Progressive Voters Guide

James Walkinshaw was born and raised in Northern Virginia. Walkinshaw graduated from New York University with an undergraduate degree in Politics in 2005. He worked for twelve years as an adviser to Gerry Connolly, the Congressman from Virginia’s 11th district. Walkinshaw volunteers as a mentor through Fairfax County’s Befriend-A-Child program. He is an at-large member of Fairfax County’s Domestic Violence Prevention, Policy, and Coordinating Council. Through this council he helped lead the effort to raise awareness of the 24-hour domestic and sexual violence hotline through the county’s “Make the Call” campaign.

Walkinshaw is concerned about climate change, and says that achieving carbon neutrality, or reducing our carbon footprint to zero, is the solution. Within education, he wants to eliminate racially-biased testing outcomes and forms of discipline. Walkinshaw also aims to expand adult ESL programs. He wants to promote programs for children of all abilities by expanding access to counselors and psychologists within public schools. Walkinshaw prioritizes job creation, and he was to promote ability-focused employment opportunities for people with disabilities. He also supports increasing access to affordable housing.

Walkinshaw’s opponent is Republican Jason Remer. Like Walkinshaw, Remer expresses support for investments in education and reforming our criminal justice system.

However, given Walkinshaw’s experience in producing progressive results and his compelling community endorsements from SEIU Virginia 512, the Sierra Club, and many local labor unions, Walkinshaw is the more progressive choice.

Megan McLaughin is a the current school board member for the Braddock District. She holds her master's in social work from the University of Maryland at Baltimore and a bachelor of arts from the University of Pennsylvania. Prior to joining the School Board, she served as president and co-founder of FAIRGRADE, chairman and co-founder of Fairfax Education Coalition, and president of Little Run Elementary School PTA. She was first elected to the board in 2012. Her three children all graduated from FCPS.

McLaughlin voted for a more comprehensive sex-ed curriculum and has expressed concern about the growing prevalence of “vaping” among students. She has been endorsed by the Fairfax County Democratic Committee

Zia Tompkins is challenging McLaughlin. He has been endorsed by the local Republican committee. Tompkins is because of strong opposition to school redistricting. He condemns plans to use race and socio-economic status as factors among many that are considered during school redistricting and has condemned what she calls “raw demography in the name of social justice “equity.””

Megan McLaughin is the more progressive choice for Braddock District School Board.

Democrat John Foust has been a member of the Board of Supervisors since 2008. Foust was the first in his family to attend college, and proceeded to obtain a graduate and law degree after his undergraduate degree in economics. He serves as Chairman of the Board’s Transportation and Information Technology Committees, Vice-chairman of the Board’s Budget Committee, and Chairman of the Fairfax County Economic Advisory Commission.

As a member of the board, Foust is proud of helping to balance twelve budgets after the Great Recession and expanding full day kindergarten to the entire county. Foust played a role in creating a more comfortable and affordable living environment for senior citizens by creating a Senior Center and increasing the number of affordable housing units at Lewisville Center.

Foust’s priorities are increasing access to jobs and affordable housing, as well as improving transportation in Dranesville. He wants to ensure that the local government is more transparent and accountable. Foust is concerned with protecting our environment and fighting against climate change. Education is also on his platform, including ensuring schools in the Dranesville district continue to provide a quality education.

Foust’s opponent, Republican Ed Martin, previously served as chairman of the Missouri Republican Party. He has previously run for Congress and Attorney General in Missouri. He believes a Democratic majority will ruin Virginia. In 2016, Martin co-wrote “The Conservative Case for Donald Trump.” Locally, Martin has been vocal about his disapproval of One Fairfax, an initiative to prioritize equity within the county government and school.

Foust is the more progressive choice for this race.

Elaine Tholen has been a resident of Fairfax County for the past 25 years where she currently resides with her family. She received her undergraduate degree in Science Education from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and her graduate degree from the University of Maryland-College Park. Tholen previously worked for Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC). During that time, she led a staff focused on environmental cleanups for the US Department of Energy. Currently, Tholen is a Virginia middle school science teacher and has worked in elementary, middle, and high schools. She has also held administrative offices in the Fairfax County Public School System such as the Fairfax County Public Schools Get2Green Program which encouraged school-wide care for the environment.

Tholen’s priorities center on equity and safety. If elected, she wants to promote unity, ensuring that there are measures for curriculum and programming to be culturally sensitive to all students. She believes in increased safety for our students, and supports common sense gun laws. Tholen wants increased transparency and accountability for the local government, and would start open office hours for residents, in addition to keeping conversations around school boundaries and capacity open for conversation. She has been endorsed by the Fairfax Democrats.

Anastasia S. Karloutsos is one of two opponents. Karloutsos agrees with Tholen in when it comes to equal quality education to the students. However, while Karloutsos also cites public safety as a priority, she wants to increase law enforcement and police patrol cars instead of pushing for common sense gun laws. She has been endorsed by the Fairfax County GOP.

Ardavan Mobasheri is also running. His campaign is focused on concerns regarding school redistricting. His platform is similar to Tholen on green initiatives and decreasing class size but he fails to note support for teacher compensation.

Tholen is the more progressive choice for this race.

Democratic candidate Walter Alcorn has lived in Northern Virginia since the 1980’s. He currently lives in Reston. He received his degree from the University of Virginia and is a little league coach through Reston Youth Baseball.

Alcorn has been Hunter Mill Supervisor since 2011, and helped make county processes accessible to students. He served on the Fairfax County Park Authority Board and the Affordable Housing Opportunities Mean Everyone (AHOME) board. He was also President of the Herndon High School PTSA.

Alcorn wants to ensure that Fairfax County maintains a high quality school system, including reviewing funding to make sure teachers are well paid. Alcorn is committed to enforcing the vision of One Fairfax. One Fairfax is a joint social and racial equity policy of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors and School Board that commits to intentionally using an equity lens when making policies and programming.

Alcorn is running unopposed and is the progressive choice in this race.

Melanie Meren grew up in New York and has been a resident of Fairfax County since 2005. Meren received her graduate degree from the Sanford Institute of Public Policy at Duke University. She started her career in education with the US Department of Education in 2002. Currently, Meren is an independent communications consultant at MKM Strategies.

Meren is currently involved in her community through her membership with the Fairfax County School Board’s Human Resources Advisory Committee and as the elementary school PTA Green Team Chair. She is a school representative to the Fairfax County Council of PTAs, and a Girl Scout Brownie troop co-leader. She is also a member of the Virginia Association for Environmental Education.

Her opponent is Republican Laura Drain.

Meren is the more progressive choice for this race.

Rodney Lusk is a native Virginian and has lived in Lee District for 18 years. He received a degree from the University of Virginia. He has worked for Fairfax County for the past 29 years. He is currently the National Marketing Director for the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority (FCEDA). Lusk is involved in his community through his membership of the Fairfax County Committee to Prevent and End Homelessness and the Affordable Housing Resource Panel.

Lusk believes in equity within the justice system. He wants to ensure that those who are released from incarceration are able to integrate into society, and to eliminate racial biases within the system. He wants to reallocate funding to increase options for affordable housing and support pay raises for educators. Lusk is also concerned about protecting and preserving our natural environment. He wants to address the impact of storms for the Fairfax area, and for buildings to use as little energy as possible.

Lusk is running unopposed and is the progressive choice for this race.

Tamara Derenak Kaufax is the current school board member for Lee District, the vice chair of the board, and is running unopposed. She is a long-time advocate for children’s causes and education issues with 20 years of experience as a marketing professional and small business owner.

Last year she voted to change the district’s nondiscrimination policies to include transgender students, calling it a way to “provide an environment which promotes equality where every student and employee is treated with dignity and respect.”

She is the progressive choice for Lee District School Board.

Democrat Penny Gross is originally from Eugene, Oregon. She graduated from the University of Oregon with an undergraduate degree in Political Science in 1965. Gross previously worked for United States Senate and the Democratic National Committee. Gross has been on the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors since 1995. She serves on the Board’s Environment Committee, and has served as vice chairman of the Board since 2009.

During her time on the Board, Gross has worked to expand transportation options. Her efforts have reduced traffic congestion and has expanded bus service. She has also secured funding for constructing pedestrian walkways, making the area more walkable. She supports increased funding for Fairfax County Public Schools, which would lead to better benefits and salaries for educators. Gross aided in implementing the Environmental Excellence Plan to reduce Fairfax’s carbon footprint, protect water quality and preserve open space. She also supports the Community wide Housing Strategic Plan, which aims to address the lack of affordable housing in the Fairfax community.

Her opponent, Republican Gary Aiken, is selective in his idea of accessibility and public safety. Aiken is opposed to body cameras for police, but also wants more officers and community policing. Aiken only supports increased affordable housing solutions for first responders and their families.

Dr. Ricardy Anderson is an educator, parent of two elementary school students, community volunteer, a veteran of the National Guard Army Reserve, and first-generation American. She has been endorsed by the local Democratic Committee and the Fairfax Education Association.

Dr. Anderson’s campaign platform includes fully implementing the vision of One Fairfax and investing in public education to ensure all children, regardless of background, have equitable access to the opportunities the school district provides.

Tom Pafford is the Republican-endorsed candidate for the Mason District seat. Pafford is running because he strongly objects to the Fairfax School Board’s nondiscrimination policy which includes protections for transgender students and teachers.

Ricardy Anderson is the more progressive choice for Mason District School Board.

Democrat Daniel Storck has been a resident of the Mount Vernon District for over 25 years. He has been a member of the Fairfax Board of Supervisors since 2015. He previously served on the school board. During his time on the County Board, Stork helped create teams of citizens to work on to reducing issues that the community identified, including unemployment, school renovations and educational opportunities, and environmental protection.
Storck also worked on solutions for increased access to affordable housing and health care. He has prioritized green land-use policies and increased funding to extend the Metro’s Yellow Line as well as tackling the proliferation of predatory car title lenders along Rt. 1.

Storck is running unopposed and is the progressive choice in this race.

Karen Corbett Sanders is the current chair of the Fairfax County School Board. She believes that Fairfax County must provide a world class education to each of its students no matter where they live. Corbett Sanders is a retired international business executive, a community advocate for healthcare and education issues, past PTA president, and Odyssey of the Mind coach. She has served on Boards of Directors and operating committees for international telecommunications companies and, locally, on the Quality Board of Inova Children’s Hospital and the Regional Board for Odyssey of the Mind. Corbett Sanders has a bachelor's degree from the University of Notre Dame and a master's degree from Boston University. She serves on the parent advisory board of Creighton University.

Corbett Sanders believes equity in education must be paramount and as such worked to adopt the One Fairfax Policy on Equity. She has also prioritized expanding mental health supports for students, expanding access to early childhood education, and increasing pay and benefits for educators. She worked with her colleagues to adopt a Climate Change policy and established a Joint Environmental Task Force with the Board of Supervisors. Corbett Sanders is endorsed by the Fairfax County Democratic Committee.

Also running are Steven Mosley and Pamela Ononiwu. Mosley describes himself as a Christian conservative. He is outspoken in his opposition to current school board policy on comprehensive sex education and nondiscrimination protections for transgender students. Ononiwu is a child advocate and parent who is running to reform school discipline policies.

While Pamela Ononiwu raises important issues around school discipline and the school to prison pipeline, Karen Corbett Sanders has a strong record of delivering progressive policies in her time on the school board and is the more progressive choice for Mt. Vernon District School Board.

Democrat Dalia Palchik born in Argentina, and her family moved to Virginia when she was six years old. Palchik went to Fairfax County Public School and graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology. She went to Tufts University in Massachusetts to study Anthropology and French.

Palchik was originally elected in 2015, and has since then represented Providence District as a member of the Fairfax County School Board. Palchik sits on many boards and committees, including the Minority Student Achievement Oversight Committee as a liaison.
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Education is one of Palchik’s priorities. She supports increasing funding for universal Pre-K, raising teacher pay, and renovating Fairfax County schools to meet current needs. She is openly supportive of equity, stating that the divisiveness that is projected from the White House is not welcome in her community.

Palchik’s opponent died unexpectedly from a heart attack during campaigning. She is the progressive candidate in this race.

Democratic candidate Karl Frisch was born in California. He lives next to Mosby Woods Elementary with his partner, who is a Fairfax County Public School teacher.

Surprisingly, Frisch began his political work with conservatives doing press and field work for Senator John McCain‘s first presidential campaign. After being open about his sexuality and his progressive ideals, he began work for Jim Hahn as a field director for his 2001 mayoral campaign in Los Angeles. That was followed by a role as deputy communications director of the California Democratic Party in 2002. In 2004, he joined the media team of Howard Dean‘s presidential campaign. Frisch was later press secretary for Louise Slaughter, the Congresswoman of New York, the Democrats on the House Rules Committee, and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. More recently, Frisch has worked as the communications director for Media Matters for America. Frisch is a best known as a columnist and political strategist, and has helped clients like the National Education Association and Rock the Vote in their marketing and public relations. Locally, Frisch is a member of the Fairfax County Citizens for Better Schools Committee.

Frisch’s platform is focused on equity. He supports One Fairfax, which is an initiative to foster inclusion in the county. The goal for this initiative is for inclusivity to be the norm for years to come. Frisch wants to address both substance abuse and disparities within special education, ensuring that there are resources and opportunities for families involved with either. If elected, he wants to close the achievement gap and address the decline of Latinx student enrollment. Frisch wants to address the racial and cultural disparities within Fairfax County school system, and observe Muslim and Jewish holidays. He wants to push for increased teacher and staff pay, as well as smaller class sizes. Frisch believes in prevention and restorative justice, and wants to foster a more restorative approach to discipline. He opposes the use of force with students. He supports common sense gun laws, clean initiatives, and rebranding for schools named after Confederates. Frisch wants to improve Family Life Education, and believes in age-appropriate, consent-based education.

Frisch has been endorsed by the Fairfax County Democratic Committee.

Andrea Bayer is Frisch’s Republican-endorsed opponent. She is anti-LGBTQ, and is a staunch conservative Republican. Her platform is not available online, but she has managed to make an impact.

Jung Byun is also running for the Providence District seat. Her platform includes reducing class size and increasing teacher pay, focusing on more diverse career options, and creating an inclusive environment.

Frisch is the more progressive choice for this race.

Democrat Linda Sperling has lived in Fairfax her entire life. She received an undergraduate degree from George Mason University and a graduate degree in Public Communication from American University. She also attended the Sorensen Institute for Political Leadership's Campaign Training Program. Sperling later taught college at George Mason University, Northern Virginia Community College, and the University of Phoenix. She has guest lectured at Georgetown University and the University of Maryland. She now resides in Fairfax with her family.

Sperling supports clean energy initiatives, and if elected would start with reducing fossil fuel usage. She wants to improve transportation and lessen traffic in Fairfax. Sperling supports more affordable housing for residents, especially those within the workforce, young families, and seniors. Sperling believes in education accessibility. She wants the Board of Supervisors and the School Board to work together to plan and budget to ensure that all children have an opportunity for success.

Her opponent is Republican Pat Herrity. Herrity supports cooperating with ICE, using pejorative language like, “illegal aliens” on his website. He supports giving more funding to the police in the name of safety, but does not include bodycams. He does not mention increased de-escalation training or any racial disparities within policing. He claims to support education, but does not mention paying teachers more or reducing class size.

Sperling is the more progressive choice.

Laura Jane Cohen has been a Fairfax County resident for nearly 20 years and is the mother of two Fairfax County Public Schools students. She was a former preschool teacher and long-term substitute for FCPS before starting her own small business in Clifton. Cohen will advocate for higher teacher and staff pay and the need for increased mental health professionals in our schools. She is committed to being a voice for ALL our students and believes a successful experience in FCPS should be attainable no matter your abilities, race, gender identity, religion, sexual orientation, or socioeconomic status. She has been endorsed by the Fairfax County Democratic Committee and the Fairfax Education Association.

Elizabeth Schultz is the current school board member from the Springfield District. She has been an outspoken, right-wing conservative on the board, leading opposition to comprehensive sex education and protections for transgender students. She has also been vocal in criticizing gun violence prevention efforts. She opposes gun-free school zones and criticized Parkland students for their advocacy for gun violence solutions, stating, “This [gun violence prevention] is not a job for traumatized children.”

Kyle McDaniel is also seeking the Sully district seat. He is a former Republican who left the party over his opposition to Donald Trump. While he supports efforts to make FCPS more sustainable, Cohen is the progressive choice due to her support for increasing teacher pay and supporting equity within our schools.

Democratic candidate Kathy Smith is a current member of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors. After graduating from Muhlenberg College with a BA in Sociology and Elementary Education, Kathy taught first grade in New Jersey and second grade at an International School in Saudi Arabia. She and her husband, Steve, have lived in Sully since 1984, raising their four children here.

Education is a top priority for Smith. She has worked to increase school funding and raise teacher pay and will continue to pursue those policies on the board. She has also supported implementing the equity goals of One Fairfax. Protecting the environment is also important to Smith. She is concerned with protecting local streams and open space while finding ways to tackle climate change on the local level.

Srilekha Palle is the Republican candidate for Sully District Supervisor. She was born and raised in India. She lives in Fairfax with her husband and two kids while working as a health care executive and entrepreneur. While Palle supports criminal justice reforms including alternatives to incarceration and expanding the use of body-worn cameras, she also wants to increase the county’s cooperation with ICE to target and deport immigrants. She also expresses support for privatizing and outsourcing local government responsibilities and advocates for an expansion of school privatization schemes like charter schools.

Smith is the more progressive choice for Sully District Supervisor.

Stella Pekarsky is the Democratic Committee-endorsed candidate for Sully District School Board. She is the daughter of Greek immigrants and a graduate of George Mason University. She previously worked as a substitute teacher before she co-founded a family air charter business. She and her husband live in Centerville with their six children.

Pekarksy is running to ensure every child has the resources and opportunity to succeed in Fairfax County schools. She wants to invest in mental health supports and teacher retention while eliminating school trailers and overcrowded classrooms.

Thomas Wilson is the current member of the Fairfax County School Board from the Sully District. He was elected in 2015and is a graduate of Lake Braddock Secondary School, Cornell University, and the Northwestern University School of Law. After college, Wilson served in the U.S. Army during the Gulf War. He has been living in Fairfax County with his family for more than two decades. He has been an attorney in private practice.

Wilson has been endorsed by the local Republican committee. He abstained from votes on comprehensive sex education and nondiscrimination protections for transgender students after complaining that the proposals were brought to the board by individuals hostile to people of faith.

Stella Pekarksy is the progressive choice for Sully District School Board.