"Independent"

Per Merriam Webster :

In-de-pen-dent - adjective

1 :not dependent: such as

    a (1) :not subject to control by others: self-governing

      (2) :not affiliated with a larger controlling unit

    b (1) :not requiring or relying on something else :not contingent

        (2) :not looking for others for one’s opinions or for guidance in conduct

        (3) :not bound by or committed to a political party

 

As a noun, “independent” is defined as “one who is independent,” which perfectly describes why I have chosen to run as an Independent candidate for the Chesterfield County Board of Supervisors.  I am a conservative person and considered long and hard opposing Kevin Carroll in the Republican Primary, but ultimately, I could not do so in good conscience.  If successful, I would have had to align myself with the Chesterfield County Republican Committee, and I do not agree with their stewardship of Chesterfield County.  They are funded by and beholden to the development-community and a select few large landowners in the county.  The result is predictable: overcrowded schools, traffic gridlock, and taxpayer money wasted on cronies in the name of “Economic Development,” ultimately eroding the quality of life in Chesterfield County.  The issue is not red or blue but is the corruption of power when a single party rules and arrogantly ignores the will of the people. 

 

George Washington (the only Independent ever elected President) wisely warned of the danger of a two-party system in his 1796 farewell address:

 

“It serves always to distract the Public Councils, and enfeeble the Public Administration.  It agitates the community with ill-founded jealousies and false alarms: kindles the animosity of one part against another, foments occasionally riot and insurrection.  It opens the door to foreign influence and corruption, which find a facilitated access to the government itself through the channels of party passions.”

 

I would never pretend to be any wiser than our first President; his statement sums up perfectly the current state of affairs in Chesterfield County, and I cannot bring myself to endorse or partake in the continuation of “business as usual.”  

 

I firmly believe in our Constitution and representative government.  I will listen to and work tirelessly to represent and serve the citizens of Matoaca District and ensure the County Administration faithfully executes the vision laid out for them by the duly elected Supervisors. I will work in contrast to the current practice where the BOS merely approves projects and budgets as directed by an Administration with no meaningful input from the citizens they are to serve.  As an Independent, my first and only loyalty will be to the citizens of Matoaca.