Members of the Arlington County Democratic Committee have elected a chair after a spirited race.
Paul Ruiz, who had served as deputy chair for the past two years, defeated finance chair Tony Weaver on Jan. 7 to succeed Steve Baker as party leader.
politics
County Board Chair Matt de Ferranti formally announced his reelection campaign this week, and he has already picked up a challenger in the June primary.
Both de Ferranti and returning candidate James DeVita announced their bids for County Board at a Wednesday meeting of the Arlington County Democratic Committee.
The race is on to succeed State Sen. Adam Ebbin, who announced Wednesday afternoon (Jan. 7) he would resign in February to take a post in the Spanberger administration.
In the hours after his announcement, one current and one former member of the House of Delegates launched bids for the seat.
A mayoral candidate in the city of Reims, France is promoting a stronger Sister City relationship with Arlington in his campaign.
Éric Quénard is the Socialist Party candidate who will lead a center-left coalition in the 2026 mayor’s race in Reims, one of Arlington’s five sister cities. His campaign reached out to ARLnow to uplift his desire for tighter ties between the two locales.
The unexpected departure of a major pro-transit voice in the Virginia General Assembly has created a void that an Arlington legislator appears primed to fill.
Del. Adele McClure (D-2), who sits on the House Committee on Transportation, has provided a key voice in various recent discussions on transit. In the 2026 General Assembly session, she could step into the shoes left behind by former Del. Mark Sickles (D-17), who is leaving his elected post to become Virginia’s next Secretary of Finance.
A Democrat is taking over for a Republican on the Arlington Electoral Board in the new year.
David Leichtman, a veteran political activist, will succeed electoral board vice chair Richard Samp, a Republican whose term expires Dec. 31.
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The Arlington County Democratic Committee’s outgoing chair gives himself mixed grades as he closes out four years at the helm.
Steve Baker noted some successes in his goals for the party, but also some areas where those efforts fell short, at the Dec. 16 luncheon of Arlington Senior Democrats.
A hearing on whether to study changes to the form of Arlington’s local government is scheduled to take place next week.
County Board members have set aside an entire evening — Wednesday, Dec. 17 beginning at 6 p.m. — to hear from the public and then decide whether to set up a task force looking at the hotly debated issue. Registration is open now.
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The chair of the Arlington County Republican Committee is not planning to seek the soon-to-be vacant chairmanship of the Republican Party of Virginia (RPV).
But Matthew Hurtt has strong ideas about the qualities required of the next party leader — including the need to devote 100% of their effort to the position.
Fewer than 50 votes separate a winning and losing candidate for Falls Church School Board, meaning a recount could be in the works.
Electoral Board members certified the results Wednesday (Nov. 12). After tabulating provisional ballots and those received by mail by the Nov. 7 deadline, the margin between Kathleen Tysse (3,532) and Sharon Mergler (3,485) tightened from the 56-vote margin reported on Election Night to 47 votes upon certification.
Arlington Democrats are turning their attention to attempts to help the national party take back the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives in 2026.
“We do have our work cut out for us,” said Kip Malinosky, a former chair of the Arlington County Democratic Committee who chairs its “Beyond Arlington” initiative.
The current deputy chair of the Arlington County Democratic Committee has launched a bid to become the next chair, competing against another party leader.
Deputy Chair Paul Ruiz spent part of the Nov. 5 monthly party meeting working the room for support of his campaign to succeed Chair Steve Baker. He has said he wants to “build a Democratic committee that listens, builds up new leaders and leads with purpose.”