Tag: Government & Courts

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Charlottesville City Council increases salaries and considers ranked-choice voting

Charlottesville City Council voted to increase members’ pay for the first time since 1996. Photo by Eze Amos.

At its August 19 meeting, Charlottesville City Council delved into a number of hot-button local issues, including council salaries and ranked-choice voting.

Under new legislation from the Virginia General Assembly, city governments can now vote to increase salaries, with pay limits determined by locality population size.

A proposed salary ordinance would increase councilors’ annual pay from $18,000 to $34,000 and the mayor’s salary from $20,000 to $37,000.

“It seems to me that [this] sends a very unwelcome message to people, and I don’t think it’s a wise idea,” said City Councilor Lloyd Snook. The councilor has been vocal in his opposition to the salary increase, citing the bad optics of raising pay amid continuous tax hikes by the city.

Councilor Natalie Oschrin rebutted Snook, arguing an increase in pay would allow more people the financial opportunity to serve on the council. “I think that’s actually an interesting choice of words, ‘unwelcome,’ when, from our perspective, it would be more welcoming for more people to be able to join this board,” she said.

Councilors at the August 19 city council meeting ultimately voted to increase council salaries effective July 1, 2026 by a vote of 4-1, with Snook the sole dissenting vote. This is the first pay increase for the council since 1996. The next round of city council elections will occur prior to the implementation of the raises.

Moving down the agenda, councilors considered an ordinance adopting ranked-choice voting for the Charlottes—ville City Council’s June 2025 primary elections.

“With our equipment that we have in Charlottesville, [voters] will be able to make up to six rankings for candidates,” said General Registrar and Director of Elections Taylor Yowell. 

Two council seats will appear on the ballot next June, meaning candidates need to obtain 33.3 percent of the vote if the ranked-choice system is adopted. The percentage needed to declare a winning candidate or candidates in a ranked-choice election is determined by the number of available seats.

Several community members spoke in favor of the ranked-choice voting ordinance during the community matters portion of the meeting, including former delegate and founder of Ranked Choice Virginia Sally Hudson.

“Charlottesville has a long history of being proud to be a cradle of democracy, and there’s a long history of ranked-choice voting activism in this community,” said Hudson. “Ranked-choice voting started in Charlottesville more than 20 years ago when UVA students first adopted ranked-choice for their student council elections. And while that may not sound like a very big deal, roughly 5,000 students cast their ballots for student council every year on grounds—which is almost as many people who vote in a Charlottesville city council primary.”

Councilors voiced both questions and support for the voting system, but the decision on implementation is still up in the air. The second and final reading of the ranked-choice voting ordinance, along with the council’s vote, is slated to appear on the consent agenda at the next Charlottesville City Council meeting on September 3.

For more information about the ordinances or to watch the full council meeting, visit charlottesville.gov.

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Draft congressional budget bills allocate millions for local projects and organizations

Sen. Tim Kaine, who is up for reelection this fall, serves on the Senate Committee on the Budget. Photo by Gage Skidmore.

After a tumultuous budget cycle that led to the ouster of former speaker Kevin McCarthy last year, Congress is diving back into budget negotiations for Fiscal Year 2025. Draft bills passed by the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee include more than $3 million in appropriations for local projects supporting Charlottesville and Albemarle County efforts around affordable housing, infrastructure, and youth engagement.

The largest local appropriation included in the draft legislation would support Charlottesville City Council’s work to convert a “defunct commercial building” at 501 Cherry Ave. into mixed-use affordable housing. The $1.25 million in funding falls short of the original $2.4 million requested by Virginia Sens. Tim Kaine and Mark Warner.

The redevelopment—located at the site of the former IGA grocery store—will reportedly include 71 apartments for “low- and moderate-income seniors, people with disabilities, and families,” according to language in the draft bills. Community members are invited to attend a meeting at the Jefferson School African Heritage Center auditorium on August 24 from noon to 2pm covering community input on the project and local history.

“The construction of 71 affordable apartments … will help provide workforce housing for people in Charlottesville and be a significant investment toward the goal of ensuring everyone can still afford to live in Charlottesville as our economy continues to grow,” said Charlottesville City Councilor Michael Payne in a comment via email.

Further funds have been allocated toward local affordable housing efforts, with Habitat for Humanity of Greater Charlottesville afforded $1.074 million in the draft legislation. If included in the final congressional FY25 budget, the funds will support Habitat’s construction of 11 affordable units in the Southwood community.

“This funding helps Habitat honor the nondisplacement commitment we made to the original residents … by ensuring that we are able to construct the variety of home ownership and rental options necessary to meet the needs of every family who wishes to remain in Southwood,” said Habitat Communications and Annual Giving Manager Angela Guzman via email. “We sincerely appreciate this vote of confidence in Habitat for Humanity of Greater Charlottesville’s innovative, resident-led approach to tackling the affordable housing crisis in our community.”

The draft appropriations also provide Rivanna Water & Sewer Authority with $880,000 for vital equipment improvements. “If the funding is eventually approved, we will be using it to replace the existing powder-activated carbon system at the South Rivanna Water Treatment Plant with a new, more modern slurry feed system,” said RWSA Director of Administration and Communications Betsy Nemeth via email.

The congressional funds allow RWSA to lower costs for ratepayers, according to Nemeth, while maintaining access to clean drinking water.

Other notable local appropriations in the draft spending bills include $200,000 for ReadyKids, Inc. and $61,000 for the Boys & Girls Club of Central Virginia. Both programs aim to support local youth, with draft funds slated to support mental health counseling and out-of-school programming in Charlottesville and Albemarle.

“For every child that receives trauma counseling at ReadyKids, there are two children waiting for services,” said Eileen Barber, ReadyKids’ lead communications specialist, via email. “To ensure our counseling programs are sustained, we’re pursuing new opportunities, including earmarks, to bolster these essential services.”

Funding for the Boys & Girls Club will help with “transportation … so youth can access out-of-school-time programs and field trips after school and during the summer,” according to CEO Kate Lambert. “The project presents an opportunity to alleviate the current and persisting transportation issues and give youth access to a safe, inclusive, and productive environment during times when they are most vulnerable.”

While the draft legislation is promising, the funds are by no means guaranteed. Representatives have until September 30 to either adopt a budget or pass a short-term bill to prevent a government shutdown.

Bipartisan support within the Senate Appropriations Committee is a positive indicator for the budget legislation, but the bills must pass by the Senate at large and the Republican-controlled House of Representatives. In a joint statement announcing more than $125 million in funding allocations for various Virginia projects and organizations, Sens. Kaine and Warner celebrated the passage of the draft legislation and acknowledged the work still to come.

“We’re thrilled to see the Senate move forward on government funding legislation that includes essential funding to support our servicemembers and military families, implement our seismic investments in infrastructure and manufacturing, promote public safety, invest in affordable housing, curb fentanyl trafficking, improve customer service at the IRS, and much more,” said the Virginia senators. “We are looking forward to advocating for these priorities and working with the House of Representatives to provide robust funding bills that address the needs of Virginia and the country.”

The U.S. Senate reconvenes on September 9.

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City Council to consider ranked-choice voting ordinance

Former delegate Sally Hudson founded Ranked Choice Virginia in 2021. Photo: The Smiths.

Charlottesville City Council will formally consider a draft ranked-choice voting ordinance at its August 19 meeting. If approved, Charlottesville would become the second locality in Virginia to adopt ranked-choice voting, and the new voting system will be used on a trial basis in the city’s 2025 election.

Under a ranked-choice system, voters can rank candidates in order of preference. If no candidate receives 50 percent of the first preference vote, the candidate with the fewest votes is then eliminated. Voters who selected the eliminated candidate as their first choice then have their second preference candidate votes tallied and added to the vote totals. The process continues until a candidate has earned a simple majority of votes.

“The beauty of ranked-choice voting is it ensures that we elect leaders who actually build coalitions from the breadth of their community, rather than just rallying an extreme minority,” says former delegate Sally Hudson. “It lets voters vote for who they really like no matter how many candidates run.”

During her time in the Virginia General Assembly, Hudson introduced a bill allowing cities to adopt ranked-choice voting. She went on to found Ranked Choice Virginia in 2021 and continues to advocate for the adoption of the voting system across the commonwealth.

Benefits to ranked-choice voting are numerous, according to Hudson. Key positives include empowering voters to select their preferred candidate and reducing, if not completely eliminating, the risk of splitting the vote among like-minded candidates.

“If it turns out that your favorite candidate is not among the most popular picks, you still get a voice in who the final selection is from your community, from the last candidates,” she says. “Once candidates don’t have to worry about splitting the vote and accidentally tipping the scales toward someone they don’t support, we see more candidates who are willing to throw their hat in the ring, and that means that voters get more options.”

Locally, Hudson says one of the races that could most benefit from ranked-choice voting is city council elections.

“We now have the virtue of having wide fields run for just a handful of city council seats each year, and that’s exactly when you can see vote splitting,” she says. “Somebody [can] get elected to council with a relatively small share of the vote, maybe only 20 or 30 percent … a ranked choice election can ensure that you find the winners who really do have broad support in the community and don’t just have a super vocal slice that is out of step with the rest.”

Though Charlottesville City Council will formally consider the adoption of ranked-choice voting for the first time on August 19, preparations have already begun behind the scenes for the possibility of using the voting system in local elections in 2025. A number of logistical steps have been taken (namely, finding ranked-choice-capable software for voting machines), but the largest hurdle is still to come: voter education.

“It’s a switch for people,” says Hudson. “Once voters have a chance to see it in action, they consistently report that they understand the new system and that they like it. … You do have to do voter education, but if you do it and you do it well, then voters get it. They like it. They want to do it again.”

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Charlottesville City Council discusses housing and salaries

More than a dozen constituents spoke at the August 5 council meeting. Photo by Eze Amos.

Charlottesville City Council had a jam-packed meeting on August 5, covering everything from affordable housing efforts to potential salary increases for councilors.

Earlier this year, the Virginia General Assembly passed legislation, introduced by Charlottesville-area Del. Katrina Callsen, which allows city councils to increase compensation for their members. Currently, Charlottesville city councilors receive a salary of $18,000 annually, with the mayor’s salary slightly higher at $20,000. Under the proposed ordinance, councilors’ pay would increase to $34,000 and the mayor’s to $37,000, effective July 1, 2026.

Discussion by council showed support from a majority, with the sole dissent coming from Councilor Lloyd Snook.

“I think at a time when we are raising taxes on basically every tax we could raise this past year, it’s certainly not good politics and probably not wise more broadly for us to take the most full advantage of what the General Assembly has done,” said Snook. “If we want to be really honest with ourselves, … if we’re looking to keep pace with inflation … raise it to $22,500 for councilors and $25,000 for the mayor.”

The rest of the city council spoke in support of the ordinance.

“I disagree with the fundamental proposition that the original salary, when it was set way back in the dark ages, was anywhere close to what it should have been,” said Vice Mayor Brian Pinkston.

Pinkston and the councilors in favor of the salary increase also cited the potential for a pay improvement to allow more people the financial opportunity to serve on council.

“The thing about this role, and the reason I love it, is that you’re always carrying the city around with you in your heart and your mind,” said Pinkston. “I will wholeheartedly and enthusiastically vote for this without any shame whatsoever.”

Councilors Michael Payne and Natalie Oschrin echoed Pinkston’s points.

“There’s an idea that [this] could be a fully part-time volunteer legislature, but with the complexity of local government, I think it’s more akin to a second job,” said Payne. “I have talked to people who thought about running for office. … Financially, it wouldn’t be feasible for them.”

“More people should be able to do this and the money help[s] make it more accessible to more folks by voting for this increase,” said Oschrin. “We’re not voting necessarily on our own salaries. We’re voting on the salaries of the next incoming councilors.”

Mayor Juandiego Wade also weighed in on the potential salary increase: “I think it’s one of the most significant things that I can do as an individual councilor to increase the diversity on this board.”

While he is able to take time off of work for council obligations, Wade highlighted how that is not a reality for a significant number of potential council members.

Constituents were divided on the salary ordinance.

“This is one of the single most important things that you guys can do to help us become a more equitable city going forward,” said one public commenter in favor of the pay raise. “If people can’t afford to live in this town, they can’t serve on council—it’s that simple. … I would like as broad of a spectrum [as possible] of people from our population to be able to afford to serve. … There’s a reason why our general assembly is largely composed of doctors and lawyers, and no disrespect to them, but I don’t feel that that is a proportional representation of the people in our Commonwealth.”

Another speaker was decidedly against the measure. “It is completely unfathomable to me that you all would sit with the possibility of discussing a pay raise tonight—not just any pay raise, [but] a pay raise somewhere 88 to 89 percent over where you currently are,” he said. “You are actually going to sit and vote on this subject when just outside your door there are homeless people that need to be addressed.”

The vote on the ordinance increasing city councilors’ salaries is scheduled for the next council meeting on August 19. A second public hearing will be held at that time.

Another major development at the council meeting was the approval by Piedmont Housing Alliance and Habitat for Humanity of Greater Charlottesville Area of city funds going toward the offer on Carlton Mobile Home Park.

With this financing, PHA and Habitat were able to proceed with a $7.25 million offer on the park before the August 6 deadline for consideration.

Under the agreement, the city will not have ownership of any portion of the park if the offer goes through but will assist with the financing of interest and principal payments. In an agreement with residents, Carlton will remain a mobile home park, but the purchase lays the groundwork for eventual redevelopment into deeply affordable housing.

“I want to remind everybody that this is an offer. Our fingers are crossed and hopefully it works out, but it’s not in our hands after today,” said Oschrin. “Part of why I am so supportive of this is that it will be getting redeveloped, and it is not being purchased to freeze in amber. It will become more housing for more people, which is obviously what we need.”

There has been no additional developments on the joint city, PHA, and Habitat offer on Carlton Mobile Home Park at press time.

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In brief

Charges have been dropped against UVA professor Noah Salomon. Photo by Eze Amos.

Termination trend

Theta Chi’s Fraternal Organization Agreement has been terminated by the Office of Student Affairs at the University of Virginia. The decision affirms that a hazing incident from March violates Adam’s Law, a piece of Virginia anti-hazing legislation from July 2022. Per the Hazing Misconduct Report published on July 2, Theta Chi may not seek re-establishment until the 2028-29 academic year, provided that it halt all public and private “underground” operations. The report found that Theta Chi engaged in hazing, including coerced servitude and other embarrassing or harmful acts.

Charges dropped

Trespassing charges have been dropped against Islamic Studies Associate Professor Dr. Noah Salomon, who was arrested by Virginia State Police as they forcibly dissolved a pro-Palestine encampment at the University of Virginia in May. Salomon acted as an unofficial facilitator between students and UVA police prior to the escalation. He is the sixth person of the 25 people arrested for trespassing to have his case dismissed. “May [the] dismissal of my case be an occasion for us all to demand that the University of Virginia and all universities never again summon a small army to suppress peaceful student protest,” he told CBS19.

Humane hope

Habitat For Humanity of Greater Charlottesville is hustling to put together a bid for the Carlton Mobile Home Park after a $7 million offer was made by an unknown source. Residents have a 60-day window, which ends on August 6, to counter the initial offer. Carlton residents have collectively signed a petition that allows Habitat to make an offer on behalf of the park. Signatures have exceeded the 25 percent quota of households required by the Virginia Manufactured Home Lot Rental Act, but the status of the counter offer remains uncertain.

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Youngkin issues executive order to ban cell phones in the classroom 

Both CCS and ACPS issued new personal device policies in recent years, citing mental health and academic concerns. File photo.

On July 9, Gov. Glenn Youngkin issued an executive order calling for “cell phone-free education” across Virginia. Rather than issuing a direct guideline, the EO outlines a rapidly paced timeline for stakeholder feedback and policy development.

“This essential action will promote a healthier and more focused educational environment where every child is free to learn,” said Youngkin in a press release announcing the action. “Today’s executive order both establishes the clear goal to protect the health and safety of our students by limiting the amount of time they are exposed to addictive cell phones and social media and eliminates clear distractions in the classroom.”

In the order, Youngkin indicates that the directive was prompted by rising rates of depression and suicide among teenagers in addition to a dip in academic performance trends. (Meanwhile, Youngkin has not expressed support for regulating guns, the most common method used in deaths by suicide.)

Under Youngkin’s EO, leaders in the Department of Education, Department of Health and Human Resources, and other related agencies have until August 15 to publish a draft guidance factoring in feedback and best practices from stakeholders. As part of this process, the agencies will also define exactly what a “cell phone-free education” means. Feedback on the policy guidelines will be gathered through online comment and listening sessions, according to the EO.

None of the Commonwealth Conversations listening sessions will be held in Charlottesville, with the closest event set for July 31 in Waynesboro. Those looking for more information on the events or to comment online can visit doe.virginia.gov.

While Youngkin’s office describes the executive order as the first statewide action on cell phone usage in the classroom, the action largely mirrors rules and expectations currently in place across the commonwealth.

In Charlottesville City Schools, students are already required to keep their devices “off and away all day.” The district has also publicly discussed the potential implementation of Yondr pouches—lockable magnetic cases that make devices inaccessible in phone-free zones—but has paused rollout.

“We expect we are already in line with the guidelines that the state will develop—but we are prepared to be responsive and adjust accordingly,” said CCS Community Relations Coordinator Amanda Korman in a comment via email.

“While cell phones have many benefits, they can also be a distraction to student learning and harmful to mental well-being,” said Korman. “We have found that the ‘off and away all day’ policy has had a positive impact in our classrooms, and, to a lesser degree, in our hallways, lunchrooms, and restrooms.”

Albemarle County Public Schools has less restrictive cell phone policies but does prohibit the use of personal devices during “instructional periods.” Unlike their peers in CCS, ACPS students are allowed to use their phones before and after school, between classes, and during lunch.

At press time, ACPS has not responded to a request for comment.

Both CCS and ACPS mention the detrimental effects of cell phone use on mental health and academic performance in the districts’ cell phone policies, largely mirroring the concerns expressed by Youngkin in his executive order.

The executive order can be found in its entirety on the VDOE and Governor’s websites.

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Potential local impacts of recent SCOTUS decisions

The curfew at Market Street Park was temporarily lifted last October. Photo by Eze Amos.

Beyond the literal heat wave sweeping the United States, a swath of hot-button Supreme Court decisions has sent an already tumultuous political landscape into overdrive. To bring this national news to the local level, here are some of the Charlottesville-area implications of recent SCOTUS rulings on abortion access, federal regulations, homelessness, and presidential immunity:

Food and Drug Administration
v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine

On June 13, the Supreme Court ruled that access to the abortion medication mifepristone will remain unchanged. While the decision upholds current access to the prescription used in a majority of medication abortions in the United States, it does not offer any significant future protection against other efforts by anti-abortion groups to get mifepristone off the market.

Locally, Whole Woman’s Health Alliance and Amy Hagstrom Miller have been working to extend protections surrounding abortion access in Virginia and nationwide. For more information about WWHA and mifepristone access, read last week’s story, “Choice care.”

Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo

More than four decades of precedent were overturned by SCOTUS, with the potential to majorly restrict the regulatory powers of federal agencies.

In the June 28 decision, the Court held that “The Administrative Procedure Act requires courts to exercise their independent judgment in deciding whether an agency has acted within its statutory authority, and courts may not defer to an agency interpretation of the law simply because a statute is ambiguous; Chevron is overruled.”

Since SCOTUS’ ruling in Chevron U.S.A. Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc. in 1984, the decision has been cited countless times to uphold the powers of federal agencies to create regulations around ambiguities in legislation. Specifically, Chevron has been a key case for upholding and enforcing regulations created by the Environmental Protection Agency.

With its leafy, mountainous landscape and abundant waterways, the Charlottesville area majorly benefits from EPA regulations and programs. The overturn of Chevron doesn’t undo those regulations, but it may enable future attempts at deregulation.

Based in Charlottesville, the Southern Environmental Law Center has expressed concern about the potential impacts of overturning Chevron. In a statement released promptly after the decision, SELC Litigation Director Kym Meyer said the “ruling sidelines the role of agency expertise, and instead shifts power to judges who do not have the expertise of agency staff who live and breathe the science, financial principles, and safety concerns that federal agencies specialize in.”

City of Grants Pass v. Jackson

Also on June 28, the Supreme Court made a major ruling on laws primarily pertaining to the unhoused. “The enforcement of generally applicable laws regulating camping on public property does not constitute ‘cruel and unusual punishment’ prohibited by the Eighth Amendment,” held the Court.

The aforementioned laws prohibit the use of blankets, pillows, or boxes for shelter while sleeping within city limits.

With this decision, SCOTUS has upended national understandings of protections for the unhoused. In a presentation to Charlottesville City Council on June 17, several key players in the local housing scene and involved in the continuum of care for local unhoused people indicated that there is a continued and growing need for resources and shelter.

No local legislators have indicated support for laws similar to the ordinances passed by Grants Pass, but the SCOTUS decision may lay the groundwork for potential challenges to Charlottesville protections for the unhoused.

Last year, the lack of a year-round, low-barrier shelter was a key element in City Manager Sam Sanders’ decision to lift the curfew at Market Street Park amid allegations of police misconduct against unhoused people.

“I think we as a community at large know that we should prioritize individuals experiencing homelessness and do everything we can to reduce the impacts of that and how that plays out,” Sanders told C-VILLE in an interview last October. “The challenge of it is that we’re not all on the same page, we’re not all more or less willing to adapt to one agenda so that we can really accomplish what we probably could accomplish.”

Trump v. United States

Amid a series of legal difficulties for Donald Trump, the former president received a key victory that drastically changes the limits of presidential power.

“Under our constitutional structure of separated powers, the nature of Presidential power entitles a former President to absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for actions within his conclusive and preclusive constitutional authority,” held the Court on July 1. “And he is entitled to at least presumptive immunity from prosecution for all his official acts. There is no immunity for unofficial acts.”

The decision extends massive powers to the president, with the limits on the definition of “official acts” up for interpretation.

Charlottesville is not directly mentioned in the decision, but the city has been a topic of frequent discussion in the presidential race between President Joe Biden and Trump. Local legal and political experts have also weighed in on the ruling.

“If not a deathblow [for American democracy] then a very damaging blow,” said University of Virginia Center for Politics Director Larry Sabato about the SCOTUS decision in an interview on CNN. “They [Trump allies] talk openly about a post-Constitutional presidency.”

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Density opponents argue in court that city didn’t follow state rules

The zoning map adopted by Council in December 2023 sets up a future with more housing, but the plaintiffs in the case (three of whom are on Rugby Road or Rugby Avenue) argue the city should have done more study on the impacts of the additional density. Image via City of Charlottesville.

Will opponents of Charlottesville’s new zoning code get a court trial to argue against recent rules? 

That answer will not be known for at least several months following a 90-minute hearing last week on a motion from the city for Circuit Court Judge Worrell to dismiss the case. 

Charlottesville City Council adopted a Development Code last December that allows more homes to be built on all properties within city limits. At the lowest level, parcels that used to be restricted to one unit can now have at least three. 

On January 16, a group of residents filed a suit arguing their property values would be harmed by the additional density and alleging that the city did not perform a rigorous study of its effects on transportation infrastructure as required by Virginia law.

“The city failed to do what the General Assembly told them to do,” said Michael Derdeyn, a Flora Pettit attorney hired by the group, at the hearing. “The process was flawed.” 

Derdeyn says a court trial would allow evidence to be submitted to prove the city did not send enough information to the Virginia Department of Transportation on the impacts that additional density might have. 

The city responded that the opponents sought to use the courts to achieve what they could not do through the legislative process. 

“The new zoning ordinance (NZO) identified a significant problem, which was a lack of affordable housing,” said Greg Haley of the law firm representing the city, Gentry Locke. 

Haley said the new zoning was adopted as part of the Cville Plans Together process, which includes Council’s adoption of an affordable housing plan in March 2021 as well as a new Comprehensive Plan in November 2021. He said the zoning puts into practice values the council sought to adopt. 

“It allows multifamily units in all zoning districts,” Haley said. 

A major priority for Council was to distribute housing production across the city, but the study showed that the actual process would be “inherently incremental” and not rapid, Haley said. An inclusionary zoning analysis in the summer of 2023 estimated that 1,300 new units could be built over three years.

“You have conclusions from staff that the infrastructure is sufficient,” Haley said. 

A trial would not be warranted because the legislative body offered multiple forums for disagreements to be aired. 

Derdeyn said the city’s rate of change analysis only looked at residential neighborhoods and did not study the potential impact on existing mixed-use corridors, where residential density is now unlimited with no maximum cap.

“They didn’t analyze the other parcels,” Derdeyn said. “They looked at part of the puzzle. They didn’t even look at the whole city.” 

This is the second time Worrell has presided over a hearing involving these same issues. In August 2022, he dismissed three of four counts in a previous suit to overturn the Comprehensive Plan. At the time, he ruled the plaintiffs could not bring the case forward because they could not demonstrate any harm had been done to them through adoption of the plan.

Derdeyn said that harm is now demonstrated and the case should go to trial. 

“Your honor said we had to wait until the zoning,” Derdeyn said. “The ordinance passed and now we are here.” 

After a 90-minute hearing, Worrell made no decision and invited both attorneys to submit closing arguments. He plans to follow up with a written opinion. 

“Suffice it to say, it’s an interesting argument,” Judge Worrell said. 

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Election results for the VA-5 Republican primary still aren’t certified

Bob Good was first elected to Congress in 2020. Supplied photo.

More than a week after election day, the results of the Republican primary in Virginia’s 5th district remain up in the air. After a campaign riddled with barbs between incumbent Bob Good and state Senator John McGuire, election day saw a razor-thin margin between the two ultra-conservatives.

Things in the 5th district have been ramping up for months and fully kicked into overdrive when Donald Trump endorsed McGuire in late May. Though Good has since endorsed Trump’s 2024 bid for the presidency, his original backing of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis soured him to Trump loyalists in the Republican party.

“Bob Good is BAD FOR VIRGINIA, AND BAD FOR THE USA,” Trump shared in a May 28 Truth Social post formally endorsing McGuire. “He turned his back on our incredible movement and was constantly attacking and fighting me until recently.”

Between the Trump endorsement and McGuire’s accelerated fundraising leading up to the primary, Miles Coleman, associate editor of the Crystal Ball at the University of Virginia Center for Politics, says, “If there was any surprise here, it’s that Good held up as well as he did. … For [Good] only to lose by a relative handful of votes, I think that says something about how resilient he was.”

Vote totals point toward a narrow victory for McGuire, but Good has told constituents not to count him out yet.

“This race remains too close to call,” Good posted on X/Twitter on June 19. “We are asking for full transparency from the officials involved and patience from the people of the 5th District over the coming weeks as the certification of results is completed. We believe we can still prevail.”

Since election day, Good and his supporters have become increasingly critical of the results, with the congressman blaming election fraud for his potential loss. Campaign Manager Diana Shores repeated these claims in a comment via email, citing concerns around procedural issues in Albemarle County, Buckingham County, and Lynchburg.

McGuire’s team has not addressed the allegations of election fraud in the 5th district primary. The challenger declared victory just after midnight on June 19, well before any election results could be verified.

“My life is a testament to the fact that America is the greatest country on this planet and I’m so honored to have the chance to serve her again,” McGuire shared on X/Twitter. “Folks in the 5th can rest assured that should they elect me in Nov., they will have an effective fighter in Congress who will get the job done for them.”

As of press time, the results of the race have not been certified, but Good has preemptively called for a recount and investigation of election practices. He has also cited concerns about fires at three precincts on election day. No actual fires occurred at the precincts, though election officials told ABC 13 that fire alarms were triggered at three precincts. Voting access was reportedly restored at each location within 30 minutes.

Current counts have McGuire ahead by 344 votes.

“There is a saying among poll workers: May your turnout be high and your margins wide,” says Coleman. “This election kind of had neither, because it was fairly low turnout and … the margin obviously isn’t wide.”

Accusations of election fraud aren’t common among members of the same party, but both Good and McGuire have a history of election denial. Both candidates publicly questioned the legitimacy of the 2020 presidential election, with McGuire attending a “Stop the Steal” event on January 6, 2021, and Good voting against certifying election results as a member of the House.

If Good ends up losing the primary, Coleman says it’s anyone’s guess whether he doubles down as an “agent of chaos” or tries to improve his relationship with Republican leadership in anticipation of future campaign efforts.

While either McGuire or Good will still have to face Democratic primary winner Gloria Witt in November, whoever wins the Republican primary is likely to win the general election, according to Coleman.

“I would still put [VA-5 as] safe Republican,” he says. “This is a district where the Democrats can get maybe 45 to 46 percent of the vote pretty easily, but getting much past that is hard. … The last time this [district] flipped to a Democrat was in ‘08 with Tom Perriello.”

Control of the House of Representatives is expected to be close between the two parties this year, leading Democrats to focus resources on more competitive races.

“From the Democratic perspective, they have a few targets in Virginia that are kind of sexier,” says Coleman. “They very much want to oust Kiggans in the Virginia Beach area. District 7, the Spanberger seat, well that is a blue district, but one that they can’t take for granted.”

As of press time, a timeline for the recount in the VA-5 Republican primary has not been announced.

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The Good fight

Will Trump-endorsed John McGuire take the 5th district seat from incumbent Bob Good? Only time (and voters) will tell. Supplied photos.

As the Republican primary in Virginia’s 5th district reaches a conclusion on June 18, a poll released by the Virginia Faith & Freedom Coalition shows Virginia Senator John McGuire
(R-Goochland) with a 10 percent lead
over his opponent, incumbent Rep. Bob Good (R-VA). 

Despite Good’s position as the head of the ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus and his professed loyalty to the GOP shot-caller, former President and recently convicted felon Donald Trump, his endorsement of presidential candidate and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis in early May seems to have been what soured the Trump loyalists against his campaign. McGuire received the former president’s seal of approval on May 28, quickly capitalizing on Trump’s popularity in the deeply red 5th district as the former president’s account on his Truth Social platform accused Good of being “BAD for Virginia” and saying he had “turned his back on our incredible movement.”

A little over 48 hours after this endorsement of his opponent, Good’s problems appeared to only get worse, as Trump’s lawyers sent the Congressman a cease-and-desist letter over campaign signage featuring both Good’s and Trump’s names, accusing Good of being “a fraud.”

“It has come to our attention that your campaign is producing yard signs purporting to indicate President Trump’s endorsement of your candidacy,” the letter from attorney David Warrington read. “You know that is false. In fact, President Trump has endorsed your opponent, John McGuire.”

Many residents of the 5th district will likely know that the signs in question predate the endorsement of McGuire and are reportedly from the 2022 campaign, in which Bob Good had the endorsement of the former president; nevertheless, there are unconfirmed reports that the signs bearing both names are still being distributed at campaign events in the area. 

As the primary entered its final weeks, it appeared to be smooth sailing for McGuire, who has run in successive elections in recent years at both the federal and state levels. Then, on June 6, an open letter was released from the 5th District Republican Committee to Trump bearing the signatures of prominent local Republicans, urging the former president to reconsider his endorsement.

“[McGuire] has a history of lying to the voters and only representing his own ambitions rather than the needs of his constituents. In 2023, he repeatedly told voters that he would not run against Congressman Bob Good only to file to run for Congress less than 2 weeks after he was elected to the Virginia Senate and before he was even sworn into office,” the letter read. 

McGuire was elected first in 2017, running a successful campaign for the 56th district of the House of Delegates against Democrat Melissa Dart. Then, in 2019, he ran for reelection successfully against Democrat Juanita Jo Matkins and again in 2021. In 2020 and 2022, he launched unsuccessful bids for U.S. Congress in the 7th district, losing to Nick Freitas and Yesli Vega, respectively, both of whom would go on to lose the general election to Rep. Abigail Spanberger. In 2023, he ran for State Senate unopposed in District 10, and while his promises of not running against Good are unconfirmed, he did announce one week after winning his seat—and prior to taking his oath of office—that he was running for the 5th District of Virginia in the United States Congress.

McGuire, a veteran and owner of a personal training company called Seal Team Physical Training, wouldn’t be the first primary challenger to make headlines by upsetting a powerful congressional Republican. In 2014, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor was upset by Republican and Randolph-Macon Professor Dave Brat. That election made national headlines and was described by the LA Times as “one of the greatest political upsets in modern times,” with Cantor out-spending Brat 40-to-1. 

According to VPAP, as of March 31, Good had raised $855,792 to McGuire’s $496,447. Their expenditure data was not yet available at press time, but independent expenditures—money that third party groups had spent to run ads for or against one of the candidates—totaled to almost $8.5 million. Pro-McGuire and anti-Good ads totaled to just over $5 million, and pro-Good/anti-McGuire ads accounted for the other $3.5.

Andre Henline, a Louisa County business owner and long-time Republican, said that he was “team McGuire.” When asked if he could articulate why, he said that it was a combination of McGuire’s personal touch and Good’s incessant attack ads.

“I’ve met [McGuire] a handful of times in Mineral,” he said. “[Good’s] campaign is bugging the shit out of me. His campaign smearing [the opponent] really turns me off.”

Neither candidate is without controversy. McGuire’s presence at the January 6 riot at the capitol—though he says he never entered the capitol building—has been a frequent point of contention for his detractors. Good, however, is a proud member of what is informally called the “Sedition Caucus,” a disparaging nickname for the members of the house and senate who voted not to certify the election of Joe Biden. Former Capitol Police Officer Michael Fanone recently said publicly that both Good and McGuire should be barred from holding public office because of their support of the former president’s actions in 2020.

The winner of the Republican primary will face off against one of the three Democrats—Paul Riley, Gary Terry, and Gloria Tinsley Witt—running in the Democratic primary, which also ends June 18.  

Neither Republican candidate returned repeated messages seeking comment in time for publication.