. A few days ago, I was speaking to someone regarding the county political races. “Voters are lazy” they said. “You need to make sure you are banging doors and working every vote”. This isn’t the first time I have heard this thought. The idea that voters are lazy as the reason they don’t wind up at the polling place for me is too convenient of an excuse. As someone that has grown up here, that conclusion doesn’t resonate with me. I don’t think the voters here are lazy, I think they feel defeated. Four years ago, I asked my mother who she was voting for in the county election. Her response, “What does it matter? It’s the same people, and the same outcomes year after year”. I think you would be hard pressed to find a Shenandoah County native who would disagree. At the local government level, we have more than one position that has been occupied with career politicians. The Commissioner of Revenue has run unopposed for 8 terms. The County Treasurer has run 8 terms, unopposed until the last election. The District 5 Supervisor has over 40 years in office and the District 2 Supervisor won his 4th term last election cycle. I often wonder why the opposition doesn’t field candidates for these positions. These positions have dictated Shenandoah County life for as long as I can remember often fielding positions for committees such as Zoning, Planning and the IDA. The Shenandoah County Republican Committee has some outstanding patriots among its ranks. Notables are folks like Randy Gilbert. Gilbert who is the Committee Chair is one of the most genuine individuals you would ever meet. Randy is the quintessential public servant. He cares deeply for his community and deeply for the direction of the state and country. He was the driving force behind the County’s 2A Resolution and the Trump Flags Everywhere Campaign which placed all those free Trump flags on county homes. Another notable is John Massoud. John is the 6th District Chair and a Strasburg Town Councilman. John works tirelessly; advocating to keep conservative values in our little part of Virginia. I cannot leave out, Sabrina Schneibel. Sabrina is the Events Chair of the Committee. She works all hours to promote the Republican Party. She is responsible for seeing that the SCRC is represented at parades, community events and is responsible for those Trump parades we saw last year, one 90 cars long. I have closely watched the county political scene in the past few years. Randy Gilbert was my motivation to get involved with the local committee. However, I learned that not all Republicans are the same and that if you think it looks dirty from the outside, you would be saddened to see it from the inside. The lines of “what is good for the county” and “what is good for a small group” often get blurred. Special interest groups are more common than not on the local level. Tactics such as harassment and doxxing aren’t strangers in Shenandoah County. The premise to have informed voters to make educated decisions is not the goal here. The tactics used to sway a vote and pressure to keep vote as well as WHO to run a is unbelievable. The tactics to keep the county “establishment” running have no bottom. This is why I chose to run as an Independent and not seek endorsement. School Board races are non-partisan and should remain that way. Party endorsements in this race are superficial. Einstein is credited with the saying, “The definition of Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results”. The nastiness of politics sway hard working, every day, community oriented folks from running for local office and getting involved. I think it’s time to change this. Shenandoah County needs a new direction. I hope that before you cast your ballot this November, that you to look at your choices carefully in all races. I’ll ask that you research and reach out to your candidates. It’s also so easy to ask someone who to vote for, and that there are people just dying tell you who to choose. I don’t know how many times I have heard “Well I have heard things” uttered to justify not to cast a vote for someone. Do some research and don’t let anyone bully you. See that they are the person who you want to represent your voice, not just telling you what you want to hear. Lastly, I have discovered that a long resume or a few letters behind the name, does not always equate to a good candidate in my opinion. Elections are meant for general public to be involved in the decisions that shape their community. It’s literally “on the job” training in what civic service involves. Career politicians have not proven good for the country nor for the county. Shenandoah County needs change. Shenandoah County is only going to see change two ways, either by voting for something different, or offering your neighbors a different choice. Please consider being that change. Brandi Rutz Rutz for School Board
Strasburg
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