The results are in from the Charlottesville City Council race, and the Democrats have completely dominated the election. David Brown (22.67%), Kendra Hamilton (23.34%), and incumbent Kevin Lynch (21.44%) took the race by a very healthy margin. For the other candidates, there was 10% for Republican Kenneth Jackson, 11.5% for Republican Ann Reineke, and 4.8% for independent Vance High. Write-ins were quite high, presumably consisting primarily people voting for ousted Democrat Meredith Richards, with 5.2% of votes coming in the form of a write-in. Each Democrat received a very similar number of votes in each precinct, with the notable exception of Recreation, where Lynch was 2.5% behind, a district in which a citywide high of 7% of votes were write-ins. 5,339 people voted, resulting in a turnout of 27.8%. The result is that the Democrats have not lost any seats, as many party members feared, and the Republican victory two years ago is starting to look like a fluke. 05/05 Update: Elizabeth Nelson has a story in the Progress summarizing the win.
Sideblog
Police announced this afternoon that their investigation into what was initially believed to be a fatal fire on Rugby Avenue is now a homicide investigation. #
The Virginia Supreme Court has denied George Huguely’s appeal. His second-degree murder conviction will stand, WRIC reports. #
In a carefully worded story, and not citing specific sources, WTVR reports that forensic evidence belonging to Jesse Matthew Jr., the main suspect in the disappearance of Hannah Graham, matches forensic evidence collected during the investigation of Morgan Harrington’s 2009 murder. #
In the wake of Hannah Graham’s disappearance, and the evidence that came from private security footage, city officials are revisiting the question of installing security cameras on the downtown mall. #
Both Charlottesville Registrar Sheri Iachetta and former Electoral Board member Stephanie Commander have turned themselves in to the police on
foursix and four felony counts of embezzlement, respectively. #Ten years ago, the National Institutes of Health budget doubled and schools like the University of Virginia built massive new research facilities. A decade later, those buildings remain largely underutilized. NPR visits UVA in this story on the effect of federal binge and spurge spending in the sciences. #
In 2012, Council approved a new student housing complex on West Main—now some council members are questioning whether what they were shown matches what was built. #
The Architectural Review Board has approved a bike-themed mural on West Market, below the McGuffey Art Center, although at least one member expressed concerns that it might look like the bicyclists were riding away from Charlottesville’s downtown. #
City Police Chief Tim Longo is meeting with city leaders to work on protocols regarding the use of military surplus police weapons in Charlottesville. #
A 100-year-old Colonnades resident received military honors for her service in the WWII Women’s Army Corps #
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