Mason Votes is calling Virginia’s 11th congressional district race for Gerry Connolly (D). The Virginia Board of Elections’ unofficial results say that with 100 percent of precincts reporting, Connolly received 111,695 votes, or 49.22 percent, while Keith Fimian (R) had 110,727 votes, or 48.79 percent.

The last word from the Fimian camp came in a statement released Nov. 3 where Tim Edson, Fimian’s campaign manager, wrote, “In an election this close, it is important to take the time to get the result right by seeing the counting and canvassing process through. When that process is complete, Keith
Fimian is confident that he will be declared the winner.”

On Nov. 4 George Burke, a spokesman for Connolly, said, “We are confident of Connolly’s win. We believe that mathematically, there is no chance that a recount (which is just a glorified canvass) can turn it around.”

Once the race is officially called the the Board of Elections, Fimian will be entitled to request a recount if his vote totals are certified to be within one percent of Connolly’s.

11:30 P.M. Nov. 2
With 98 percent of Virginia’s 11th congressional district’s polls reporting, the race between Gerry Connolly (D) and Keith Fimian (R) is too close to call. As of 11:24 p.m., Connolly had 108,572 votes to Fimian’s 107,660 votes, according to The Washington Post.

This election has been watched around the nation because of the candidates’ history. Fimain lost to Connolly in the 2008 U.S. House of Representatives race but has been fighting back essentially ever since. Then, Connolly won with 54 percent of the vote to Fimian’s 43 percent, a divide that is only distant memory now.

At 11:15 p.m. Connolly addressed his supporters and gave a speech seemingly claiming victory. But with over 26,000 absentee ballots still being counted tonight, victory is far from either candidate’s grasp.

ABC News is reporting Virginia’s 10th district has reelected republican Frank Wolf.

The Associated Press has called Virginia’s 8th District congressional race for democratic incumbent and George Mason University professor Jim Moran.

Before he had considered politics, Jim Moran, the incumbent in the 8th Congressional District election, had his heart set on being a professional football player. As the son of professional football player James Moran, Sr., who played for the Boston Redskins in the 1930s, Moran had football in his blood. But unsure he had the discipline to play professional ball, Moran set his sights on politics, mostly he says because he “cared so much about the issues involved.”

But before Moran could jump start his political career, he had one setback to overcome: his absolute fear of public speaking.

“When I was afraid I was going to get called on, I would turn bright red,” said Moran, “I’d start perspiring and it went right through my shoes and the palms of my hands. It was so embarrassing.”

Moran can recall with clarity the first time he gave a campaign speech to an audience, which included his two young children.

“I’ll never forget my son putting his head between his legs and my daughter putting her hands on her ears, wishing this wasn’t happening to their father,” said Moran, “and then I fainted on stage.”

After a couple more fainting incidents, Moran overcame his fear, with “the knowledge that nothing could be worse than it already had been,” he says.

Moran has come a long way since his early struggles with public speaking. Moran is currently co-teaching a class at George Mason University with former 11th district House of Representatives member Tom Davis and has represented Virginia’s 8th Congressional District since 1991.

After Moran and Davis’ spring 2010 course entitled “Political Parties and Campaigns” got rave reviews from students, the pair was asked back to teach it again this semester. Although this semester Moran’s campaigning has kept him out of class some Mondays, he is there as often as possible.

According to Andrew Decelle, one of Moran’s students, Davis and Moran provide good insight on issues covered in class because of their political backgrounds.

“He’s very knowledgeable,” said Decelle of Moran. “He’s very good in that he will not just give you a bias of his party, but more of a centrist view.”

As for representing Virginia’s 8th District, Moran says that even after 20 years, he never gets bored.

“I represent the best congressional district in the entire country,” said Moran. “We have an unemployment rate that is half the national average, we have a more inclusive, embracing society, we have a community of interest where people help each other and are on the cutting edge of new technology and innovation. As long as I love it so much, I intend to continue running for office every two years.”

Tuesday is the U.S. midterm election, which will bring to an end the deluge of roadside signs and campaign commercials.

Five candidates are running for the U.S. Congress seat for Virginia’s 11th Congressional District, encompassing most of Fairfax County, the City of Fairfax and part of Prince William County.

In 2008, Democrat Gerry Connolly defeated Republican opponent Keith Fimian in an election to fill the seat vacated by longtime Virginia Congressman Tom Davis (R-11th). Fimian is running against Connolly again in the 2010 election.

Connolly currently serves on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, the House Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Budget Committee.

Fimian is chairman and founder of U.S. Inspect, LLC, a company that conducts residential, commercial and relocation property inspections throughout the U.S.

He is the president of the Youth Leadership Foundation, a District of Columbia group that helps inner-city youth with academics and character development.

Other candidates in the 11th Congressional District race include David William Gillis Jr., Christopher F. DeCarlo and David L. Dotson.

Gillis is a member of the Independent Greens of Virginia. The party calls for balanced budgets at the local, state and federal levels and paying off the federal debt.

Dotson is a libertarian who works for a small research firm in McLean. He has been a Libertarian for over 30 years, according to his campaign’s website.

DeCarlo is an Independent candidate, who has taken classes at George Mason University, and is the president of DeCarlo Enterprises Inc., a company that sells propane and other goods in Fairfax County.

In the 10th Congressional District, which includes much of the northern part of the state from McLean to Front Royal, incumbent Republican Frank R. Wolf is running against Democrat Jeff Barnett and Libertarian William Redpath.

Wolf is the longest-tenured Virginia congressman, having served since 1981. He is a member of the House Committee on Appropriations and is the co-chairman of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus.

Barnett, an author and former Air Force pilot, has worked in government consulting in McLean and wants to focus on job creation among other issues, according to his website.

Redpath is a Libertarian who calls for a withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq and Afghanistan in addition to reforming the U.S. tax code, according to his website.

In the 8th Congressional District, which includes Arlington County, Alexandria and Falls Church, incumbent Democrat Jim Moran is up against Republican Patrick Murray and Independent Green member Ron Fisher.

Moran, the former mayor of Alexandria, has represented the 8th Congressional District since 1991. He is a member of the House Committee on Appropriations.

Murray, a retired U.S. Army colonel, lives in Alexandria and wants to focus on economic recovery and debt reduction, according to his website.

Fisher, a retired Navy captain, has lived in Virginia for 34 years and has done consulting work for the Department of Defense. He is the president of Veterans Sales and Services Corporation, a small business that resells emergency equipment.

Q: What will you do to help your college-aged constituents?
A: The most important thing is to stop the wars and bring the troops home, which will make us all safer because it will reduce the threat of terrorism – even Department of Defense studies show that terrorist acts are a response to our bombing and killing, invading and occupying the Muslim nations of the Middle East. The second most important thing to do is to eliminate the Fed, to prevent Bernanke and his boys from creating more and more debt that college students, and their children, and their children’s children, will have to pay. The longer we try to prop up the economy with fiat money and borrowing and government spending, the harder it will be on all of us when the crash comes. It’s going to be hard, but the best thing for all of us is to let the recession/depression happen, so the economy can begin to recover. I would also work to get the government out of education – whenever the government gets involved in something to make it better, or less expensive,
the cost invariably goes up, and the quality generally goes down.

Q: What issues do you think are most important to college students?
A: I would think that, along with the wars that threaten our peace, help to bankrupt our nation, and result in the government taking away our freedoms one after another, that the most important issue to college students is probably the lack of jobs. After spending 4 or more years studying and taking on thousands of dollars in debts, how are they going to live, and pay back what they owe, if the economy is in the tank and they can’t find a decent job. Unfortunately, the policies that the federal government continues to follow will not restore our economy to health, nor allow businesses to create the jobs that students (and all of us) will need.

Q: What local projects are you most concerned with and what will you do to ensure their success? (Ex. Public transportation, civic programs etc.)
A: I don’t think the federal government should be involved in local projects. For example, transportation is a big issue in northern Virginia. But it’s a problem that should be handled by the state, county and city governments. When a Congressman/woman earmarks federal funds to spend on local problems, that just means they are taking money away from people elsewhere in the country to solve problems that those people had no part in creating, and whose solution will give them no benefits. And as northern Virginia is already one of the richest areas in the country, and we already get a lot of money because of all of the federal jobs and federally-related private jobs that are located here, it’s even less fair when we take money from poorer areas to solve our problems. We should reduce federal spending, and taxes, so that localities have more money to deal with their own problems.

Q: What will you do to help repair the economy?
A: First, I would work to stop our endless foreign wars. We currently spend nearly $1 trillion per year on all aspects of our Department of Defense budget, and if we stop spending so much on foreign wars and interventions, the government doesn’t have to borrow so much, or inflate the currency – and that will help the economy. Second, I would work to repeal recent legislation – such as the Health Care reform – that put extra burdens on businesses, and create a level of uncertainty that makes them unwilling to borrow money or hire new people. Third, I would put an end to the Fed’s ability to create as much money and credit as it wants, which it then gives to whatever favored group it chooses to give it to, such as banks (American and foreign) and the housing industry, which distorts the economy, and creates boom and bust cycles because of the misallocation of capital. I would also work to repeal the recent financial reform legislation, which gave the Fed ever more power over the economy. Fourth, I would let the recession come – and not prop up the banks, or the car companies, or whoever
has shown that they can’t survive without the government’s help – so that we can start anew, and let capital flow where it will, and let the economy rebuild.

Q: Afghanistan and Iraq — what are your plans?
A: I would get our troops out of Afghanistan and Iraq as quickly as possible. The longer we stay, the more American soldiers are killed and wounded, and the more Iraqis and Afghanis are killed and maimed. The recent release by Wikileaks of the Iraq War Logs show that we have killed tens of thousands more civilians than the military had acknowledged, and that our soldiers had stood by and allowed torture and murder to happen, as well as sometimes being involved in torture, and murder, as was shown on Wikileaks release of “Collateral Murder.” I support the Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW), and their call to bring the troops home, and pay reparations to Iraq and Afghanistan to help them recover from the destruction and devastation that we have produced in their countries.

Q: Why are you qualified to represent the 11th District?
A: With rare exceptions, there is no one serving in Congress who appears to have a grasp of the problems we truly face, and what needs to be done. Both the Republicans and Democrats will keep on borrowing and spending until we are bankrupt, and they will keep funding and expanding our wars until the empire collapses. We have hard times coming, and we need people in Congress who can help us prepare for them as best as we can. If we continue to elect politicians who either ignore the real problems, or are ignorant of them, things will just continue to get worse. I am qualified to represent the 11th District because I understand that we must prepare for the fall of our empire, and work to restore the Constitution, reclaim the liberties we are losing, and renew and recreate the American Republic that was once, and can be yet again – because of its dedication to freedom and individual rights – the greatest nation on earth.

Q: What will you do to help your college-aged constituents?
A: Promote a more level playing field by reducing the collusion between government and big business. The collusion with the influence of campaign contributions has corrupted our system of citizen government. This is our number one problem. The only solution is to elect incorruptible representatives so our government can work constructively to solve our problems and regain our trust.

Q: What issues do you think are most important to college students?
A: Employment opportunities.

Q: What local projects are you most concerned with? (Ex. Public transportation, civic programs etc.)
A: American needs to get back to its roots of citizen representation as well as innovation, creativity, small business development, entrepreneurial spirit and encourageing people to take responsibility for themselves. We need opportunities and incentives for people to grow, develop, and improve. These components have made America great but now our success is threatened by entitlement programs, suffocating regulations, high taxes, increasing risk and perpetual political patronage and protection.

Q: What will you do to ensure the success of these projects?
A: Promote simple common sense laws and rules.

Q: What will you do to help repair the economy?
A: Fight against complex regulations that are subject to different interpretations. The complex regulations are causing us to lose time, investment opportunities, industries and jobs while other countries are using our technology against us. America needs to reverse its bureaucratic trend and work strategically to make efficient use of our resources and capacity.

Q: Afghanistan and Iraq — what are your plans?
A: Withdraw.

Q: Why are you qualified to represent the 11th District?
A: I have the skills, knowledge, intelligence, insight and ability to represent consitutents’ concerns to the Congress, and like other small business owners I know how to improvise, adapt and overcome. It is something I have been doing everyday for the last 30 years.

From Connect2Mason
By Jordan J. Frasier

The country faces a difficult time, made even more difficult by the 24-hour news cycle, comedian Jon Stewart told a crowd of thousands at the Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear on the National Mall Saturday.

The event, held in the shadow of the U.S. Capital Building, combined comedy from Stewart and his Comedy Central colleague Stephen Colbert, along with music from Sheryl Crow, John Legend, The Roots and others.

But Stewart ended the rally with a serious note about the state of sanity.

“If we amplify everything, we hear nothing,” Stewart said of the hype media adds to news. Stewart also said the press does not accurately reflect reality of everyday American life.

Hundreds of Mason students joined the crowd gathered on the mall after boarding buses on campus that transported students to the Vienna/Fairfax Metro station for a ride to the rally. The buses were sponsored by the Office of Housing and Residence Life and included a Metro day-pass for students in addition to the bus ride.

“It’s a good way to get students involved,” freshman Alex Dodson said. “I appreciate the buses.”

READ MORE HERE

It’s not possible to rally for sanity, according to Stephen Colbert.

“I don’t think it’s possible to get excited about moderate behavior,” said Colbert, host of Comedy Central’s “The Colbert Report.” “It’s a paradox I don’t understand. Are you going to get extremely moderate at the rally? No. You’ve got to get jacked up about something. That’s why I’m offering fear as something to get excited about.”

Colbert and Jon Stewart are hosting a rally on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. on Saturday from noon to 3 p.m.

READ MORE!

This Tuesday, Virginia voters will have the opportunity to vote on three constitutional amendments. Ballots will include three questions that specify which article of the Constitution is up for change and the change that is being considered. The questions are listed and explained below.

Question 1: “Shall Section 6 of Article X of the Constitution of Virginia be amended to authorize legislation that will permit localities to establish their own income or financial worth limitations for purposes of granting property tax relief for homeowners not less than 65 years of age or permanently and totally disabled?”

Explanation: Currently the law requires that there be “an extraordinary tax burden” on homeowners who are at least 65-years-old or permanently and totally disabled. The change would take out the “extraordinary tax burden” requirement and allow localities to independently determine income or financial worth minimums for homeowners who are at least 65-years-old or permanently and totally disabled to be exempt from taxes.

Question 2: Shall the Constitution be amended to require the General Assembly to provide a real property tax exemption for the principal residence of a veteran, or his or her surviving spouse, if the veteran has a 100 percent service-connected, permanent, and total disability?

Explanation: If passed, the amendment will compel the Virginia General Assembly to exempt veterans who are permanently and totally disabled due to a service related injury from paying local real estate taxes on their primary home. This exemption would also apply the surviving spouse as long as they keep the residence as their primary home and do not remarry.

Question 3: Shall Section 8 of Article X of the Constitution of Virginia be amended to increase the permissible size of the Revenue Stabilization Fund (also known as the “rainy day fund”) from 10 percent to 15 percent of the Commonwealth’s average annual tax revenues derived from income and retail sales taxes for the preceding three fiscal years?

Explanation: The Commonwealth has a rainy day fund. It decides what the amount of that fund should be by averaging the previous three years’ income and retail sales taxes collected by the state. Currently, the fund is limited to 10 percent of that average and the amendment would increase it to 15 percent.