Charlottesville City Council
Charlottesville City Council is composed of five members, each serving four-year terms, and elections are held in November of odd-numbered years. Members of City Council elect one member to serve as mayor and one as vice mayor every two years. Two of the five seats will be determined in this Election Day.
Michael Farruggio – R
Farruggio spent 25 years as a Charlottesville police officer after serving four years in the United States Air Force. He also worked with the Fry’s Spring Neighborhood Association, the Charlottesville Planning Commission and the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board. If elected to City Council, Farruggio seeks to make city maintenance issues and public safety his priorities. Farruggio supports the existing services and programs for the Charlottesville school system and enhancing parks and recreation programs, and he sees improving business opportunities as a key method of reducing poverty in the city.
Buddy Weber – R
Weber has served the Charlottesville community as a court-appointed public criminal defense attorney. Prior to his legal career, Weber was a Navy fighter pilot for 27 years and was a professor of naval science at the University. If elected, he plans to focus his attention on public safety, public education and maintenance of the city’s infrastructure. He also advocates revising Charlottesville’s public housing program.
Bob Fenwick – D
Fenwick has been a construction contractor for 40 years, specializing in the renovation of old houses. He unsuccessfully campaigned as an independent candidate for Charlottesville City Council in the 2009 and 2011 elections. Fenwick plans to prioritize community transportation and maintaining capital infrastructure.
Kristin Szakos – D
Szakos, an incumbent, currently serves as vice mayor and has been a city councilor since 2010. She worked on the Obama campaign in 2007 and 2008 as a volunteer coordinator. If re-elected, she plans to continue her work on issues such as economic development and sustainable funding structures for the schools.
Virginia House of Delegates
The Virginia House of Delegates is composed of 100 members. Charlottesville, along with part of Albemarle County, is located in the 57th House District. Elections in the House occur every two years, the same duration as a term for a delegate.
David J. Toscano – D
Toscano is currently serving his fourth term representing the 57th District and has been the House Democratic Leader since 2011. Prior to serving as a delegate, Toscano served on the Charlottesville City Council from 1990-2002, and was mayor from 1994 to 1996. Toscano places education as a top priority, fighting to preserve education funding and teacher salaries. He is also a proponent of renewable energy and recognizing the threat of climate change. He aims to protect retirement benefits, services to the poor and disabled, and a woman’s right to choose. Toscano is currently running unopposed in the upcoming election.
Albemarle County Board of Supervisors
The Board of Supervisors of Albemarle County is composed of six members, one from each magisterial district, and it is the highest decision making body in Albemarle County. Supervisors are elected for four-year terms, and elections are staggered at two-year intervals.
C. L. “Cindi” Burket – R
Scottsville District
Burket is a former chair of the Albemarle County Republican Committee and former president of the Albemarle-Charlottesville Republican Women’s League. She believes in a transparent government that encourages public participation, and plans to fight bullying in schools, ensure the construction of the Western Bypass, build an indoor firing range and protect the environment.
Jane D. Dittmar – D
Scottsville District
Dittmar was president of the Charlottesville Regional Chamber of Commerce from 1992 to 2000. She founded the Positive Solutions Group, a Charlottesville mediation firm, in 2005. She is a Virginia Supreme Court certified mediator and serves as a court coordinator for the City of Charlottesville and the courts of five different counties. Dittmar plans to stimulate tourism and promote agritourism to allow farmland to be more financially productive. She hopes to increase cell and internet coverage to support farm operations, small businesses, the self-employed and students.
Diantha H. McKeel – I
Jack Jouett District
McKeel is a University employee of 29 years, where she served as an administrator and earned a Licensed Practical Nurse degree and a Clinical Research Professional certificate. She is currently employed as a clinical research coordinator for the Division of Cardiology. Since 1997, she has served on the Albemarle County School Board, where she was chair for two terms and vice chair for three. McKeel has also twice chaired the Charlottesville-Albemarle Technical Education Center Board. McKeel plans to improve partnership opportunities between the School Board, the City of Charlottesville, the University of Virginia and the Board of Supervisors.
Liz A. Palmer – D
Samuel Miller District
Liz Palmer is a veterinarian and small business owner who opened Charlottesville End of Life Pet Care, which specializes in hospice care for companion animals. Palmer’s public service has focused on water issues, and her activism earned her to an appointment to the Albemarle County Service Authority Board of Directors in 2006. Palmer has been involved with the League of Women Voters, the Rivanna Basin Commission and the South Rivanna River Stewardship Task Force.
Phillip Seay – I
Jack Jouett District
Seay is currently the executive director of the First Tee of Charlottesville, a golf youth mentoring program. Seay has invested much of his life in public service, working as a state juvenile probation counselor, Deputy Sheriff of Appomattox County and a high school and middle school teacher. Seay hopes to increase job opportunities in Jack Jouett and ensure that tax dollars are spent effectively and efficiently.
J. L. “Brad” Sheffield – D
Rio District
Sheffield is Assistant Director at JAUNT Inc., a transportation provider in the area. He has served on the Charlottesville Area Transit advisory panel and is active in the Virginia Transportation Association and the Community Transportation Association of Virginia. His main goals include representing residents directly and enabling town hall meetings to establish a better citizen engagement. Sheffield hopes to invest in education, find solutions to transportation issues and preserve rural areas.
Duane E. Snow – R
Samuel Miller District
Snow is currently the vice-chairman of the Board of Supervisors and has served on the board since 2010. In the past, he served on the Albemarle County Architectural Review Board and the State Agriculture Council, and was involved with the American Heart Association and Boy Scouts of America. He hopes to increase available learning space to accommodate a growing number of students in the county. Miller also aims to implement the county’s economic development plan and extend internet access to the 10 percent of the Samuel Miller District that does not currently have access.
Rodney S. Thomas – R
Rio District
Thomas has served on the County Board of Supervisors since 2010. He has also served on the Albemarle County Planning Commission for 8 years. Thomas hopes to keep taxes low, promote local businesses and job growth and improve transportation in the county.
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