Former Alexandria Democratic Committee chair Sandy Marks is offering her experience with local politics in Alexandria to the city council. Marks’ efforts as committee chair were critical to democratic election wins last year for candidates like Abigail Spanberger and Don Beyer and she’s received endorsements from Virginia delegate Alfonso Lopez and Alexandria city Vice Mayor Sarah Bagley.

 Marks’ campaign has four main priorities: valuing public education, housing affordability, equity and defending democracy.

 “My concern is that as our education needs grow and our student needs grow, our budget shrinks,” said Marks. Using the network she’s created in Richmond, Marks intends to prioritize education in Alexandria by securing state funding to meet the needs of Alexandria City Public Schools. 

 Marks plans to address housing affordability by allowing for the creation of more housing and making sure it’s connected to Alexandria’s public transportation systems. 

 In regards to equity, Marks plans to develop new forms of communication that connect citizens to the resources they want, but don’t know where to look for. 

 A self proclaimed “big proponent of climate equity,” Marks plans on implementing location specific solutions to location specific problems, such as the uneven heating in the West end which can be as much as 7 degrees fahrenheit higher than the East and the flooding in Chirilagua. 

 Marks is also an advocate for retrofitting buildings and public vehicles with electric sources of energy to move Alexandria closer to its goal of reaching a carbon-zero status by 2050. 

 To defend democracy, Marks would work alongside the Virginia legislature to ensure that sheriff Casey’s cooperation with ICE is deemed illegal, thus ending the sheriff’s department’s cooperation with ICE.

 **Due to a miscommunication, Theogony was not able to secure a timely interview with Marks before the article was initially published.

Roberto Gomez is a long time Alexandria resident and founder of the nonprofit organization Cornerstone Craftsmen. He has served on the Alexandria Gang Prevention task force, Police foundation, Community Safety Forum, Sheriff’s advisory board and the Alexandria City Public School Career and Technical Education Advisory Committee. He has received endorsements from Alexandria city mayor Aliya Gaskins and former mayor Bill Euille.

“I’ve been serving this community for years,” said Gomez. “I sit on boards and forums and commissions, and I put in the work. I don’t just theorize about what could happen. I actually get things done.”

An advocate for vulnerable youth, Gomez works with Cornerstone Craftsmen to teach trade skills to underserved Alexandria youth, which he believes is a key part to helping the city’s economy and development. 

Gomez’s campaign focuses on three main priorities: accountability, affordability and advancement. He proposes increasing accountability by opening methods of communication for city council and city agencies to build trust in the community. His plans for affordability involves funding city programs like Section 8, creating mixed-use development and supporting small businesses to create jobs for Alexandrians. Gomez plans to advance Alexandria by creating internship programs for Alexandria youth that would help develop a robust job market.

Gomez has strongly denounced ICE activity in Alexandria, and has claimed if elected to city council, he will send legislative packet 53.1-218 to Richmond to limit the activities of ICE in Alexandria. 

In light of the recent snowstorm, Gomez intends to implement emergency snow plow routes to improve the city’s response time in the event of inclement weather. He has faith in Alexandria’s current flood response programs and intends to continue funding them.

After arriving in Alexandria, Tim Laderach almost instantly joined the community with what he calls his “heart of service” that he inherited from his grandfather. He was active in the Del Ray Citizen’s Association and rose through the ranks arriving to where he sits today, as president. Additionally, his seat as chair of the Economic Opportunities Commission highlights his perceived ability to help those with low income living in Alexandria. Laderach believes his background as a pharmacist, attorney and naval officer sets him apart from the rest. 

Laderach’s campaign centers around affordability and increasing financial stability through objectives such as fixing income issues and creating affordable child care. He also highlights the importance of strategic connectedness of housing and transit. Additionally, his campaign focuses on innovation hubs and tackling commercial buyers in a residential housing market.

In an exclusive Theogony interview, he said “We need to be able to afford the progressive future that we promise” and added that he “come[s] to the table with that fiscal reality in mind.” He also thinks his strategic mindset and keen attention to detail will allow him to see and act on things others miss.

When asked about his stance on ICE he said “we need to be a safe harbor for all people in the city. That includes our immigrant neighbors, that includes citizens who are still targeted because of the color of their skin or the language they speak: it’s everyone.” 

Overall, Laderach believes that he will be able to take a hold of the reins from day one on the city council. From there, he plans to find the issues and implement creative solutions.

Cesar Madison Tapia is a 26-year-old middle school civics teacher at MacFarland Middle School in Washington D.C. Along with teaching, Madison comments on current politics through TikTok and has gained almost 10,000 followers. Madison immigrated to the United States from Mexico when he was four and got his citizenship after serving in the Army. He also has a bachelor’s degree in criminology from George Mason University. 

As a younger Alexandria resident, Madison noticed that many candidates and council members did not feel relatable to him. Pledging to take zero PAC (Political Action Committee) money, Madison looks to appeal to a working class, younger demographic in Alexandria. If elected, he vows to work to advance affordability, workers’ rights and coordination between the school board and the city council. He also wants to improve and expand city-provided child care. 

Cesar recognizes the importance of affordability to a personal extent. “Everyone keeps saying affordability, but not my affordability,” said Madison. In an interview, he shared his experience living paycheck to paycheck. He feels as though his definition of affordability is different from other candidates because of that experience. 

Madison believes that empowering the youth and creating a more youth-friendly city is important. He also believes in workers’ rights such as unions, and in empowering education. When asked why citizens should vote for him, Madison quoted New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, “What I lack in experience, I make up for in integrity.”

Charles Sumpter is offering his experience on Capitol Hill and the Washington D.C. city council to Alexandria. After moving from Washington D.C. to Alexandria, Sumpter worked on Alexandria’s commissions on HIV/AIDS and unemployment and currently works for the World Wildlife Fund.

A staunch environmentalist and youth advocate, Sumpter proposes workforce development and youth programs to help empower youth and help laid off federal workers find new jobs. He also proposes a youth climate core to create paid job training for youth in a rapidly growing industry. 

Alongside workforce programs, Sumpter proposes rent and eviction protection for those renting in Alexandria. 

“I grew up pretty poor,” said Sumpter. “My parents worked their tail off and sent me and my sister to college. And I do well for myself now, but I work hard, and it’s still hard. I still struggle
at times, but I know there are people who struggle more than I do.”

Sumpter has vocally opposed ICE in Alexandria and claims on city council he will stop sharing Alexandrians data with ICE, require judicial warrants along with executive warrants and require ICE agents to provide identification to Alexandria police officers. 

In light of the recent snowstorm that hit Alexandria, Sumpter promises to update Alexandria’s climate resilience plan in preparation for worsening storms due to global climate change. These revisions would make Alexandria more resilient to flooding, snow storms and any other inclement weather.