The Arlington Electoral Board believes three, rather than four, early-voting locations should be fine for June’s primary election.
Board members voted 3-0 Tuesday (Feb. 4) to ask County Board members to consider removing Long Bridge Aquatics & Fitness Center from the list of early-voting sites for the primary.
The facility was among those used for early voting during last year’s presidential election.
“It worked very well in November,” but may not be necessary for the lower-turnout 2025 primary, said Electoral Board vice chairman Richard Samp.
“I’d be more open to having it open in November,” said the Board’s chairman, Dominick Schirripa.
Samp and Schirripa are Republicans. Democrat Kim Phillip, secretary of the Electoral Board, supported their position.
If County Board members agree to the request, early voting for the June 17 primary will be held at the county government’s headquarters along with Walter Reed Community Center and Madison Community Center.
The government headquarters at 2100 Clarendon Blvd will open for voting on May 2, with other sites opening later.
At this point, “we don’t even know if we’re going to have a primary yet,” said Gretchen Reinemeyer, the county’s elections director.
But most likely one will be needed in Arlington — incumbent Democratic County Board Chairman Takis Karantonis is being challenged by Democrat James DeVita, and it is possible one or more of the three House of Delegates members could face intra-party challenges.
Under state law, a jurisdiction’s governing body sets the locations for early voting, while the Electoral Board decides when they will be open.
The Democratic endorsement for School Board, left open after incumbent Mary Kadera declined to seek re-election, will be decided by a party-run caucus in the spring.
Republicans and other parties typically use intra-party processes, rather than the state-run primary, to select their nominees for office.
The roughly 58,000 Arlington voters who cast early ballots in last November’s election outpaced the approximately 52,200 who voted at precincts on Election Day, according to a report issued by the elections office.
An additional 20,200 cast ballots by mail.
Slew of Officers of Election Appointed: Arlington Electoral Board members voted 3-0 Tuesday (Feb. 4) to appoint 80 new officers of election, while also reappointing 2,168.
Their terms will run from March 1, 2025, to Feb. 28, 2026.
Additional officers of election will be appointed throughout the year, but there already are more than enough to work the polls during elections over the coming year.
Former Electoral Board Member Recalled as Knowledgeable, Gentleman: Arlington Electoral Board members on Tuesday (Feb. 4) adopted a resolution honoring the life of Allen Harrison, Jr., who served a near-record 29 consecutive years on that body.
Harrison, a Republican, had served in the House of Delegates for a single term in 1970-71. An attorney, he was tapped by the Circuit Court to serve on the Electoral Board in 1987, remaining until his retirement in 2016.
Arlington’s elections director, Gretchen Reinemeyer, began her career in the Arlington voter office while Harrison was on the Electoral Board. Like others who knew him, she called him “a consummate gentleman.”
“He was very deliberative,” she said. “It was just a real honor and privilege to learn from him.”
In public, Harrison earned a degree of fame for each year announcing at a County Board meeting the winner of the vehicle-decal-design student competition sponsored by the treasurer’s office. His dramatic pauses heightened suspense to a fever pitch.
In recent years, Harrison lived in New Mexico with his wife, Sue.
While his 29 years in office was lengthy, it appears to have fallen just short of the all-time record. According to information from the elections office, Maynard Carlisle served on the Electoral Board for 30 years before his departure in 1968.
