Alexandria Election Day Voter Guide: Key Races, How To Vote

ALEXANDRIA, VA — Tuesday, Nov. 5, marks the 2024 general election, where voters in the City of Alexandria will cast votes for president and local races along with other key decisions.

All voters in Alexandria will have president/vice president, eighth congressional district, U.S. Senate, Alexandria mayor, all six Alexandria City Council seats, all Alexandria School Board seats and Virginia constitutional amendment on the ballot.

Polls will be open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday, but anyone in line by 7 p.m. will be able to vote.

Key Races On the November Ballot

Along with the closely-watched presidential race between Kamala Harris, Donald Trump and third-party candidates, there are several key races in Alexandria.

In the mayoral race, Councilmember Alyia Gaskins is unopposed after defeating Vice Mayor Amy Jackson and businessman Steven Peterson in the Democratic primary. Current Mayor Justin Wilson is not seeking re-election.

All six city council seats are up for election at the same time. Six of the candidates won the Democratic primary election in June — incumbents John Taylor Chapman, Sarah Bagley, Kirk McPike and Canek Aguirre and School Board members Abdel Elnoubi and Jacinta Greene.

Mason Butler and Roy Byrd are running as independents, and Celianna Gunderson is running as a Republican.

The mayor and city council members are elected at large for three-year terms.

All nine school board seats are up for election this year, and nine candidates are in the running. Voters will either cast a ballot in school board District A, B or C, depending on which area they live in. Three candidates in each of the three districts will be chosen for three-year terms.

School Board District A covers neighborhoods like Old Town, Del Ray, Potomac Yard and Arlandria and has incumbents Michelle Rief and Tim Beaty, as well as newcomer Ryan Reyna as candidates.

School Board District B is focused on central Alexandria and parts of the West End, with incumbents Ashley Simpson Baird and Kelly Carmichael Booz and newcomer Alexander Crider Scioscia as candidates.

School Board District C, which covers parts of the West End, has incumbent Christopher Harris and newcomers Donna Kenley and Abdulahi Abdalla as candidates.

In the 8th Congressional District race, Democratic incumbent Rep. Don Beyer faces Republican Jerry Torres and independent candidates David Kennedy and Bentley Hensel. Virginia's 8th Congressional District covers Arlington County, the Cities of Alexandria and Falls Church, and portions of Fairfax County.

The district is labeled as strong Democratic by the Virginia Public Access Project.

Along with the Congressional race, voters will have the U.S. Senate contest between incumbent Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine and Republican Hung Cao.

Kaine was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 2012 after serving elected roles since 1994, including Virginia governor. According to his campaign website, Kaine's priorities include job creation and the economy, protecting reproductive rights, health care affordability, border security, supporting immigration reform, supporting equal rights, protecting the climate and more.

Cao is a Navy veteran who unsuccessfully challenged incumbent Democrat Jennifer Wexton in the 2022 race for Virginia's 10th congressional district. His campaign priorities include border security, supporting the economy through energy and manufacturing policies, supporting school choice, supporting strong national defense, protecting gun rights, opposing abortion and more.

What's on the Ballot

President/Vice President

• Democratic Party Electors for Kamala Harris, President, and Tim Walz, Vice President
• Republican Party Electors for Donald Trump, President, and JD Vance, Vice President
• Green Party Electors for Jill Stein, President, and Rudolph Ware II, Vice President
• Libertarian Party Electors for Chase Oliver, President, and Mike ter Maat, Vice President
• Independent Electors for Claudia De la Cruz, President, and Karina Garcia, Vice President
• Independent Electors for Cornel West, President, and Melina Abdullah, Vice President

Member, U.S. Senate

• Timothy Kaine - Democrat
• Hung Cao - Republican

Member, U.S. House of Representatives, 8th District

• Donald Beyer Jr. - Democrat
• Jerry Torres - Republican
• David Kennedy - Independent
• Bentley Hensel - Independent

Mayor

• Alyia Smith Parker Gaskins

Member, City Council (up to six)

• Canek Aguirre
• Sarah Bagley
• John Taylor Chapman
• Abdel Elnoubi
• Jacinta Greene
• Kirk McPike
• Celianna Gunderson
• Mason Butler
• Roy Byrd

Member, School Board, District A (up to three)

• Michelle Rief
• Tim Beaty
• Ryan Reyna

Member, School Board, District B (up to three)

• Ashley Simpson Baird
• Alexander Crider Scioscia
• Kelly Carmichael Booz

Member, School Board, District C (up to three)

• Donna Kenley
• Christopher Harris
• Abdulahi Abdalla

Virginia Constitutional Amendment Question

Should the Constitution of Virginia be amended so that the tax exemption that is currently available to the surviving spouses of soldiers killed in action is also available to the surviving spouses of soldiers who died in the line of duty?

How To Vote

The deadline for voter registration or updating your address was Oct. 15. However, same-day registration with a provisional ballot is offered from Oct. 16 through Election Day, Nov. 5.

If you are completing a mail-in ballot, it must be returned to the Office of Voter Registration & Elections by 7 p.m. on Nov. 5 or postmarked by Nov. 5 and received in the office by noon on Nov. 8. Voters may return their completed ballot by mail or a drop box. A secure outdoor drop box is available 24/7 outside the Alexandria Office of Voter Registration & Elections until 7 p.m. on Nov. 5, and ballot drop boxes will be available at all polling places on Nov. 5, from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m.

To vote on Election Day, visit your assigned polling place between 6 a.m. and 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 5. An acceptable form of ID is required to vote in person. Voters without an acceptable form of ID can sign a statement affirming their identity to cast a ballot.

Voters can confirm their registration status and polling place through the Virginia Department of Elections citizens portal. The Alexandria Office of Voter Registrations and Elections also has a list and map of precincts.

There are several polling place changes voters should be aware of. The Olympus Condos voting location has been temporarily relocated to 6101 Stevenson Ave., the G.W. Masonic Temple voting location has been relocated to Douglas MacArthur School (1101 Janneys Lane), and the South Port Apartments voting location has been relocated to Tucker School (435 Ferdinand Day Drive). The Del Pepper Center (4850 Mark Center Drive) and The View Alexandria (5000 Fairbanks Ave) are new polling places, and affected voters were notified.

After polls close at 7 p.m. on Nov. 5, preliminary election results will be tallied on the Virginia Department of Elections website. When results start coming in, Patch will provide coverage of the Alexandria local races as well as other key races in Northern Virginia.

For more information on the upcoming election and voting in Alexandria, visit www.alexandriava.gov/Elections.