Fairfax County Republicans have thrown their support behind a former data analytics professional and homeschooling advocate in a bid to flip Virginia’s 17th House District seat.
Voters registered in the district selected Christopher F. Cardiff as their nominee at a party canvass held yesterday morning (Monday), the Fairfax County Republican Committee (Fairfax GOP) announced.
Cardiff will face off against Democratic nominee Garrett McGuire, who narrowly won a party primary on Sunday (Dec. 28), in a Jan. 20 special election for the seat vacated on Dec. 24 by longtime delegate Mark Sickles.
A Democrat, Sickles had represented the 17th district — which encompasses Franconia, Huntington, Kingstowne and Rose Hill — for more than 20 years before accepting an appointment as Virginia’s next finance secretary under Gov.-elect Abigail Spanberger.
“Christopher Cardiff brings extensive experience in data-driven strategies and a deep commitment to conservative principles that resonate with the families of District 17,” Fairfax GOP Chair Katie Gorka said in a statement.
Cardiff worked as chief operating officer for i360, a data analytics company that provides research to Republican political campaigns as well as commercial clients, from 2011 to 2023, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Prior to that, Cardiff spent four years as a program officer for the Charles G. Koch Charitable Foundation, and he served as founding president in the mid-1990s of the California Homeschool Network, a volunteer organization that offers resources and advocates for homeschooling families.
More recently, he and his wife, Monica, co-founded a nonprofit called the American History Education Project, which provides a curriculum of books and activities for homeschooling parents of elementary school-aged children that promotes the “virtues and values of American Exceptionalism.”
“Chris is a strong advocate for fiscal responsibility, public safety, and empowering parents in education,” said Nancy Almasi, legislative chair of the Fairfax GOP’s 17th House District committee. “We are confident that he will be a tireless voice for our community in Richmond.”
In-person early voting for the special election to replace Sickles is scheduled to begin on Jan. 10 at the Fairfax County and Franconia government centers. Voters in the 17th district can apply for a mail ballot until Jan. 9, and the deadline to register as a voter for this election is Jan. 13.
Voters in Virginia’s 11th House District, which covers Fairfax City and parts of Oakton and Fair Oaks, will also head to the polls next month for a special election to choose former delegate David Bulova’s replacement. Democratic nominee Gretchen Bulova and Republican nominee Adam Wise will vie for the House of Delegates seat on Jan. 13, with early voting starting this coming Sunday (Jan. 3).
