As a voter in Stafford County's Aquia District, I will vote for Paul Ortiz for the same reasons that inspired a Spotsylvania woman to praise him ["I wish I could vote for Paul Ortiz," July 29].

Mr. Ortiz has adopted campaign finance reforms that go beyond what Virginia law requires and has asked his opponents to do the same.

He is reporting and posting the sources of all campaign contributions, large and small. (The law requires reporting only donations over $100.)

To avoid conflicts of interests, or perceptions of such, Mr. Ortiz is declining any contributions from the development industry.

If elected, Mr. Ortiz has pledged to work with the Board of Supervisors to adopt a new code of ethics that would help eliminate potential conflicts of interest that can exist when voting on issues dealing with profitable land use decisions made by the board.

Nor will Mr. Ortiz accept donations from any corporations, or people representing corporations, involved in the contracts he supervises in his position as a civilian manager at Quantico.

We need that kind of leadership and integrity, and it is exactly what I've come to expect from Paul Ortiz.

I've known Mr. Ortiz for more than 20 years and consider him one of the most honest people I've met.

To their credit, the Stafford Democratic Committee recognized these qualities in Mr. Ortiz and recently voted to endorse him--and neither Mr. Ortiz nor I are Democrats.

I can vouch for Mr. Ortiz' independence. I'm a conservative. I don't have a political axe to grind. I do, however, believe that Mr. Ortiz will be an outstanding representative on the Stafford Board of Supervisors for the folks of the Aquia District.

Geoff Pomroy

Stafford