Candidate Profile: Christopher Morgan Runs For Mount Vernon District Supervisor

MOUNT VERNON, VA — Christopher Morgan, a tech professional who is the president of the Stratford Landing Citizens Association, is running as an Independent candidate for Mount Vernon District supervisor in November's election.

Morgan faces Democrat Dan Storck, the incumbent Mount Vernon District supervisor, and Republican Richard Hayden in the Nov. 7, 2023 general election.

Mount Vernon District voters will have a Fairfax County Board of Supervisors representative and Fairfax County School Board representative on the ballot. The Mount Vernon District includes areas like Belle Haven, Fort Hunt, Huntington, Mount Vernon, Newington and Lorton.

The general election ballot in Fairfax County will also include countywide races for Board of Supervisors chairman, three at-large School Board representatives, Fairfax County Commonwealth's Attorney, Fairfax County Sheriff, and Northern Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District.

Early voting for the general election began Friday, Sept. 22. More information on how to vote is available from the Fairfax County Office of Elections.

Patch asked candidates for Mount Vernon District supervisor to fill out a candidate questionnaire with the same questions. Here are Morgan's responses:

Name

Christopher T. Morgan

Office Sought

Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, Mount Vernon District

Campaign Website

www.votechristophermorgan.com

Age (as of Nov. 7 election)

41

Education

B.S. Business and Economics, Lehigh University, 2005

Occupation

Technology Professional

Family

Wife Sumrall. 5 year-old son.

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?

No

Previous public office positions or appointments

None

Why are you seeking this office?

I love this area and it's the "forever home" where my wife and I are raising our family. I have the perspective to see what will and won't work, and the fortitude to speak my mind and drive meaningful change. I'm a tech professional, the president of my community, a U.S. Army veteran, former small business owner, husband, father, and now candidate for the Mount Vernon Representative on the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors.

I’ve helped start businesses and grow teams and understand what drives success. The last
business improvement district I’ve served on managed $2.5M annually to improve community quality of life.

I believe that we need safe neighborhoods for walking, shopping, and traveling. I believe we need smart growth that preserves the character and history of our neighborhoods. I believe we need to feel safe on Route 1 both in our cars and while shopping and dining.

I believe that we need to put education before politics and focus on students and not divisive issues.

I believe that families should not be taxed out of their homes, and our current spending of $9.8B is unsustainable. I believe we need a board that issues budgetary guidance and doesn’t play politics with their financial duties.

I believe that our current elected officials are “asleep at the wheel” and have allowed a bureaucratic system to run rampant pursuing activities not in the best interest of our families.

I believe that we're trending in the wrong direction and we need to act now to preserve our quality of life before it's too late.

What are the major differences between you and the other candidate(s) seeking this post?

I am the only candidate seeking this office with a child in the Fairfax County Public School System, and the only one not in or adjacent to retirement age. It's clear to me that much of our leadership has forgotten the struggles of rising inflation, family security, and having to travel with increasing traffic.

Mr. Storck is a long-serving public servant whose efforts were spent working to solve the problems of a previous generation.

Mr. Hayden is an ideological extremist who screams partisan rhetoric, but lacks any understanding of practical issues affecting the Mount Vernon area.

What do you see as the top issues facing (your county/district), and how do you address them in your campaign platform?

1. Penn Daw Homeless Shelter. I disagree with the incumbent's proposal to place a 6-story homeless shelter next to West Potomac HS and within a 1-mile radius of 9 other schools. I believe this is the wrong location for an emergency-class facility. I've written elsewhere why I believe we need a new strategy in tackling homelessness, which includes looking upstream on the factors creating homelessness before it happens.

2. Crime and Violence. In 2022, 1/2 of all murders in the county (from 9 districts and from 1.2M people) occurred in the Mount Vernon District. In the same year, 1/3 of all assaults occurred in the Mount Vernon District, and 1/3 of all kidnappings/abductions occurred in the Mount Vernon District. Robberies, carjackings, and vandalism are all up year-over-year. Even if the county can boast about safety levels at its size, MV is not benefitting and our families are at risk.

I've done a ride-along with our officers and will support them on the street. By policy, we must ensure that FCPD will pursue out-of-state criminals. We must improve our crime reporting in order to be more transparent with crime and victim data points so that citizens are better-informed.

3. Schools and School Politics. There is much distrust of FCSB and administrators due to certain political issues taking the focus away from student learning, and we need to restore that relationship and the parent-teacher-administrator-student bonds. There is a teacher labor shortage, which we must address by looking outside the county.

During his time on the school board, Dan Storck was responsible for raising the district operating budget 70% but over same period there wasn’t a single significant positive increase in student performance. From 2002 – 2015, Graduation rates didn’t increase, literacy rates didn’t increase, grades didn’t increase, SAT scores didn’t increase. Only spending increased and it didn’t aid our students.

I was horrified to learn of the amount of drug overdoses which have occurred at South County High, but I learned it from speaking with teachers, not from district leadership. On the Board of Supervisors, I will demand the school board offer transparency in all overdose-related incidents. Parents will know that night if an overdose took place, in which specific room of the school it occurred, and what the involved substance was. That reporting will be shared with every parent in the pyramid. This will give parents real knowledge to intelligently speak to their children about the incident. Good, or bad, we will be honest.

4. Traffic. There is widespread dissatisfaction with recent road changes. As traffic returns to post-lockdown levels, drivers are upset with travel times. The residents of Mount Vernon don't want to spend their lives in traffic.

5. Taxes. Property taxes are up 50% in 3 years. Supervisors voted themselves a 30% pay raise, which had very poor optics. In the context of the current economy, higher expenses, including taxes, are top-of-mind. I have a plan to combat the county's spending problem -- and it is a problem. This year we will spend $9.8B which is #6 in the country across all counties, while we're 41st in population -- by introducing a Guidance Policy for the Budget. This will remove politics from process and reduce spending.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

I am the current President of the Stratford Landing Citizens Association, a community of 775 homes. I chaired the Environment & Recreation Committee of the Mount Vernon Council of Citizens' Associations (MVCCA) for over 2 years. I am a former Board Member of a public Maintenance Assessment District (MAD) / Business Improvement District (BID) managing $2.5M annually. I am a former Armor Officer in the United States Army. I have experience running small businesses, and working in large businesses.

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

I'm running as an Independent without political party affiliation, because I want my focus to be on solving problems, not playing politics. Just like both George Washington and George Mason, on whose family land many of us now raise our families, I believe that party should not come before country. Both men were staunchly anti-political party.

I feel that we've become too divided over concepts for which we have no control and that is taking the focus away from the quality of life issues we have the ability to influence.

I am not the candidate for voters who insist on voting for a particular political party; I am the candidate who considers different viewpoints, picks the best ideas, and comes up with common sense solutions for the families of the Mount Vernon District.

I believe my unique perspective as a veteran, as someone involved in both very small and very large companies, as someone with formal education in business and economics, and as a husband and father, I both understand the challenges we're facing and have the real-world experience to form a consensus, identify a creative solution, and get the solve done.

My plans and strategy for Fairfax County are available at www.votechristophermorgan.com. It would be my honor to serve as your representative on the Board of Supervisors.