Early in-person voting starts Friday in Virginia.
KING WILLIAM — King William County faces two contested elections for its Board of Supervisors later this year, while two incumbents are running unopposed for the school board.
Two positions on the Board of Supervisors and two places on the school board are on the ballot for Nov. 4.
Three candidates are facing off for the District 5 supervisors’ seat — Keith Fogg and Robert Atkins are challenging incumbent Mary Sue Bancroft. In District 1, two candidates, Brent Bohannon and Joseph Bartos, are seeking to replace Bill Hodges, who is not seeking reelection.
The seats are up for grabs in November because Hodges and Bancroft were elected for two-year terms. The previous board attempted to bring in staggered terms. Although the new board reversed the decision, the two-year terms stand, and the successful candidates will face the electors again in two years.
District 5
Fogg, a “mostly retired” tax lawyer, teacher and third-generation farm owner in King William County, said dissatisfaction with the actions of the present Board of Supervisors drove him to run for county government.
“I am running after watching the incredibly poor decisions made by our current Board of Supervisors, including the incumbent in the 5th District, concerning our county library system,” Fogg wrote in an email.
“Additionally, the turnover of county personnel under the current board has alarmed me. We have an interim county administrator as the current board looks for the third county administrator within one year,” Fogg said. “We have an interim finance director, and no one seems to understand our county finances. My background and skills should allow me to bring better decision-making skills to the 5th District seat on the board. My management experience and personality could foster improved relationships with county employees that would aid in hiring and retention.”
Fogg is the vice chair of the King William Board of Zoning Appeals and a member of the King William Social Services Advisory Board. He worked as an educator for more than three decades and is the president of the nonprofit Center for Taxpayer Rights.
Fogg is critical of the board’s unanimous decision to withdraw from the Pamunkey Regional Library, an issue that divides him from Atkins.
“We should not have pulled out, and now we will suffer with a much poorer library system,” he said. “In the upper part of the county where my district lies, we now have no library and have not had one since mid-June when the library in Central Garage closed. We were told that the switch from the regional library system would be seamless; however, the library in my part of the county will be closed for several months and perhaps into the new year.”
Robert “Nick” Atkins said he is running to bring “experience, knowledge and understanding of local and state government to help solve the issues facing King William.”
“I have lived in this county my whole life, which has made me critically aware of the shortcomings we face,” Atkins wrote in an email. “I know what good leadership looks like, and I have worked to promote those principles my whole career. It is time for the 5th District to have a knowledgeable person who truly puts the people first. I am that person.”
Atkins’ stance on the library differs from Fogg’s. He is critical of the regional library’s actions before the Board of Supervisors decided to sever ties.
“I am aware that the process of moving away from PRL was started by the previous board. This began when King and Queen County left the PRL, creating a huge financial liability for King William in 2023,” Atkins wrote in an email.
“The current board’s decision to continue the county’s plans for an independent library came after the PRL failed to have good faith negotiations with the county. The PRL was not honest in their presentation with the people of King William. They were hostile, adversarial and not forthcoming in sharing factual financial documents,” he said.
Atkins said he supports the new, independent library system. “The county is free from a library system which would be controlled by other counties and the PRL,” he said.
Bancroft did not respond to a request from the Tidewater Review to comment on her candidacy.
District 1
District 1, which covers the town of West Point, will elect a new supervisor in November because Bill Hodges, the former West Point police chief, is not seeking reelection.
Bohannon, an attorney who unsuccessfully challenged Hodges two years ago, said changes are urgently needed to safeguard the town.
“I am committed to making the desperately needed changes to represent the best interests of West Point,” Bohannon wrote in an email. “It’s time for West Point and King William to look toward the future in a cohesive manner.”
“Currently, we fund our budget through citizen taxes rather than commercial investment. This philosophy is shortsighted and creates an unfair burden on the taxpayer. I will actively work with my fellow board members to make King William more attractive to businesses in order to lower your taxes. Lastly, I will be a unifying voice on the board. When we work together, we can achieve the fiscally responsible government you deserve.”
Bartos is a former member of the West Point Town Council who narrowly lost his seat last year. A lifelong town resident, he said his “deep knowledge of the community, professional experience and long record of public service” make him the ideal candidate to represent the 1st District.
“I have been in service to my community for nearly 30 years, first as a volunteer firefighter, later as fire chief for the West Point Volunteer Fire Department for nine years, and most recently as a member of the West Point Town Council,” Bartos wrote.
Bartos has served for 25 years with the Henrico County Division of Fire where he holds the rank of fire captain.
“My key values are ensuring the safety of our community, providing fair and equitable services for residents of the 1st District, making sound and rational decisions that best serve our citizens, and maintaining transparency in the decisions I make,” he said.
School Board
Veda Frazier, a veteran member of the King William School board, is running unopposed for the at-large seat. Patricia Atkins is also running unopposed for the District 5 school board seat.
David Macaulay, Davidmacaulayva@gmail.com
