Though still unsure about the necessity, Arlington’s County Board chair is preparing to move forward with a task force on governance-change options.
Takis Karantonis detailed the timeline to ARLnow. It is likely the panel will be established after the Board returns from its August recess.
That will be at least a temporary victory for advocates seeking to make changes to Arlington’s 93-year-old governance structure.
What a task force might recommend, and whether local leaders will support the recommendations, remain an open question.
“You have two Board members that support it, three don’t. If the voters want change, they’re going to have to go [and convince] the County Board,” said Del. Patrick Hope (D-1).
Hope has attempted — thus far unsuccessfully — to shepherd governance-change legislation into law. He pulled from consideration his initial bill in 2024 after complaints from county-government leaders, and his 2025 measure passed in the legislature but was vetoed by Gov. Glenn Youngkin.
At a May 13 candidate forum sponsored by the Arlington County Civic Federation, Hope said he planned to introduce similar legislation in Richmond again.
“It’s going to come back next year, and Abigail Spanberger is going to sign it into law,” he said, predicting a victory in November by the Democratic nominee for governor.
The Civic Federation has been the primary backer of governance changes, which could include:
- Expanding the number of County Board members from the current five
- Moving to election by districts or by a combination of at-large and districts
- Electing the chairman separately
- Moving away from an election process where at least one seat was on the ballot each year
Hope’s 2024 and 2025 legislation did not seek to mandate any changes, but to give the County Board power to make them. The bills also allowed for the public to force referendums on various governance-change proposals by obtaining signatures of 10% of county voters.
In a conversation with ARLnow, Karantonis said it was his preference that no legislation be introduced again until the local community has had the chance to vet all options.
“My preference is, the General Assembly respects the process,” he said.
As to what changes might be beneficial, “I’m open to the conversation — a very thorough discussion,” said the board chair.
Any process needs to come up with answers to two questions, Karantonis said: “”What is really wrong? What is Arlington failing at?”
Karantonis is facing off against James DeVita in the June 17 Democratic primary. At several recent candidate forums, DeVita said he supports a mix of at-large and district representation on a revamped County Board.
Audrey Clement, a self-described protest candidate making her 16th bid for local office this year, said she wanted a switch to districts.
The at-large arrangement has resulted in “a County Board that is accountable to no one” because those in office don’t fear the electorate, said Clement, running as an independent for County Board in November.
Instead, she said, candidates from the county’s majority party rely on “uninformed and apathetic voters who pull the Democratic lever no matter what.”
Another independent running for County Board, Jeramy Olmack, said he supported expanding Board membership.
“I don’t agree that five members are enough,” Olmack said — a view with which Karantonis seems to align himself.
In order to get to the 2026 legislative session, Hope must survive a challenge in the Democratic primary and then in the general election.
One of his opponents in the primary, Arjoon Srikanth, told Civic Federation delegates he was open to discussion. But he seemed to side with the Karantonis view of waiting until a full vetting has occurred before tackling the matter in Richmond.
“We have to have a public process,” Srikanth said.
Hope has said he is weary of waiting for Board members to move forward on the issue. Karantonis told ARLnow county leaders and the broader community have enough on their plate in dealing with economic headwinds and concerns about actions of the Trump administration.
“A final decision [on governance] has to come when we are not under extreme pressure,” he said.
Between the 1870s and 1932, Arlington had been governed by a three-member Board of Supervisors elected in districts. Given the more rural nature of the county for much of that time, supervisors had executive, legislative and even quasi-judicial responsibilities.
The 1930s ushered in the county-manager plan of government, with five at-large Board members overseeing the work of an appointed manager.
