It’s “Primary Season” again! Yes, it’s that time of year when our roadways are filled with signs for candidates. This spring it revolves around elections for County Board, the Virginia House of Delegates, and the School Board. And thanks to early voting, we now have “early signage season.”   

Regardless of what one might think of the proliferation of all these signs, it does give us the opportunity to judge the effectiveness of signs. There are many decisions to be made in crafting a sign: What colors to use? How many words to put on a sign? Do you use your last name only? One even needs to decide about fonts. 

Amid this flurry of activity, which includes numerous candidate forums, the beginning of election season is an opportunity to reflect on the challenges that lie ahead for any elected official. Often I hear the question, why would anyone want to run for office these days? But my question is, was it ever easy to be a public servant? 

To answer that question, there is no better place to research our local history than the many oral interviews that can be found in the Charlie Clark Center for Local History at the Arlington Central Library. So, this is another trip back to the 1960s, and the subject is the County Board member I highlighted last week, Tom Richards. He was the protector of parkland and creator of bike trails, who had been ineffectively lampooned by a political opponent as “Nature Boy.” 

In his 1984 interview, Richards was an engaging subject, starting with his comment about enlisting in the Navy in 1944, as an 18-year-old. Richards noted that he “rose to the magnificent rank of Petty Officer Third Class.” 

In the 1950’s Richards and his wife lived in the Barcroft Apartments on Columbia Pike. One day he heard a knock on his front door and met a canvasser for a County Board candidate. One thing led to another, and Richards agreed to canvas for this candidate. In the 1984 interview Richards noted (with tongue in cheek) that his agreement to canvas “was my biggest mistake– it got me involved.” 

By 1960 Richards was recruited to run for the County Board, in a campaign where he won by less than 1 percent. Richards (and the entire County Board) encountered many challenges in the 1960’s, especially dealing with the approval of the Metro system, and the placement of I-66 through numerous neighborhoods.  

The entire 44-page interview with Richards is fascinating, but his reflections on public service were especially revealing. He talked about not having a private life, with “every meal interrupted,” and getting “calls from the press at four in the morning saying that the police won’t let them see an automobile wreck.” Richards decided to serve only two terms, but he proudly affirmed that “…I have a belief that the greatest service in America is not provided by the president of IBM or Exxon Corporation, but by politicians. They make a great sacrifice in terms of their personal lives. In my own situation, my children grew up and I didn’t get to know my son until he was an adult…I missed eight years away from my children, and regret it deeply.” 

While times have changed, and the press likely is not calling our elected officials at four in the morning, the amount of work for local officials has actually multiplied. There are now about 100 commissions and regional organizations that our Board members are assigned to. Doing the math, that could come out to about 20 “liaison” obligations for each member.  

I wonder whether it may be time to consider how the workload burdens on our elected officials may be limiting the pool of possible candidates. Perhaps even the primary process is an obstacle. But let me conclude with a basic “thank you” to all our elected officials, and all our candidates in the primaries, for your willingness to toss your hat in the ring, in the hopes of winning the prize of becoming a public servant.