B(urwell) Puller, Jr." Contemporary Authors Online. Detroit: Gale, 2000. Gale Biography In Context. Accessed 9 Nov. 2011.</ref>
They had one son, Lewis, who became a professional athlete, and a daughter, Maggie.<ref name="webbio"/>
Puller suffered a stroke in 1997, which limited her movement, though she continued to serve in the House and later was elected to the Virginia Senate, serving until her retirement in 2015.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Weiner|first1=Rachel|title=Virginia Democratic Sen. Linda 'Toddy' Puller to retire|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/virginia-democratic-sen-linda-toddy-puller-to-retire/2015/01/14/c2250504-9c3c-11e4-a7ee-526210d665b4_story.html|accessdate=4 March 2016|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=14 January 2015}}</ref>
==Legislative career==
Puller was a member of the Senate committees on Commerce and Labor, Courts of Justice, Local Government, Rehabilitation and Social Services (Chair), and Rules. In 2010 55% of the bills she sponsored or supported passed the Virginia Senate. Of all of the co-patrons of her bills, 56% were Democrats, 44% were Republicans.<ref>[http://www.richmondsunlight.com/legislator/ltpuller/ Richmond Sunlight » Senator Toddy Puller (D-Mount Vernon)] retrieved: September 10, 2011</ref>
In July 2011, the Governor of Virginia, Bob McDonnell, signed 'Ashley's Law' which requires emergency responders to use their flashing lights and sirens when entering an intersection against a red light or else yield to traffic. The bill had been written and sponsored by Puller after a young woman was killed in 2008 when her automobile was struck crossing US Route 1 in Fairfax County, Virginia by a speeding police vehicle whose driver had not activated the siren.<ref>Jackman, Tom. [https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-state-of-nova/post/in-mt-vernon-gov-mcdonnell-signs-ashleys-law/2011/07/26/gIQAtPOZbI_blog.html ''In Mt. Vernon, Gov. McDonnell signs ‘Ashley’s Law.''] Washington Post, Post Local 07/26/2011.</ref>
According to the ''Charleston Gazette-Mail'', she has been "the Senate's most forceful and authoritative voice for veterans' issues" for her work on property tax exemptions for disabled veterans, and her support of Virginia's Wounded Warriors Program.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://wvgazette.com/ap/ApPolitics/201108141282?page=2 |title=Next week's primaries ignite fierce campaigning - AP Politics - the Charleston Gazette - West Virginia News and Sports - |accessdate=2007-10-27 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20120717043258/http://wvgazette.com/ap/ApPolitics/201108141282?page=2 |archivedate=2012-07-17 }}</ref>
Puller was re-elected to the Virginia Senate in November 2011 with 55% of the votes.<ref>[http://rosehill.patch.com/articles/puller-pulls-out-victory-in-southern-fairfax-county-senate-district Puller Pulls Out Victory in Southern Fairfax County Senate District.] Rose Hill Patch, 09 November 2011. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111112121010/http://rosehill.patch.com/articles/puller-pulls-out-victory-in-southern-fairfax-county-senate-district |date=November 12, 2011 }}</ref>
==Notes== {{reflist}}
==References== *{{cite web|title=Senator Toddy Puller; Democrat - District 36 |publisher=Senate of Virginia |url=http://sov.state.va.us/SenatorDB.nsf/23b0c13df27a5ef585256fc7004febb2/21028f91c9c0a25885256aa000719996?OpenDocument |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070818101938/http://sov.state.va.us/SenatorDB.nsf/23b0c13df27a5ef585256fc7004febb2/21028f91c9c0a25885256aa000719996?OpenDocument |archivedate=August 18, 2007 }} *{{cite web|title=Past member search; Linda T. Puller |publisher=Virginia House of Delegates |url=http://dela.state.va.us/dela/Membios.nsf/HSearch/?SearchView&Query=%5BFullName%5D+Contains+puller+&SearchMax=&SearchOrder=4 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110524064130/http://dela.state.va.us/dela/Membios.nsf/HSearch/?SearchView&Query=%5BFullName%5D+Contains+puller+&SearchMax=&SearchOrder=4 |url-status=dead |archive-date=2011-05-24 }} *{{cite web | title = Virginia State Senator Toddy Puller | url = http://www.toddy.org}} (Constituent/campaign website)
==External links== *{{cite web|title=Election Results |publisher=Virginia State Board of Elections |url=http://www.sbe.virginia.gov/cms/Election_Information/Election_Results/Index.html |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100617084700/http://www.sbe.virginia.gov/cms/Election_Information/Election_Results/Index.html |archivedate=June 17, 2010 }} *{{cite web | title = Linda T Puller | publisher = Virginia Public Access Project | url = http://www.vpap.org/candidates/profile/home/39}} *{{cite web | title = Senator Toddy Puller (D-Mount Vernon) | work = Richmond Sunlight | url = http://www.richmondsunlight.com/legislator/ltpuller/}} *[https://web.archive.org/web/20110517153415/http://www.vote-smart.org/bio.php?can_id=5191 Project Vote Smart - Senator Linda Todd 'Toddy' Puller (VA)] profile *''Follow the Money'' - Linda T (Toddy) Puller **[http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/candidate.phtml?si=200545&c=414042 2005] [http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/candidate.phtml?si=200345&c=59420 2003] [http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/candidate.phtml?si=200145&c=59893 2001] [http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/candidate.phtml?si=199945&c=1840 1999] campaign contributions *[https://web.archive.org/web/20080829133506/http://projects.washingtonpost.com/votersguide/2007/va/races/va-senate-district-36/ Washington Post - Senate District 36 Race]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Puller, Toddy}} Category:Democratic Party Virginia state senators Category:Democratic Party members of the Virginia House of Delegates Category:Women state legislators in Virginia Category:1945 births Category:Living people Category:People from Mount Vernon, Virginia Category:University of Mary Washington alumni Category:Politicians from Cedar Rapids, Iowa Category:21st-century American women politicians Category:20th-century American women politicians Category:21st-century members of the Virginia General Assembly Category:20th-century members of the Virginia General Assembly