Entry 531 of 954
By Think! Christiansburg On August 24, 2009 at 9:16 PM
Over the next ten weeks, citizens of the New River Valley will be hearing more about local elections and the candidates or issues which will be on the ballot.

Virginians will also choose a new governor, hopefully one who can address all the economic challenges which will need attention and cooperation. A General Assembly that has been heatedly divided along partisan lines for too long and recovering from a global recession add to what is already a challenge for getting anything meaningful done in only four years.

Over the next ten weeks, citizens of Blacksburg can vet the ten candidates it has for Town Council and try to determine what they mean when floating buzzwords. How do each of them define these terms, and what approach to addressing those issues would they adopt?

Few other local elections have any real races where voters are needed to determine the outcome.

Within the next ten weeks, the good citizens of Christiansburg will be asked whether to move their town elections from May to November in odd years. This may help bump up interest on how Council actions affect quality of life and property values over decades, and reduce costs related to having May elections on their own for town residents to pay.

It might also give town residents who do vote a little more time, as they can cast their votes each November instead of twice a year.

Use the next ten weeks to get informed, and make certain you are registered to vote (especially if you're enrolled in one of the area colleges or universities).