The Fairfax County Democratic Committee (FCDC) has endorsed candidates in Herndon’s mayoral and town council races following a caucus that either went smoothly or was deeply flawed, depending on who you ask.
About 94% of the 641 voters who registered for the caucus cast a ballot for mayor, buoying Councilmember Pradip Dhakal with 345 votes over fellow Councilmember Keven LeBlanc’s 261 votes, according to the official results.
The FCDC also endorsed five of the nine candidates vying for the town council’s six seats, including incumbents Naila Alam and Cesar del Aguila, Herndon Diversity Equity and Inclusion Committee Vice Chair Soma Ramesh, one-time Fairfax County sheriff candidate Kelvin Garcia, and Arts Herndon Treasurer Michael Lloyd.
“These candidates have demonstrated their commitment to the values and priorities of the Democratic Party,” the FCDC said in a press release announcing the caucus results on Saturday (Aug. 10). “We are confident they will continue to serve the residents of Herndon with dedication and integrity.”
The town council endorsements were uncontested, the FCDC said in the release. The other candidates on the ballot are Vice Mayor Clark Hedrick, Herndon Board of Zoning Appeals Vice Chair Stevan Porter, teacher Alex Reyes and Tamim Chowdhury.
Though local offices in Virginia are officially nonpartisan, candidates can accept endorsements by political parties. The Fairfax County Republican Committee says it’s not endorsing candidates in the Herndon elections out of “respect [for] both the wishes of Town residents and the Herndon Town charter.”
According to FCDC Executive Director Dominic Thompson, the committee has “regularly” made endorsements in Herndon elections in the past, but it voted not to take that step in the last race in 2022.
“Several elected officials and candidates in the Town of Herndon asked that the committee consider endorsing in the town elections this year and when it was brought to a full vote of our membership, the committee voted in the majority to endorse in the town elections,” Thompson told FFXnow.
The caucus was mostly conducted electronically from Aug. 5-10, with voters who registered before a July 26 deadline receiving an email and text with a link to a secure ballot. There was also an in-person voting option that drew 30 voters. Overall, 607 ballots were submitted.
“We are proud of the turnout, especially as this was our first year back to endorsing,” Thompson said.
Seeking to succeed Mayor Sheila Olem after three terms on the town council, Dhakal thanked all “residents, neighbors, and friends who pre-registered and voted” in the caucus, which he described as “a great example of the democratic process in action.”
“I want to express my appreciation to all the candidates, especially my council colleague, Keven LeBlanc, who followed the process and ran an outstanding campaign,” Dhakal said in a statement to supporters. “Together, we demonstrated what a healthy and respectful campaign should look like. I commend Keven for his dedication and integrity throughout this journey.”
However, LeBlanc, who has been endorsed by Olem, says he was “vocally opposed” to the FCDC making endorsements in Herndon’s elections, alleging that the decision to hold a caucus was determined by just four votes at a March 26 general membership meeting.
Former Herndon mayor Lisa Merkel and former Dranesville District Democratic Committee chair Gregory Brandon formally appealed the vote to the 11th Congressional District Democratic Committee, questioning whether members were given adequate notice and how FCDC Chair Aaron Yohai conducted the vote.
According to the FCDC, the official vote count was 100 people in favor of a caucus and 91 against, and the 11th Congressional District committee denied Merkel and Brandon’s request for the vote to be nullified because it “found no support the appeal.”
After the appeal was denied, LeBlanc says he opted to campaign for the endorsement because he didn’t want the FCDC to back his opponent “without any challenge at all when it will unfairly and unduly influence this [Nov. 5] election.”
He noted that the voters who participated in the caucus represent a small percentage of the 13,692 voters registered in the Town of Herndon, as of Aug. 1.
“The difference between us as candidates was a difference of 0.6% of the voter population — just over half a percent of voters are strongly going to impact our election in a critical year with so much at stake beyond just these positions,” LeBlanc said. “This is truly undue interference in our election process from such a small group that’s not representative of the Town’s diversity of views and experiences.”
In a statement to FFXnow, Yohai defended the caucus as a “smooth and fair process” that drew a turnout not far behind the 965 Town of Herndon voters who participated in this year’s Democratic presidential primary.
Our job with this caucus was to provide a forum for Democrats to choose whom FCDC endorses for Herndon Town Mayor and Town Council, and we are happy with that process. Ultimately, just like in a primary, it is on the candidates to campaign and bring their voters out to vote. We thank all of the candidates who participated in the process and all of the voters who made their voice heard. Heading into November, we are happy to work with our endorsed candidates, including our Democratic-endorsed mayoral candidate Pradip Dhakal, as we earn the support of voters in Herndon and throughout Fairfax County.
