With Libby Garvey’s announcement of her candidacy (see below, after the “flip”), the list of candidates to replace Barbara Favola – who just was elected to the State Senate – on the Arlington County Board continues to grow. So far, Terron Sims and Melissa Bondi have announced, while several others – civic activist and health care consultant Kim Klingler, Arlington Planning Commission member Peter Fallon, NAACP Arlington Chapter President Elmer Lowe, and who knows who else — appear to be running as well.
A few of my main criteria for who to support are as follows: 1) they need to be a strong progressive and a strong environmentalist, that goes without saying; 2) they need to be independent, definitely not under the thumb of anyone; 3) they need to be ethically sound, definitely not beholden to moneyed interests of any kind; 4) they need to have a strong vision for where to take Arlington in coming years; 5) they need to be energetic and dynamic; 6) they should be in tune with the grassroots, not just with the “powers that be.” I’ll be watching closely, that’s for sure, and hopefully making an endorsement prior to the caucus in early February. Meanwhile, I’ll keep posting information, such as Libby Garvey’s announcement, as it comes in.
Dear Friends,
Thank you to everyone who worked so hard to get good candidates in office last week. While last week’s elections were not all that we wanted, we did great work here in Northern Virginia and many good Democrats are going to work for us in Richmond, including Barbara Favola and Adam Ebbin. My congratulations to them and my thanks to you for all your hard work.
As we all know, Barbara has been a wonderful supporter of our schools and human services during her tenure on the County Board. With her departure, there is a real need for someone to play that role. While helping on her campaign, she and I spoke often about her work on the County Board and what might come next for Arlington. Through these and other conversations over the past several months, I have made two decisions about how I can best continue to serve Arlington. I plan to announce these on December 7 at the Arlington County Democratic Committee meeting. However, I wanted to give you – my strongest supporters and friends – a heads up before that.
My first decision is that I will not run again for the School Board when my term is up in 2012. I have accomplished every goal I set for myself when I originally ran 15 years ago for school board. Together, we’ve helped make our schools among the best in the nation. Most importantly, our schools are continuing to rapidly improve and are poised to make some very exciting advances. It is time for someone else to have the incredible opportunity I have had to learn and grow in public service with a world class institution.
Second, with Barbara’s election to the Virginia Senate, I have decided the Arlington County Board is a natural place for my skills and 15 years of experience. New perspectives are always a good thing, and they are most effective when combined with experience and proven leadership skills. I can offer this unique combination to our community as we enter a time of unprecedented growth and change for Arlington.
I am excited about this next possibility for me to continue to serve our community. Over the next few weeks I look forward to having conversations with many of you about my candidacy and how we can continue to work together for Arlington County.
Libby Garvey
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