RVA at the Polls

City voters share their choices and hopes for post-election Richmond

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We spoke with Richmond voters at polling stations around the city as they went to cast their votes on Election Day (more responses to come as the day progresses). Responses have been edited for length and clarity.

Aila Castane, 2nd District: As far as president, I definitely don't want Trump, for obvious reasons. I do feel like it's kind of picking the better of two evils, but I feel like my family would be most affected if Trump were to win. Just because I have a lot of immigrants in my family and I want to advocate for them; especially for those who can not vote, so that's why I'm standing out here. And for City Council I'm definitely voting for Rebecca [Keel]. She's a VCU alum, and I just feel like she's so grassroots and down to earth, and she really has the 2nd District's best interests in mind.

Scott Sirles, 2nd District: I'm voting for Johnson, Gary [for president]. [Charlie] Diradour [for City Council]. I'm voting for faith in the Constitution. And I am voting for [Mike] Wade [for Congress].

Stephanie Harris, 3rd District: The best scenario for this election is for Hillary Clinton to be our next president — our first female president of the United States — and the worst-case scenario is definitely Donald Trump. Here in Richmond, I chose Joe Morrissey for mayor. For School Board, I checked Jeff Bourne. I picked [Democratic congressional candidate Donald] McEachin as well. Overall, I’m just watching this ballot and [choosing] people I’m familiar with and who I think I can trust. I voted for Bill Clinton, I voted for Barack Obama and now I’m voting for Hillary Clinton. I have a good feeling and a good vibe with them that they can make the necessary changes for our world in which we live in, with so much chaos and confusion, that they will bring peace.

Monte Omar, 3rd District (pictured with his son, Riki Dandridge): I’d like for my party to win. I’m a Democrat. Richmond magazine: So you’re voting for Hillary? Yeah. (Riki, a second-grader, enthusiastically echoes “Yes!”) RM: Do you have a favorite in the mayor’s race? Not really. I know who I’m voting for: Levar [Stoney]. I like Morrissey, but he has some issues I’m not comfortable with. I just really haven’t heard anything bad about Stoney. I know Morrissey’s a good person, though. I’ve known him for a lot of years.

Deirdre Walker-Johnson, 3rd District: The worst outcome is if Trump gets in. [For the local races,] I just went with what was on the ballot, the paper that [the Richmond City Democratic Committee] gave us: Levar Stoney [for mayor], Jeff Bourne [for School Board], Donald McEachin [for Congress].

Ruth Plott, 4th District: [I hope] we start to fiscally get our city lined up and get it to working better. We have a lot going for us.

George Plott, 4th District: There’s a lot of room for improvement. Richmond has a lot to offer, but there are also a lot of problems. A lot of city services have been cut, but they need to be reinstated. We also have like one of the highest water charges in America. Why? But also some of the city services have been cut back. Our roads look like battlegrounds. They’re not picking up leaves off the street this year. Why have city services been cut, but our property taxes are outrageous? Our water bills are outrageous. Where is all this money going?

Dena Lakin, 4th District: Locally, I wanted Kristen Larson [for City Council], Jack Berry [for mayor], no on the amendments. I really want Jack Berry; I know many of [the candidates for mayor] are anti-Reedy Creek [stream restoration], and I’m really against that as well, and that’s one reason I chose him. I really like Levar Stoney as well, but I felt like he doesn’t quite have the experience that Jack Berry does. Kristen Larson I just adore. I think she’s been proving herself to be a capable person in local politics since her children started school, so I’m behind her and feel like she’ll be a very positive force on the City Council.

Samantha Merz, 5th District: I just want a better, well-led Richmond that works together in a good way to go forward instead of hanging back too much. We need not be held back by our past. We’re a city on the move, and that progress needs to receive the proper encouragement.

I’m off today, so I’m probably going to run errands and try not to listen to anything. NPR is having 24-hour coverage, so I’ll run errands, go home, do something for myself and start to listen as the results trickle in. We’ll see what happens; it’ll either be celebration or maybe not. I just hope that something good comes of it. I don’t pray — I’m not religious at all — but I did talk to David Bowie and Prince, and asked them to work something on their side, please.

Stewart Patterson, 5th District: I can’t believe people are going to vote for Joe Morrissey. What does it take for people to see that someone is just doing something wrong? And [as] far as the national [election], same thing with Trump: I mean, how can anybody vote for that guy? People say, 'Well, Hillary lied.' OK. So she lied. What’s he done wrong? [Laughs] There’s too many things to count. I’m certainly glad it’s over. I’ll watch by television. Me and the girl I live with — I’ll probably watch it alone. We can’t even talk politics. And even my sister. I can’t talk about it with her, either, so I don’t try. We’re family and all, so I want to keep it civil.

Michelle Nickolaisen, 5th District: I hope that as a country we can choose something based on hope and not on fear. I guess that’s the most succinct way to put it. I’m very new to the neighborhood and the city. I almost said I was from Austin when they asked on my application. I’m only familiar with the vaguest outlines about the local positions. I went over everybody’s website this morning. I’m going to go to my jujitsu training tonight and exercise off this election stress. And then I’ll come home, eat some dinner, and watch the results on TV and follow them on Twitter.

Damian Pitt, 5th District: Well, my greatest hope that we’ll elect a slate of candidates from top to bottom who support progressive issues and change at the national, state and local levels. My hope is that they’ll want to improve our economy in a way that promotes clean energy and addresses climate change as well as addresses socioeconomic issues. I hope that here in the city that we’ll elect a candidate who’ll also address our socioeconomic divide and concentrate on reducing our carbon footprint. It’s been really frustrating that the mayoral candidates haven’t satisfactorily addressed environmental and transportation issues.

Kenneth Parker, 7th District (pictured with his daughter, Makala): I’m looking to see things continue to change in a positive way. We need a lot of support for the people, you know, and hopefully the president who is elected will be for the people and not for their own gain. Locally, I went with Cynthia Newbille [for City Council], Levar [Stoney for mayor], [Nadine] Marsh Carter [for School Board]. How did I settle on those folks? I went with the majority that were listed with the president on the sample ballot – the Democrats. They seemed like they were going to be a team, so I went with the team.

Sheryl DeLeo, 7th District: I want Hillary Clinton for president, thank you very much. Locally, I think our city council needs to be shaken up and reformed, and that’s how I voted. I think our mayoralty is in definite need of revision, and so I voted for a reform. I voted for Jack Berry. He’s the most qualified. He has the most experience. He has worked and achieved things and has not been appointed by elected officials or elected by people who can be influenced. That’s just my take on it.