Election Day 2007 is relegated to the pages of history, and what a history was written on November 6! The Virginia State Senate is now in Democratic hands, with State Senator Dick Saslaw, whose district includes 16 precincts in Mason District, the new Majority Leader in the State Senate. Does the new majority bode well for Fairfax County’s legislative agenda in the General Assembly next year? Let’s hope so!

In Fairfax County, the Board of Supervisors picked up one seat for the Democrats (at press time the Dranesville seat held by Republican incumbent Joan DuBois appeared to be won by Democrat John Foust). The new line up will be eight Democrats and two Republicans. Board Chairman Gerry Connolly trounced Republican challenger Gary Baise by almost 2 to 1 across the county, positioning Gerry to continue his local and regional leadership to move Fairfax forward.

It is extraordinarily humbling to serve as an elected official, to ask the voters to put their trust in you, and to have the voters respond again and again in a positive manner. Thank you, thank you, thank you to the people of Mason District, who put their faith and trust in me once again, and re-elected me to the Board of Supervisors.  Experi-ence matters, and I look forward to serving the people of this community for the next four years, using the same positive, energetic, and ethical approach that I have tried to make the hallmark of my public service.    

Perhaps the most important aspect of Election Day, however, was not the results but the opportunity for every registered voter to cast their ballot in a free and open election, a responsibility that was not available to many who are naturalized citizens and voters. Voting is not allowed in many countries, and in others you may be required to vote, even though there may be just one selection on the ballot, for whom you must vote or suffer dire consequences. In our free and democratic society, where the right to vote is sacred but not practiced as often as it should be, we can agree or disagree on a whole range of issues. Once the votes are counted, though, we must move forward together to address the challenges of today and tomorrow, especially at the local level where we really can make a difference.