Candidate Profile: Sam Kroiz For Loudoun County Chairman

LOUDOUN COUNTY, VA — Sam Kroiz is an independent running for Chairman of the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors.

In November's general election, Kroiz is running against incumbent Democrat Phyllis Randall and Republican Gary Katz.

Patch sent the following questionnaire to Katz, Kroiz and Randall to help voters make more informed choices when they cast their ballot on Election Day.

Name

Sam Kroiz

Age

40

Town of Residence?

Near Lovettsville

Position sought:

Chairman of the Board of Supervisors

Party affiliation

No party.

Family? Names, ages and any other pertinent details you wish to share

Married with two elementary-aged children

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?

No.

Education Level

I’m a graduate of Loudoun Valley High School and the University of Virginia

Occupation, including employer and years of experience

Farmer and owner at George’s Mill Farm for 10+yrs

Previous or Current Elected or Appointed Office

None

Campaign website

www.sam4chairman.com

Why are you seeking elective office?

I’m running as an independent candidate for Chairman and refusing to accept developer and special interest campaign contributions because most if not all of our issues as a county are the result of our politicians being corrupted by developer and special interest campaign contributions and/or being subservient to their political parties which are also corrupted by developer and special interest campaign contributions. I want to give voters an option to vote for a candidate that they can trust to serve the public interest vs their partisan and contributors’ interests, as well as adopt ranked-choice voting so that voters can have more options in as many future elections as possible.

The single most pressing issue facing our (board, district, etc.) is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

Our most pressing issue is our elected officials giving sweetheart deals to their developer and special interest campaign contributors at the expense of the public interest. I’m offering voters an alternative that they can trust to serve their interests vs partisan and contributor interests as Chairman and also working to adopt ranked-choice voting so that voters can have more and better options in future elections.

How do you think local officials performed in responding to recent issues (i.e. the pandemic)? What if anything would you have done differently?

Our local officials work together in bipartisan fashion to serve their developer campaign contributors’ interests at the expense of the public interest. On other issues they fight incessantly and seem incapable of finding any practical solutions. Covid is a great example, where at the beginning one of the most important things was to not make the pandemic political. But unfortunately, that was the one thing that was assured to happen when our local officials are elected based largely on party affiliation and national politics. It’s the worst of both worlds. I’m offering voters an independent alternative who won’t go along with the bipartisan fleecing of taxpayers or the endless partisan fights.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

I’m free from the corrupting influence of developer and special interest campaign contributions and party affiliation and both of my opponents are soaked in it.

If you are a challenger, in what way has the current board or officeholder failed the community (or district or constituency)?

Chair Randall has served her developer and special interest campaign contributors’ interests at the expense of the public interest. Sweetheart deals with developers routinely let them off the hook for millions of dollars in road, school, and other costs and put them on the backs of taxpayers. Chair Randall voted to move the Rural/Transition Area boundary in 2019, which extends the area where the Board of Supervisors can make these sorts of deals with developers. She knew that it was an unpopular move and promised during her campaign that year to never move the boundary again. Then just a few months ago, she voted to move it again. We need to put an end to sweetheart deals with developers and ensure that they don’t expand into rural Loudoun where the costs for all of Loudoun would be astronomical.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform.

I believe that voters deserve more and better options and I’m offering them an independent and developer-$$$-free option for Chairman. Voters are usually limited to two options because of the way that we vote, and I’m a big proponent of adopting ranked-choice voting to encourage more candidates and offer voters a better way of choosing between more than two options.

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

I’ve been farming and running a small business through all sorts of challenges for the last 10+yrs. It’s been a lesson in lots of areas like patience and long-term planning, but perhaps the biggest lesson has been in humility. I’m humble enough to admit that I don’t know everything, and I’m lucky that Loudoun is full of very skilled and educated people who are knowledgeable in every area under the sun. As an independent and developer-$$$-free Chairman, I’ll be able to listen to and serve the public and not have to ignore them in favor of my party and my campaign contributors.

The best advice ever shared with me was:

Honesty is the best policy.

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

My campaign is all about getting political parties and special interests out of our local government’s decision-making because I don’t believe that we can make much progress on any other issues without tackling those ones first. I don’t spend a lot of time talking about more specific issues, but I’m happy to do so if you send me an email at sam4chairman@gmail.com. I also don’t do much door-knocking because I don’t think that people like random knocks on the door these days and a lot of times folks aren’t home or are too busy to talk, especially now that football season has started. So I likely won’t be knocking on your door, but I would be happy to set up a visit by appointment if you send me an email.