Thanks to ViennaVotes (Shelley Ebert), this Wednesday (5/15/2019), in the Vienna Community Center, from 6PM to about 9PM, you have the chance to meet the next Fairfax County Board of Supervisors member from the Hunter Mill District. An invitation for this event is posted on this Facebook page.
All five Democratic candidates for County Board of Supervisors for the Hunter Mill district will be there. Because Democrats dominate this seat, you should realize two things:
- One of these five people is likely to be your next representative on the County Board of Supervisors, and
- That’s likely to be determined in the June 11 Democratic primary, not in the general election.
There will probably be a Republican challenger to the Democratic candidate, but that challenger faces an uphill battle. Democrats have held this seat in 11 of the past 13 elections. Democrat Martha V. Pennino was the Board of Supervisors member from this district for 24 years prior to 1991. In 1991, Republican Robert B. Dix Jr. narrowly defeated her, ran unopposed in 1995, and (after some scandals) was defeated by Democrat Catherine Hudgins in 1999. Hudgins has held that seat since, winning by almost a 2-to-1 margin in 2003, and running unopposed in 2007, 2011, and 2015.
The Board of Supervisors controls a lot of things that directly affect qualify of life here in Fairfax County. And, accordingly, this is likely to be a wide-ranging discussion. So please understand, this is going to be about more than just (say) schools or taxes. Development and growth have already come out as a key issues, particularly for the Reston area. There, a proposal to increase allowable housing density was recently suspended.
This is advertised as an “informal debate”. From 6:30 to 8:30, candidates will answer a series of questions about how they would treat Vienna if they were the next Board of Supervisors member. In addition, some candidates will be present for a half-hour before (6 PM) and after (9 PM) to talk to Vienna citizens. You won’t be able to ask questions during the debate portion of the event, but you should have the opportunity to talk to the candidates. Continue reading Post #271: This Wednesday, in Vienna: Talk to the Board of Supervisors candidates about schools and other issues.