It seemed that each time the door at Foode opened on Tuesday night, another call rang out for a speech.
Three of the four candidates who won election to the Fredericksburg City Council found their way to a gathering at the downtown Fredericksburg restaurant, including its co-owner, Joy Crump, who triumphed over Anne Little in Ward 2 by a margin of 1,360 votes to Little’s 1,190 in what amounted to one of the night’s closer races.
“For me, it was never this person bad, this person good,” Crump said in an interview shortly after the race was called by the Virginia Public Access Project. “Anne Little has a track record in Fredericksburg that everyone recognizes and a lot of people respect. It would be foolish for me to ignore that.”
Joy Crump (left) celebrates with campaign manager Lisa Durham (center) and friend Anita Crossfield. With her victory in the Ward 2 election, Crump will become the first Black woman to serve on Fredericksburg City Council. (Photo by Joey LoMonaco)
In Ward 1, current Fredericksburg city school board chair Matt Rowe garnered 56.4% of the vote in a race that also included Ken Gantt (30.2% of the vote), a former planning commissioner and David Cropper (12.4%).
“I’m incredibly thankful that the people of Fredericksburg gave us this mandate to move forward and make it an even better city,” Rowe said.
In Ward 3, Susanna Finn, who has served in an interim capacity since February, overcame former councilor Matt Kelly in an at-times bitter campaign. Finn received 1,455 votes to Kelly’s 1,166.
“I think of Ward 3 as my whole neighborhood, and so for the majority of people to have confidence in me is just the compliment of a lifetime,” Finn said.
Ward 4 incumbent Chuck Frye won by a nearly 2-to-1 margin over challenger Jesse Dominguez to retain his seat on city council.
While Democrats enjoyed a banner night statewide, Tuesday’s results marked a clean sweep for candidates endorsed by the Fredericksburg Democratic Committee. It also ushers in what is believed to be the first female majority in city council history, with Crump becoming the first Black woman to serve as a councilor.
“It’s about time,” Crump said. “It’s ridiculous that it hasn’t happened before now. It’s ridiculous that those people were left out of the conversation.”
In the city’s lone contested school board race, Annie Langdon won election to the Ward 3 seat. Langdon, a former James Monroe High School math teacher, earned 1,609 votes to 954 for Sarah Stelmok. Longtime Ward 4 rep Malvina Kay fended off a spirited write-in challenge from Stan Jones, who garnered 21.6% of the vote despite not having his name on the ballot.
Rashawn Cowles addresses supporters at a victory celebration Tuesday night. (Photo by Peggy Hyland)
Rashawn Cowles, a captain in the Fredericksburg Police Department, easily defeated Keith Rodgers to become sheriff, while Libby Humphries cruised to victory over Travis Bird in her re-election bid for Commonwealth’s Attorney, earning 66% to Bird’s 32%.
Tamara Stuart and Marion Bowman each surpassed 70% of the vote in races for commissioner of the revenue and treasurer, respectively.
