And Now There Are Six
By Carla Branch, Taylor Allen and Alex Hampl
Former Councilman Tim Lovain, Former Councilman Justin Wilson, Allison Silberberg, Councilwoman Del Pepper, Councilman Paul Smedberg and John Taylor Chapman are the Democratic candidates for Alexandria City Council. Incumbent Jim Moran won easily and former Republican Governor George Allen also won easily.
Unofficially, 11,456 Alexandrians cast 59,348 votes for the 14 candidates who ran in Alexandria's first Democratic Council Primary in years. “I predicted a turn-out of between 12% and 15% and it was 14.3%,” said Alexandria General Registrar Tom Parkins.
Alexandria used paper ballots today. “Across the board, the paper ballots exceeded our highest expectations,” Parkins said.
Lovain was the top vote-getter with 5,386 votes or 9.07% of votes cast. He was followed by Wilson with 8.74% or 5,189 votes; Silberberg with 8.70% or 5,167 votes; Pepper with 8.53% or 5,066 votes; Smedberg with 8.34% or 4,955 votes and Chapman with 7.82% or 4,644. Victoria Menjivar was seventh with 4,427 votes; Sean Holihan was eighth with 4,293 votes; Sammie Moshenberg was ninth with 4,076 votes; Donna Fossum was tenth with 3,886 votes; School Board Member Arthur Peabody was 11th with 3,665 votes; Melissa Feld was 12th with 3,557 votes; Boyd Walker was 13th with 2,807 votes and Michael Hepburn was 14th with 2,230 votes.
Alexandria City Council Primary Results
Lovain thanked his wife and three daughters for their support. “I look forward to running as a member of this ticket in November,” Lovain said. He was a member of Council from 2006 to 2009.
“I want to thank the 13 other candidates who ran in this race,” Wilson said. “There's one conclusion we can draw that can be very constructive for us this November. When Alexandria voters are presented with a positive message, they re-act positively.”
Silberberg, is the only newcomer to Alexandria Democratic politics among the winners. “This is about unity. It was a great honor to run with this incredible slate,” she said.
Pepper was excited about her Primary win. “This is just the beginning,” she said. “Now, we have to work hard and win in November.”
Smedberg was brief. “I am looking forward to running with this slate of candidates in November,” he said.
Chapman is a long-time member of the Alexandria Democratic Committee and the president of the NAACP. “It has been a great experience getting to know so many more Alexandrians and getting to know my hometown better,” Chapman said.
Democratic Primary Results (House of Representatives)
Moran, who defeated Democratic Challenger Bruce Shuttleworth by a margin of 72.2% to 27.8%, congratulated the winners and urged them to victory in November. “We are all coming together as one party with one set of values and one vision for Alexandria,” Moran said. “We have to understand that this is a trial and the real contest is in November.”
