Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Editorial: Austin and Graham in Botetourt
The incumbents in Botetourt's contested races earn another term.
From the RoundTable blog
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Voters in Botetourt County's Buchanan District have excellent representation on both the board of supervisors and the school board. We recommend they return to office both incumbents, Supervisor Terry Austin and school board member Kathy Graham Sullivan.
Both are seeking a fourth term in office. They have well earned it.
Austin is running this time as an independent instead of as a Republican. His party dropped him because he endorsed Mark Warner's senatorial bid last year and because Austin understands the foolishness of signing a "no-tax pledge."
Austin understands how to serve both his district and the county as a whole. He knows the position is about providing for today's services and planning for the future, not petty partisanship. He counts school renovations, parks and recreation and a new library for Buchanan among his accomplishments.
The district and county will also benefit from Sullivan's continued presence on the school board. During her tenure, the school board has improved communication with the county, has raised teacher salaries to be competitive so that Botetourt is no longer a training ground for other districts, and instituted a capital improvement plan.
Both her opponent, Thomas Wilbon III, and Austin's, Crystal Ware, declined to meet with us.
Botetourt is fortunate to have public servants of Austin's and Sullivan's caliber.
