Find out how Cooch took $55,000 from the disgraced "U.S. Navy Veterans Association," in apparent exchange for his promise to get the Virginia Office of Consumer Affairs (which had "notified Thompson's group that it no longer qualified for an exemption from state registration requirements") off the group's back. Can we say "pay-to-play?" Find out more.
Winners Arlington County - Got an excellent new board member, one who will be independent, hard working, and honest. Good job, Arlington!
Mary Margaret Whipple - She's been on somewhat of a roll recently in terms of her endorsements (e.g., Barbara Favola, Libby Garvey). Whipple also got the Democratic nominee for governor she wanted in 2009, although Creigh Deeds then went on to lose in a landslide to Bob McDonnell in November, so that one was a mixed bag. But today, at least, Whipple's a winner!
Libby Garvey as an Arlington powerhouse: As her 2005 (House of Delegates), 2011 (State Senate) and 2012 (County Board) runs - plus her crushing victory for reelection to the Arlington School Board in 2008 - have shown, Garvey is a powerhouse in Arlington, not so much in Alexandria and Fairfax.
Libby Garvey's team: Clearly, running for office isn't an individual endeavor, it's a team effort, and Libby's team - James Stretch, Dave Leichtman, etc. - obviously did a great job getting out their vote. Nice job, guys!
Lee Hockstader (aka, Washington Post Editorial Board) - I've certainly been critical of Hockstader in the past, but I think he nailed this endorsement (of Libby Garvey), and Garvey won big time. I'm not sure that I'd generalize from this to say that Post endorsements are extremely important, but this one seems to have boosted Garvey to a bigger victory than many expected.
Barbara Favola - She got the person she wanted - and endorsed - to succeed her on the Board.
Local blogs, online newspapers: Coverage of the board race was far and away concentrated in blogs like Blue Virginia, NLS, and Arlington Yupette, plus online newspapers like ArlNow, the Patch, and Arlington Mercury (and even, as much as I hate to say it, the Sun Gazette politics blog). In comparison, the dead tree papers like the Kaplan Post were left far, far behind. Also, I'd point out that both NLS and yours truly endorsed the winner, Libby Garvey.
I got back about 1/2 hour ago from the Arlington County Board Democratic caucus at Washington-Lee High School. As far as I could tell, there was fairly heavy turnout, with long lines (see photos on the "flip") to get in and vote. Of course, that might be partly due to the fact that tonight's caucus was just 2 hours long, and perhaps most people decided to vote tonight instead of Saturday? We'll see. One other observation: the crowd for this caucus appeared to be overwhelmingly white and...let's just say "older" -- very few young people, very few Latinos, very few African Americans, etc. As I looked around, I kept thinking, "what is this, the Republican Party?" All I can say is, I sure hope that voters on Saturday more closely resemble the diverse community that Arlington is proud to be. (Note that the racial/ethnic makeup of Arlington County is: "64.04% non-Hispanic White, 8.23% Non-Hispanic Black or African American, 0.20% Non-Hispanic Native American, 9.52% Non-Hispanic Asian (2.0% Indian, 1.7% Chinese, 1.1% Filipino, 0.9% Korean, 0.7% Vietnamese, 2.7% Other Asian), 0.08% Pacific Islander, 0.29% Non-Hispanic other races, 2.55% Non-Hispanics reporting two or more race. Hispanics or Latinos made up 15.11% of the county's population.")
Now, on to the photos - candidates Libby Garvey (photo courtesy of Clifford's Photography) and Melissa Bondi "above the fold;" candidates Terron Sims, Kim Klingler, Peter Fallon, Clerk of the Circuit Court Paul Ferguson, Revenue Commissioner Ingrid Morroy, and County Board Member Mary Hynes "below the fold."
With the Democratic caucus to select a nominee for Arlington County Board kicking off just 96 hours from now, I figured it was high time I made a decision regarding who I'm going to vote for. Over the past few weeks, I've had a chance to talk - extensively, in several cases - with the candidates. I've also read over their responses to the Blue Virginia questionnaire, attended the ACDC debate, and watched video of the Arlington Independent Media forum. Finally, this morning, I definitively made up my mind to support Libby Garvey for this position. Here's my reasoning, if you're interested.
First off, this is not an endorsement against anyone. In fact, I believe that everyone running brings strengths to the table - some more than others - and I admire them for putting their names out there for this position. Given how harsh, including harshly personal, politics can be, that takes guts. Also, I hope that the four candidates who are not nominated next Saturday will stay involved in making Arlington the best community in the region, in Virginia, and in the country for that matter. Their talents and abilities certainly would help us achieve that objective.
Having said that, of course we can only vote for one candidate out of the five running, and my choice is Libby Garvey. Why? Several reasons. One factor I took into account is relevant experience for this position. Clearly, Libby Garvey - the only elected official in this race - has the most of that, having served on the Arlington County School Board - including five times as Chair - since 1996. In that capacity, Libby has had responsibility for managing approximately 38% of Arlington's total budget expenditures (the school budget for FY 2012 is nearly half a billion dollars). In addition, as Libby pointed out in her Blue Virginia interview, "Arlington Public Schools employs more people than anyone in the County except the Federal government," including people to run "a large transportation and food service system." The fact is, Libby is the only one in this race with that kind of relevant, Arlington-related experience, and it means that she has an excellent chance of being an effective member of the County Board starting on Day #1. That's certainly nothing to sneeze at.
That's it, I've finally decided who I'm supporting for Arlington County Board. Thanks to our fantastic, singing Revenue Commissioner Ingrid Morroy - and her twin sister Judith - for making the choice so easy. Now, everyone, get out there and campaign hard for Gordon (Simonett, I believe, but anyone named Gordon will do - lol).
On January 3, Fairfax Democrats elected a new leadership team heading into a crucial two years for Virginia. First, of course, we have the presidential and U.S. Senate elections this November, with Virginia potentially deciding control of the White and U.S. Senate. Then, in 2013, the governor's mansion will be contested, very possibly between Terry McAuliffe and crazy Ken Kookinelli. In all of that, Fairfax will play a huge role, as it has a population of 1.1 million, one-seventh of the entire Commonwealth, and often racks up big margins for Democrats. If Democrats are to win Virginia in 2012 and 2013, we're certainly going to need Fairfax firing on all cylinders.
That's why I was interested in talking to newly-elected Fairfax County Democratic Committee (FCDC) chair Cesar del Aguila, and finding out what he's got on his agenda. Also, I heard from several Fairfax Democrats that this was a heated race, and I wanted to get a feel for how well FCDC was doing in terms of reuniting and revving up for this crucial year.
First, there's background on Cesar is available on his website. Here's a key passage that jumped out at me:
I grew up believing that Democrats are the party of the people - all people: including those who have a small voice, no voice or a voice that speaks in a language other than English. You don't need a blood test to be a Democrat. One of the core values of the Democratic Party is our inclusiveness - we have a big tent and all that believe in our core values are welcome here. I have not simply espoused that belief all my life, I have lived it.
I couldn't agree more. I also couldn't agree more that "the primary objective of the FCDC is to identify, cultivate, include and empower local Democrats," and that FCDC should "be a place where diversity means welcoming those who are new to our committee, to politics and to being a Democrat." That's exactly right, and should be obvious, although sadly it isn't to every Democrat, including at least one high-ranking leader (not to name any Dick names Saslaw - heh).
With that, highlights of my interview with Cesar are on the "flip." Of course, thanks to Cesar for taking the time out of his busy schedule to speak with us!
Did you know Arlington Democrats narrowly escaped nominating a House of Delegates member with some very serious ethical questions? That's right - they could've nominated someone who missed a car tax payment. Imagine what a field day the Republican & Green Party candidates would've had with that!
That candidate was ... me. (Cue Shayna Englin: "Narrowly?" OK, I needed to make it sound more dramatic.) After moving to Virginia in 2002, the first I learned of the personal property tax & Arlington decal fee was a form letter from Treasurer Frank O'Leary's office telling me it was overdue. I emailed O'Leary promising to pay but pleading ignorance & hoping to get the late fee waived. "It is each taxpayer's duty to know when taxes are due," came the terse reply. Welcome to Arlington.
I tell the story because anonymous emailers are now shopping some similar stories about Arlington County Board candidate Melissa Bondi & claiming they make her unfit for office. I will not relate the details because not only do I not reward smears, the attempted smears in question are incredibly boring. I'm sure the people pushing the smears will disagree and be all SURELY YOU CAN'T BE SERIOUS and WHY WON'T THE MEDIA COVER THIS SERIOUSNESS and that is what the comments section is for, so go to town making anonymous handles under which to file your complaints. To me, the real questions I'd like answered are about how the anonymous people first learned of the issues, whether they were tipped off by anyone on the Arlington County payroll, and how someone obtained creepy/stalker-ish photos of Bondi's car from way back in 2006.
With the Arlington County Board Democratic caucus just 8 days away, things are definitely heating up with the two candidates widely assumed to be the frontrunners. First off, Libby Garvey has now been endorsed by recently retired State Senators Mary Margaret Whipple (D-31) and Patsy Ticer (D-30). These endorsements follow the endorsement of Garvey by incoming Senator Barbara Favola (D-31), whose departure from the Arlington County Board for the General Assembly in Richmond triggered this special election. The full endorsement statement by Whipple and Ticer of Garvey is on the "flip."
As far as I can tell, these endorsements help cement Garvey's position as an (increasingly) strong front runner for County Board. Why? Two reasons. First, I strongly doubt that Favola, Whipple, and Ticer would have all decided to endorse Garvey unless they were confident she's going to win. Second, Favola, Whipple, and Ticer are all very popular among the likely electorate -- hardcore, longtime Arlington Democrats who are overwhelmingly favorably inclined towards the endorsers.
Finally, Garvey already had major advantages in this race, as the only elected official running, as the candidate with by far the highest name ID, and as the candidate with the best organization and most resources (e.g., Garvey seems to have a full mail program, unlike the other candidates). Then, last Wednesday, Garvey had a strong performance in front of a couple hundred people at the Arlington County Democratic Committee debate. Now, with just 8 days to go, it's hard to see how anyone tops this combination, especially since - as we've seen in Iowa and New Hampshire recently - a multiple candidate field can be highly advantageous to the "establishment" candidate, as the others tend to split the "not-establishment-candidate" vote. That very well could happen in this case, with Garvey winning 40% or more of the vote next Thursday and Saturday. Stay tuned...
P.S. I'm well aware, as are many Arlington Democratic and progressive activists, that there are rumors flying around about another major candidate in this race. However, until I'm able to get a coherent story, confirmation of exactly what's going on, and preferably the source(s) of the allegations being thrown around (a potentially fascinating story in and of itself, possibly more interesting than the rumors themselves!), I'm not planning to write any further on this stuff. We'll see what other blogs and news outlets decide to do, as the information is being sent around to everyone and their uncle/aunt/cousin/neighbor/dog/cat/etc., apparently.
Congratulations to Evan Macbeth, elected on Saturday as the new chair of the Loudoun County Democratic Committee (LCDC). That committee's clearly had a lot of challenges (I'm being nice here) the past couple years, including a total wipeout of Democrats on the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors this past November, as well as significant dissension in the ranks. Clearly, Evan Macbeth and his new leadership team will have their work cut out for themselves in turning things around. Fortunately, Macbeth is a dedicated Democrat, a hard worker, a strong progressive, and a smart guy. Let's hope that combination does the trick! :)
In addition to Macbeth, others elected on Ssturday include: former Sterling candidate and OFA Sterling lead Dan Lloyd as Vice Chair; former Blue Ridge District Chair Joe Pabis as Vice Chair; Jenniffer DeNigris-Kalinowski as Secretary (returning; was secretary last term); and Sterling CPA Hari Scharma as Treasurer. Good luck to everyone!
Wednesday night, the Arlington County Democratic Committee (ACDC) held a candidates' debate for the five people running for County Board (for the seat vacated due to Barbara Favola's election to the State Senate) before a packed house (a couple hundred people?) at GMU's Founders Hall. I posted most of the videos here, but due to very slooooooow YouTube loading, as well as one crash of my computer in the middle of the process, this has taken significantly longer than I'd expected. Anyway, here are the candidates' closing statements. In order, they are: Peter Fallon, Melissa Bondi, Terron Sims, Kim Klingler, and Libby Garvey. You can also read the candidates' extensive interviews at Blue Virginia (Fallon, Garvey, Sims, Bondi, Klingler). Finally, make sure you come out and vote on either January 19th (at Washington-Lee HS from 7 to 9 pm) or 21st (from 11 am to 7 pm at Kenmore Middle School).
P.S. What is the biggest challenge facing Arlington County? You can see the candidates' answers to that question on the "flip." In my opinion, it's something none of them talked about directly -- namely, the challenge Arlington will face in coming years as the government downsizes. given Arlington's heavy dependence on government - military, civilian, contractor - employment, property taxes, etc., that's going to be a huge challenge for the county, beginning soon if not immediately. Do we have a strategy to diversify our economy? I haven't seen one yet, but I hope we're busy working on this!
In just over 3 weeks, Arlington Democrats will hold a caucus -- see the "flip" for all the details from ACDC chair Mike Lieberman -- to determine the Democratic nominee for Arlington County Board (to fill Senator-elect Barbara Favola's soon-to-be-vacant seat). Expected turnout for the caucus is around 4,000 voters, depending on weather, etc. Given that the current population of Arlington is 200,000, that turnout will represent approximately 2% of Arlingtonians.
That's bad enough, considering that whoever wins this caucus is highly likely to be the next Arlington County Board Member For Life (I say this because, in heavily Democratic Arlington, there's essentially zero chance of a Republican beating the Democrat, and also because once people are elected to the Board, they are basically there forever, barring political appointment, retirement, or untimely demise).
But it's actually even worse than that, as the winner of this caucus only needs to achieve a plurality of the voters participating. Given that there are six candidates running, this means that the caucus winner will probably get somewhere in the 20%-30% range of those 4,000 votes, or perhaps 800-1,200 votes. In other words, it is highly likely that the next Arlington County Board Member For Life will be selected by just 0.4%-0.6% of Arlingtonians. To put it another way, more than 99% of Arlingtonians will NOT participate in selecting the next County Board Member For Life.
Arlington is gearing up for a special election to replace Senator-elect Barbara Favola on the County Board, with the caucus dates now set for 2/2 and 2/4 (at the NRECA Building and Kenmore Middle School, respectively), and with numerous candidates announcing at this past Wednesday's ACDC meeting (see videos of their speeches here). I recently sent out questionnaires to all the announced Democratic candidates, with a deadline of this morning. The first interview, with Elmer Lowe, is available here. The second interview, with Melissa Bondi, is available here, and the third interview, with Terron Sims, is available here. The fourth interview, received a bit after the deadline, was with Kim Klingler. The fifth interview, also received a bit after the deadline, is with Libby Garvey (see here). The final interview, which you can read below, is with Peter Fallon, a bit past the "early Monday" deadline. Thanks to Mr. Lowe, Ms. Bondi, Mr. Sims, Ms. Klingler, Ms. Garvey, and Mr. Fallon for returning their Blue Virginia surveys (and to the first three for returning them on time). May the best candidate win!
1. Why are you running for Arlington County Board and what makes you the most qualified candidate at this time? I am running to continue Arlington's tradition of good government built upon qualified candidates with years of broad-based community experience, strong record of commitment to local public service, while embracing Arlington's community values.
Local issues have always been important to me, and over the past 20 years I've devoted thousands of hours to a broad range of issues in Arlington. These issues have included schools, transportation, zoning, parks and recreation, fiscal management, and public safety among others. The Code of Virginia requires that every town, city and county have a planning commission to advise it on these matters.
Arlington is gearing up for a special election to replace Senator-elect Barbara Favola on the County Board, with the caucus dates now set for 2/2 and 2/4 (at the NRECA Building and Kenmore Middle School, respectively), and with numerous candidates announcing at this past Wednesday's ACDC meeting (see videos of their speeches here). I recently sent out questionnaires to all the announced Democratic candidates, with a deadline of this morning. The first interview, with Elmer Lowe, is available here. The second interview, with Melissa Bondi, is available here, and the third interview, with Terron Sims, is available here. The fourth interview, received a bit after the deadline, was with Kim Klingler. This interview, received a bit after the deadline, is with Libby Garvey. The final interview will follow (from Peter Fallon) this afternoon. Thanks to Mr. Lowe, Ms. Bondi, Mr. Sims, Ms. Klingler, and Ms. Garvey for returning their Blue Virginia surveys (and to the first three for returning them on time), and to the remaining candidate (Peter Fallon) in advance for his responses as well.
1. Why are you running for Arlington County Board and what makes you the most qualified candidate at this time? I am running because Arlington is my home for almost 35 years and we are facing some big challenges. After 15 years leading change on the school board and helping to make our schools among the best in the nation, I have the proven leadership skills and experience coupled with a fresh perspective which Arlington needs on the County Board to help manage the unprecedented growth and change we're experiencing at this time. It is important to maintain what we value most about our community as we grow and change. In order to do that we need to be clear about our priorities and have transparent public processes. This is how I've worked for 15 years.
Arlington is gearing up for a special election to replace Senator-elect Barbara Favola on the County Board, with the caucus dates now set for 2/2 and 2/4 (at the NRECA Building and Kenmore Middle School, respectively), and with numerous candidates announcing at this past Wednesday's ACDC meeting (see videos of their speeches here). I recently sent out questionnaires to all the announced Democratic candidates, with a deadline of this morning. The first interview, with Elmer Lowe, is available here. The second interview, with Melissa Bondi, is available here, and the third interview, with Terron Sims, is available here. This interview, which was received about an hour past the agreed-upon deadline, is with Kim Klingler. The remaining two interviews will follow, hopefully soon, but obviously depending upon if/when they're received. Thanks to Mr. Lowe, Ms. Bondi, Mr. Sims and Ms. Klingler for returning their Blue Virginia surveys (and to the first three for returning them ON TIME!), and to the remaining two candidates (Libby Garvey and Peter Fallon) in advance for their responses as well.
1. Why are you running for Arlington County Board and what makes you the most qualified candidate at this time? I am running for the Arlington County Board because I believe that, with my broad-based community involvement and professional experience, I will bring a critical - and currently unrepresented - perspective to the County Board. I bring a business, community, and political perspective. We need a strong voice for health and human services, we need a leader for the preparation of the Metro Silver Line, and we need a champion for county board and school board collaboration. We need someone who is truly connected to the community, and understands the needs of all Arlingtonians, including those aging in place. I am that leader.
Arlington is gearing up for a special election to replace Senator-elect Barbara Favola on the County Board, with the caucus dates now set for 2/2 and 2/4 (at the NRECA Building and Kenmore Middle School, respectively), and with numerous candidates announcing at this past Wednesday's ACDC meeting (see videos of their speeches here). I recently sent out questionnaires to all the announced Democratic candidates, with a deadline of this morning. The first interview, with Elmer Lowe, is available here. The second interview, with Melissa Bondi, is available here. The rest will follow shortly. Thanks to Mr. Lowe, Ms. Bondi, and Mr. Sims for returning their Blue Virginia surveys (on time is an added bonus!), and to the other candidates in advance for their responses as well.
1. Why are you running for Arlington County Board and what makes you the most qualified candidate at this time? I am running for a seat on the Arlington County Board because I want to serve our county in a greater capacity, and I feel that my public and private sector experience will allow me to make an immediate and positive impact. I will bring a unique perspective in several respects.
I am a West Point graduate with a Bachelors degree in systems engineering. I currently work for a private sector research company leading a team in developing an analytical database for the Department of Defense. As an Arlington home owner and taxpayer, I understand the challenges many of us face in making that mortgage payment each month. As past Chair of the Arlington Fiscal Affairs Advisory Committee, I learned that as well managed as our county government is, there are ways we can make more effective use of our tax dollars.
Arlington is gearing up for a special election to replace Senator-elect Barbara Favola on the County Board, with the caucus dates now set for 2/2 and 2/4 (at the NRECA Building and Kenmore Middle School, respectively), and with numerous candidates announcing at this past Wednesday's ACDC meeting (see videos of their speeches here). I recently sent out questionnaires to all the announced Democratic candidates, with a deadline of this morning. The first interview, with Arlington NAACP President Elmer Lowe, is available here. The second interview, which you can read below, is with community activist Melissa Bondi. The rest will follow in coming days as soon as possible. Thanks to Mr. Lowe and Ms. Bondi for returning their Blue Virginia surveys (on time is an added bonus! :)), and to the other candidates in advance for their responses as well.
1) Why are you running for Arlington County Board and what makes you the most qualified candidate at this time? I want to serve on the County Board to engage our community in resolving major questions about Arlington's future.
I love Arlington. As a County Board Member, I would bring my experience as a neighborhood leader, my professional policy expertise, my collaborative style and a ten-year track record of resolving challenges in my own neighborhood and across Arlington. I believe I am the only candidate who would bring all these assets to the County Board.
Arlington's prime location next to our nation's capital and its visionary planning around Metro in the 1960s and 1970s has led to enormous success. However, these factors alone will not carry us through the next 50 years. We need a community conversation to update our vision. I want our community to consider life beyond the Metro corridors, and to consider the next generation of our economic, social and environmental sustainability. I've seen repeatedly that some of our best ideas come from the public -- I will work to ensure they have adequate resources to broaden community conversations and to forge tailored solutions that fit our neighborhoods and shared goals.
As a County Board Member, I would also lead new efforts to preserve and pursue additional committed affordable housing, and to ensure our outstanding schools, parks and other capital investments, our triple-AAA bond rating and excellent transportation choices and systems. I would stand up for equality and further pursue equitable, social justice no matter one's age, income, race, ethnicity, physical ability or orientation. I would work with all of the Arlington community to continue to achieve success while maintaining our values and welcoming new ideas.
Arlington is gearing up for a special election to replace Senator-elect Barbara Favola on the County Board, with the caucus dates now set for 2/2 and 2/4 (at the NRECA Building and Kenmore Middle School, respectively), and with numerous candidates announcing at this past Wednesday's ACDC meeting (see videos of their speeches here). I recently sent out questionnaires to all the announced Democratic candidates, with a deadline of tomorrow morning, latest. The first response comes from Arlington NAACP President Elmer Lowe. The rest will follow in coming days. Thanks to Mr. Lowe for returning the Blue Virginia survey, and also to the other candidates in advance for their responses as well.
1. Why are you running for Arlington County Board and what makes you the most qualified candidate at this time?
I am running for Arlington County Board and I feel that I am the most qualified candidate at this time because of my experience in organizing, planning, management, and knowing how to solve many of the difficult problems of today. My Leadership experience with over 24 years of active duty in the US Military and 19 years as a Deputy Sheriff in Arlington County speaks for me. I was also the Executive Director for "Friends of Guest" a home for non-violent female ex-offenders in Alexandria, Va. I was the second male to be appointed to this position. In this position, I had to set strict rules and enforce them. In my present position as President of Arlington Branch of the NAACP, my management and supervisory skills have truly been tested.
2. What would you say are the top three challenges facing Arlington County right now?
The top three challenges facing Arlington County right now are affordable housing, unemployment and immigration problems. In that order and I believe they all can be resolved.
I tried to make it to this meeting last night, but I got there a little late and there was no parking that I could find anywhere near the place (I talked to one person who told me he had to park 1 mile away!). Of course, this is exactly the reason why these meetings should never be held in transit/pedestrian-inaccessible locations, but that's another topic for another time. Anyway, thanks to Stephanie Clifford for the videos of the Democratic candidates for Arlington County Board making their presentations the ACDC meeting. Here they are in alphabetical order. Enjoy!
After the third straight year of disastrous elections for Democrats here in Virginia, you'd expect a great deal of ferment among Democratic committees, including DPVA. In the case of the DPVA, of course, we're not seeing that, as the culture of non-accountability for failure is deeply entrenched there. Bottom line: at DPVA, it's much more about who people "like," maintaining their exclusive club, racial/gender/regional politics, etc., than about competence and merit. In other words, DPVA seems well beyond hope.
At the local committee level, though, we're seeing a bit more ferment right now. Over at NLS, Ben reports that "In York/Poquoson, the new Chair is Jake Evans, a 21 year old local student." Congratulations to Jake, talk about a youth movement!
On a far less pleasant note, Ben reports that "Party switcher Chris Wade who ran for Supervisor as a "Democrat" this year (voting in his first Democratic Primary for himself) was elected Co-Chair of the Braddock District Democratic Committee." Now, to be clear, I have ZERO problem with party switchers from "R" to "D." Recall that I "drafted" one of them -- Jim Webb for Senate in 2006 -- and worked for his campaign. So what's the difference between Chris Wade and Jim Webb (other than that Chris Wade is NO Jim Webb in any way, shape or form)? Simple: Jim Webb explained, repeatedly and persuasively, the thought process that led him to move from the Republican Party to the Democratic Party. In Chris Wade's case, there STILL, believe it or not, has been no explanation for how he went from self-identified "strong McCain-Palin supporter" in 2008 (3 years ago) to suddenly a "Democrat" today. So, what's Wade doing as a Democrat, and what in bloody you-know-where is Wade doing being ELECTED to a Democratic Committee?!? What I'm hearing is that, for whatever reason(s), Wade is seen by certain "powers that be" as a potential Democratic candidate in the future. Why, I have no idea, but it's certainly not based on Wade's efforts for Democrats over the years, that's for sure. Terrible choice by the Braddock District Democratic Committee.
In other news, I'm hearing that Evan Macbeth (pictured with Mark Warner above) is highly likely to be elected the next chair of the Loudoun County Democratic Committee on January 7 (he was the only announced candidate as of a few days ago, after Andy Resnick pulled out of the running). I think that's great news, as LCDC is in desperate need of having strong, energetic, dynamic new leadership, which Evan will provide. Evan's challenges basically involve picking up the pieces -- actually, more like rubble -- from the Mike Turner years as LCDC chair. That includes a 9-0 Republican Loudoun County Board of Supervisors, former LCDC members running around endorsing against their own party, and general dysfucntion all around (come to think of it, LCDC isn't that dissimilar to that other Macbeth - Shakespeare's, including the intrigue, backstabbing, deceit, etc.). I wish Evan Macbeth the best of luck in pulling together all the REAL Democrats in Loudoun County and in reenergizing the LCDC!
Lots more on the "flip," including the coup attempt against Bruce Roemmelt and the wackiness in FCDC that needs to be stopped.
It looks like the Arlington County Board race for Senator-elect Barbara Favola's seat is off and running. This coming Wednesday, the 5? 6? announced Democratic candidates will be speaking at the Arlington County Democratic Committee meeting, and today I received my first mailer of the campaign -- from Melissa Bondi -- which you can see here and on the "flip." Other candidates include Terron Sims, Kim Klingler, Libby Garvey, Peter Fallon, and possibly Elmer Lowe (not sure if he's running as a Democrat, or at all for that matter) and H.K. Park.
The first step in choosing a replacement for Barbara Favola is for Democrats to choose their nominee, in a two-day "firehouse primary" process in early February 2012 (I'm hearing that one of the locations will be in Ballston -- NRECA Building, the other in South Arlington -- Kenmore Middle School). Presumably, Republicans, Greens, etc. will select nominees as well. Then, there will be a special election, probably in mid-April 2012, to fill Favola's seat. Clearly, Democrats are a huge majority in Arlington, and thus the Democratic nominee will be the overwhelming favorite to win in April. What really strikes me is that the expected turnout for the Democratic nomination contest is in the 5,000 range, with the "win number" somewhere around 1,500-2,000. In other words, out of a population of 200,000, just 2.5% will select the nominee, and only 1% or so will probably have voted for that person in the nominating process. I don't know about you, but somehow that doesn't seem acceptable to me. The question is, how do we get the other 97.5% of Arlingtonians interested in this race? It's kind of baffling to me that they wouldn't be, but there it is. Any ideas?
P.S. I'm glad to see that Melissa Bondi's campaign mailer is printed on recycled paper, with soy ink, using wind power and union labor. I certainly would hope the other candidates would do the same!
Virginia state law prohibits partisan affiliation from being listed on ballots for local elections. But can the Falls Church City Council go a step further, banning political parties from endorsing candidates in city races altogether - and do it with extremely limited public input?
In the wake of two major shakeups to Falls Church city politics, the City Council is set to vote tonight on amendments to the city charter that were just drawn up at the council work session a week ago. The key additions:
"[U]nder this amendment to Section 3.02, candidates for City Council who are nominated by political party primary or convention will no longer be listed on the ballot for City Council."
"Candidates for the office of city council shall be qualified voters of the city and shall file their notice of candidacy and be nominated only by petition in the manner prescribed by law for nonparty candidates and not by caucus, primary, convention or other party-affiliated proceeding."
The amendments warn against not just the evils of partisan elections, but of partisan candidates
So why the rush to change the charter? Under Virginia's Dillon's Rule system, the changes need Virginia General Assembly approval, so the City Council wants to get the amendments into its legislative package in time for the next General Assembly session in January. Unfortunately, it seems the City Council is putting that deadline ahead of opportunity for public input - an especially unfortunate move given voters just dealt the Council a harsh rebuke in this month's election.
The purpose of Blue Virginia is to cover Virginia politics from a progressive and Democratic perspective. This is a group blog and a community blog. We invite everyone to comment here, but please be aware that profanity, personal attacks, bigotry, insults, rudeness, frequent unsupported or off-point statements, and "trolling" (NOTE: that includes outright lies, whether about climate science, or what other people said, or whatever) are not permitted and, if continued, will lead to banning. For more on trolling, see the Daily Kos FAQs. Also note that diaries may be deleted if they do not contain at least 2 solid paragraphs of original text; if not, please use the comments section of a relevant diary. For more on writing diaries, click here. Thanks, and enjoy!
Winners
With the Arlington County Board Democratic caucus just 8 days away, things are definitely heating up with the two candidates widely assumed to be the frontrunners. First off, 
Congratulations to Evan Macbeth, elected on Saturday as the new chair of the Loudoun County Democratic Committee (LCDC). That committee's clearly had a lot of challenges (I'm being nice here) the past couple years, including a total wipeout of Democrats on the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors this past November, as well as significant dissension in the ranks. Clearly, Evan Macbeth and his new leadership team will have their work cut out for themselves in turning things around. Fortunately, Macbeth is a dedicated Democrat, a hard worker, a strong progressive, and a smart guy. Let's hope that combination does the trick! :)
In just over 3 weeks, Arlington Democrats will hold a caucus -- see the "flip" for all the details from ACDC chair Mike Lieberman -- to determine the Democratic nominee for Arlington County Board (to fill Senator-elect Barbara Favola's soon-to-be-vacant seat). Expected turnout for the caucus is around 4,000 voters, depending on weather, etc. Given that the current population of Arlington is 200,000, that turnout will represent approximately 2% of Arlingtonians.
After the third straight year of disastrous elections for Democrats here in Virginia, you'd expect a great deal of ferment among Democratic committees, including DPVA. In the case of the DPVA, of course, we're not seeing that, as the culture of non-accountability for failure is deeply entrenched there. Bottom line: at DPVA, it's much more about who people "like," maintaining their exclusive club, racial/gender/regional politics, etc., than about competence and merit. In other words, DPVA seems well beyond hope.
