The outcome won’t be decided until November, but the electoral field is set after 31 candidates filed for the 2015 county elections by the June 10 deadline.
As expected, the most competition will center on Board of Supervisors seats and the office of sheriff. For the Board of Supervisors, every district’s seat is being contested except for Western Caroline’s, where incumbent Jeff Black (I) will return for another term unless a dark horse write-in intervenes.
The Port Royal district will see the most competition, with a slate of candidates familiar to those who were around for the 2011 elections. Once again, Republican Nancy Long, the current mayor of Port Royal, and Independent Reinhardt Watson, a businessman and data analyst, will challenge long-time incumbent Calvin Taylor (D).
In the Bowling Green district, incumbent Jeff Sili (R) will face off against Wayne Brooks, a former local and state government employee who was previously town manager of Bowling Green.
In the Madison district, incumbent Wayne Acors (I) will compete against construction safety manager Clay Forehand (I).
Mattaponi will see a battle between incumbent Floyd Thomas (D) and former Planning Commissioner Milton Ray Bush (I).
Finally, as in 2011, Reedy Church voters will choose between incumbent Reggie Underwood (D) and Mordecai Andrews (I), a member of the Caroline Economic Development Authority and a former member of the Board of Zoning Appeals.
When it comes to the office of sheriff, incumbent Anthony A. “Tony” Lippa (I) will face competition from Independent Charles Garnett, a third-generation Caroline resident and deputy with CCSO, and Independent Christopher Wooldridge, a U.S. Army veteran and former CCSO deputy. Garnett also ran against Lippa in 2011.
When it comes to the School Board, only the Madison and Mattaponi seats are contested. In Madison, incumbent Shawn Kelley (I) will compete against Rochele Smith (I), a U.S. Air Force veteran who works for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. In Mattaponi, current Vice Chairman Nancy Carson (I) will face off with Spotsylvania County Public Schools teacher Jamey Lewchanin (I), who also serves on the Board of Directors for Caroline Pines.
Among the uncontested seats, Bowling Green representative George Spaulding (I), the current School Board chairman, and Port Royal representative Tinka Harris (I) seem set to assume their positions once again next year.
Two other current board members—Reedy Church’s Mack Wright and Western Caroline’s Mary Anderson—did not file for the upcoming race. JoWanda Rollins Fells (I), a former CCPS teacher and secretary of Caroline’s Promise, will run unopposed for the vacated Reedy Church seat. Certified public accountant John Copeland (I), a member of the Lake Land’Or Board of Directors, will run unopposed for the Western Caroline seat.
In a surprise move, current Commonwealth’s Attorney Tony Spencer last week announced that due to family reasons he would not seek re-election and threw his endorsement behind John Mahoney (I), a former Marine who also previously served as an assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney.
Three people—Charity Baker, Susan Minarchi, and Terry Southworth—will vie for the circuit court clerkship in the wake of long-time clerk Ray Campbell’s retirement. Baker (D) is a bookkeeper for CCPS with over 30 years experience. Minarchi (R) and Southworth (I) both boast 14 years with the Caroline courts, Minarchi as deputy clerk of the Caroline Circuit Court and Southworth as the clerk of the Caroline District Court.
In other offices, real estate agent and former Bowling Green Town Council member Mark Bissoon (I) will run unopposed for Commissioner of the Revenue. Current county treasurer Elizabeth Curran also currently faces no competition for her position.
Cynthia Smith and Joseph Stepp III are running for the two open director seats of the Hanover-Caroline Soil and Water Conservation District Board. Stepp is the current chairman of the board, and Smith is the current secretary.
The general election will be held Nov. 3.