Straten defeats incumbent McCrady for Taylor District seat

ABINGDON, Va. – With a margin of just 17 votes, Republican Joe Straten beat incumbent Democrat Jack McCrady for the Taylor District seat on the Washington County Board of Supervisors, according to unofficial totals late Tuesday.

The issue that likely made the difference: McCrady’s “no” vote in a recent 4-3 board decision to deny a controversial truck stop that wanted to locate in a neighboring district.

“For some reason or another, people have lost confidence in Mr. McCrady,” said Straten, who said McCrady ran a fair campaign. “Obviously, for an outsider to come in here and beat him, they want something else or something done differently.”

Straten, originally from Ohio, said he will stay true to his campaign promise to do everything he can to help bring business and jobs to the county.

He also said he would support Love’s if the company brings its truck stop proposal back before the board next year. He said he believes the project is a good one that would create jobs for his district and others.

McCrady said he stands by his decision to vote against the truck stop, which would have placed a Love’s travel center about 1,000 feet from Meadowview Elementary School.

“I still made the right decision even if it cost me the election,” said McCrady, who represented the Damascus area for one term. “I’ll not be responsible for any child being harmed, and I can live with that.”

Still, he said, he’s waiting until official vote totals come in today before conceding.

Asked what he will do if Straten is officially declared the winner, McCrady said he’s going to get up and go to work in the morning. On future political aspirations, the former Damascus mayor and town councilman said, “You can never tell where I may show up.”

He would not elaborate.

Straten beat McCrady 898 votes to 881, with six votes going to write-in candidates. In addition to the truck stop issue, McCrady blamed “a Republican momentum” in the state and nation for his loss in the election.

In another contentious race, incumbent Supervisor Dulcie Mumpower was elected Tuesday to a fifth term on the board representing the Wilson District, between Abingdon and Bristol. She beat fellow Republican Vernon Smith, who ran as an independent, 1,283 to 851, with four votes going to write-ins.

Mumpower, who said repeatedly during her campaign that her record would speak for itself, did not return calls seeking comment Tuesday evening.

Smith, who campaigned on the need for more industrial jobs in the county, said although he lost he did better than expected.

“I’m really happy with the fact that I got as many votes as I did for the first time to run as an unknown,” Smith said. “I want to thank all the people that voted for me, and I think that even though I didn’t win, I think that they’re sending a message, because looking back I think I’m the first candidate that’s actually gave Ms. Mumpower a good race.”

In the third contested race, in which two political newcomers competed to represent the rural Jefferson District on the board, former prosecutor Nicole Price beat write-in candidate Glen Peters.
Price received 1,157 votes, and write-in candidates received 280, according to unofficial vote totals.

“I value … the trust they’ve placed in me, and I’m going to work very hard to live up to that,” said Price, who said planning for growth will be among her biggest issues when she takes her seat.

“I’m talking about planning for growth and planning for development in advance of just reacting to where the growth and development is trying to occur,” she said, though she said she would not decide in advance which way she would vote if the truck stop comes back before the board.

She will replace Paul Price, no relation, who supported the truck stop and did not seek re-election.

Peters, whose loss Tuesday was his second in a run for the Board of Supervisors, said his write-in candidacy was an uphill battle and “really the biggest thing that beat me.”

The winners were also clear Tuesday in three uncontested county School Board races. J. Sanders Henderson, Tom Musick and Herschel Stevens received 1,198 votes, 1,541 votes and 1,679 votes respectively, with a handful of write-ins in each district.

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