A second independent has qualified to be on the County Board ballot in November, guaranteeing that the election again will be run under the still controversial ranked-choice format.
Jeramy Olmack has successfully filed paperwork to be on the Nov. 4 County Board ballot, election officials have confirmed to ARLnow.
Olmack’s website says his campaign will focus on “fighting against fascists and breaking the influence of wealth and loudness in politics.”
“I will make Arlington County a place where all residents can live their entire life,” said Olmack, who has resided in the county since 2023.
Olmack’s policy positions include increasing home ownership; a seven-year moratorium on construction of new rental units; removal or burial of interstate and other highways; increasing transit options; removing all street parking from areas with significant numbers of pedestrians; providing more pickleball courts; mandating that pets be allowed in all residential properties; and creating designated smoking areas in public spaces.
Olmack becomes the second independent to qualify for the ballot after Audrey Clement. Clement, who positions herself as a protest candidate, is making her 16th run for local office, most for County Board but in 2014 and 2018 for School Board.
Democrats are awaiting the results of the June 17 primary to know whether James DeVita or incumbent Takis Karantonis emerges as the party’s nominee. County Republicans and the Forward Party are seeking candidates; the Arlington Green Party will not run a candidate.
Having three or more candidates on the ballot means the County Board general-election race will be run under ranked-choice rules for the third year in a row. County Board members earlier this year voted 4-0, with JD Spain, Sr., abstaining, to use the format for the 2025 race if more than two candidates materialized.
Given Arlington’s political leanings, however, the Democratic nominee is likely to be the odds-on favorite.
June 17 is the filing deadline for candidates seeking ballot access.
Democrats hope to generate volunteers from ‘really pissed off’ residents: The Arlington County Democratic Committee sees the June 17 primary as fertile ground for recruiting efforts.
As a result, the party will station representatives outside county polling places during the morning and evening rush periods, working to encourage voters to get more active.
The Arlington electorate is “really pissed off” by the Trump administration, said Sarah Lanford, who heads precinct operations for the local party. Democrats “are ready to capture that rage,” she said.
Democrats are hoping to have representatives gathering contact information and providing information at each of the county’s 54 precincts from 7 to 10 a.m. and again from 4 to 7 p.m.
Those participating in the effort will not be allowed to express support for any candidate competing in the primary, just be on hand to tout the Democratic brand.
All Arlington voters will be able to cast ballots for County Board, lieutenant governor and attorney general in the primary. Residents of the 1st House of Delegates district will make their choice in that race, as well.
While November’s general election results in Arlington are unlikely to go against Democrats, the local party is working to ramp up turnout in order to support the Democratic ticket for governor, lieutenant governor and attorney general.
The goal is to “turn out every single Democratic vote” in November to offset Republican strength downstate, Lanford said.
It was a strategy employed four years ago by the Arlington County Republican Committee, which recruited and ran candidates in House of Delegates races across Arlington despite the very slim chance they would be elected.
All three GOP candidates fell to Democrats, but having additional Republicans on the ballot in the county helped boost GOP turnout. That, in turn, helped the Republican statewide tickets of Glenn Youngkin, Winsome Earle-Sears and Jason Miyares eke out victories commonwealth-wide.
