All 11 candidates running for local office in Arlington have agreed to appear at the Arlington County Civic Federation’s annual candidate forum.
The event will be held on Tuesday, Sep. 8 at 7 p.m. in the Hazel Conference Center at VHC Health (Virginia Hospital Center). It will also be livestreamed and archived for later viewing.
“We’re doing all of the races and have confirmations from all of the candidates,” Civic Federation president Nicholas Giacobbe told ARLnow.
The order of the evening and participating candidates are as follows:
- County Board: Audrey Clement (I), Matt de Ferranti (D, incumbent), David Sisson (I, endorsed by Forward Party)
- School Board: James “Vell” Rives IV (I, endorsed by Forward Party), Bethany Zecher Sutton (D, incumbent)
- Treasurer (special election): Aasim Rawoot (I), Kim Rucker (D, incumbent)
- 8th District U.S. House of Representatives: Shelly Arnoldi (I, endorsed by Libertarian Party of Northern Virginia), Don Beyer (D, incumbent), Tony Sabio (R), Timothy Sharman (I)
“We’ll take questions from the audience — in person and online — and will draw straws for the order for opening statements,” Giacobbe said.
The Civic Federation forum typically marks the start of the general-election season in Arlington. This year’s installment comes eight weeks to the day before Election Day (Nov. 3) and 10 days before the start of early voting (Sept. 18).
De Ferranti and Beyer are coming off Aug. 4 primary victories, while Zecher Sutton was unopposed for the Democratic endorsement for School Board.
It will be the first campaign for Rucker, who in August succeeded incumbent Treasurer Carla de la Pava upon her retirement. In early August, Rucker was endorsed by county Democrats.
Also on the Nov. 3 ballot in Arlington: A race for U.S. Senate, and multiple local bond referendums and state constitutional amendments.
