Odd years may be off years as far as national elections are concerned, and one can’t watch five minutes of U.S. news without learning of the latest nuance in a presidential race that’s still 20 months away. But the November 2007 election, a mere eight months away, will arguably be more important in locals’ daily lives.
Half the seats on the county Board of Supervisors are up for grabs, and any loss by an incumbent could significantly shift the momentum on the six-member board. Ken Boyd, Lindsay Dorrier and David Wyant have all generally supported major land rezonings that result in new development and have been reluctant to impose additional land-use restrictions on county property owners.
Ann Mallek, left, is taking on NFL-ref David Wyant in the Board of Supervisors race, while Jennifer McKeever wants a seat on City Council.
Photograph: Clinton Showalter
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But one new challenger, who is running for Wyant’s seat in the White Hall district, would likely tack the opposite direction if elected. Ann Mallek, an Earlysville resident who formally announced her campaign last week, wants to demand more of developers. “We have neighborhoods in Crozet where there are rapid development approvals going on all around them and yet the second phase of that, where the public investments for sidewalks and that sort of thing need to be there—those public investments haven’t been funded,” Mallek says. “The neighbors are really suffering.”
Denny King has also filed election papers and will challenge Dorrier for his seat in the Scottsville district. Boyd and Dorrier have announced that they’re seeking re-election, while David Wyant hasn’t yet decided.
While the ubiquity of Democrats often makes City Council races less engaging, three of five spots are due for the fall election. One current city councilor, Kendra Hamilton, has said that she won’t run and another, Kevin Lynch, has hinted that he’d like not to run if a quality candidate can fill the void.
Jennifer McKeever is the only person to declare she’s running for City Council, purposefully making her announcement on the same day as the anniversary bash for Left of Center, an organization of Democratic voters in their 20s and 30s. “I am a young person interested in running as a result of their efforts,” the 34-year-old McKeever says. No word yet on whether city Republicans have found a sacrificial lamb (or long-haired Christian rocker) for the November harvest.
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