Rockbridge-Area Election Candidates Discuss Their Races
Rockbridge-Area Election Candidates Discuss Their Races
Candidates from the Virginia House of Delegates to the Rockbridge Board of Supervisors discuss their elections and future plans.
(Downtown Lexington in fall. | SOURCE: Forbes / Sera Petras)
November saw the Commonwealth of Virginia hold elections for statewide and local offices. While the Democratic Party’s sweep of all three branches of government received the most attention, Rockbridge County, and the two independent cities within, Lexington and Buena Vista, also held competitive elections.
While many candidates did not respond to The Spectator’s interview requests, several agreed to exclusive interviews following their election results.
Virginia House of Delegates
District 36, encompassing the northeastern part of Rockbridge County alongside southeastern Augusta County, Staunton, and Waynesboro, elected incumbent Republican Ellen Campbell with 59% against Democrat Makayla Venable, a 3% decrease from Campbell’s 2023 margins. Campbell has been serving as a delegate since 2023, replacing her late husband.
Describing herself as a “steadfast conservative,” she campaigned to “lower cost of living, creating safer communities, and improving our education system,” with a special focus on health care access. Venable, on the other hand, inspired by the 2024 Harris campaign, focused on “advocating for those who are overlooked by the system,” emphasizing her working-class background.
Commenting on the results, Delegate Campbell said she found it “disappointing to lose so many colleagues on our side of the aisle.” She considered her “record as being effective” as the main factor in her reelection. Bucking the blue wave, she emphasized that she will “do everything … to stand up and deliver for our area,” promising this to “ALL” her constituents.
Rockbridge County & City of Lexington Sheriff
The election for sheriff of Rockbridge County and the City of Lexington, saw incumbent Tony McFaddin win another term by a wide margin.
Sheriff McFaddin commented to The Spectator that “our agency has the public’s confidence because we’ve worked hard to earn it.” When asked on how he plans to deliver on his mandate, he pointed to recent community outreach initiatives such as the “Friendsgiving” on November 20 and a “Shop with a Cop” event in December.
Rockbridge County Board of Supervisors — Kerrs Creek District
In Kerrs Creek district, two new candidates competed against each other after incumbent Dan Lyons did not seek reelection. Steve Hart won with 65% versus Boyd Brown’s 35%. Hart, a former engineering professor at VMI, campaigned on the basis of “changing the culture” around debt in the County, which currently owes $87 million. His opponent, Brown, a defense contractor and member of the Rockbridge County Economic Development Authority (EDA), said eliminating debt is “unrealistic.”
In an interview with The Spectator, Hart downplayed suggestions of animosity between him and Brown, stating he “doesn’t like the word ‘opponent.’” Reacting to his win, he emphasized how “at the end of the day, both of us still live here.”
As for issues influencing the outcome, Hart highlighted the idea of an airport as a point he and his supporters strongly opposed. “Rockbridge County residents turned the idea of an airport down 30 years ago, and they still don’t want an airport,” he commented.
Other issues included plans for industrial-scale solar farms in the county. Both candidates opposed giving special exceptions to these facilities. Financial support up to $4,954 for Brown’s campaign from the Michigan-based Private Property Rights Political Action Committee (PAC) also brought tensions into the open. Brown, according to The Rockbridge Advocate, maintained that he did not consent to their support and asked them to stop.
In his interview, Hart said he believed Brown on this; in his opinion, the main problem is why an outside PAC would try to influence a supervisor’s race in Rockbridge in the first place.
When asked by The Spectator about his plans after the election, Hart showed confidence regarding his plans to convince two other members of the Board of Supervisors to join his plans for debt reduction. Brown was more skeptical, noting that “Mr. Hart will have difficulty accomplishing his debt reduction agenda because the remaining four supervisors do not agree with his ideas.”
Buena Vista City Council
For the Buena Vista City Council, three out of the seven seats were up for reelection.
Talking to The Spectator, Stephanie Noel-Branch, who received the highest number of votes out of any candidate, described her experience with the election as “humbling,” while being “very pleased with the results” at the same time. As for her plans post-election, she would like to implement a “Citizens Advisory Committee” to “encourage consistent and open communications with our citizens.” Stressing inclusion in city government, she added that “the narrative needs to change from the ‘Us and Them’ mentality.”