Alyson Satterwhite Announces Candidacy for Gainesville District Supervisor

Former Gainesville School Board member to Run for Supervisor

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Former Gainesville School Board member Alyson Satterwhite announced her candidacy for Gainesville Supervisor, Thursday, via a Facebook video on her new Alyson Satterwhite for Gainesville Supervisor page. She is seeking the Republican nomination for the November 2023 election.

Satterwhite pledges to defend the Rural Crescent and advocate for lower taxes. 

“Today our community is under attack in ways we would have never imagined...Our rising tax rate is making senior citizens and families question whether they can afford to live in Prince William County. The new 4% restaurant tax compounds the pain on small businesses and hurts families who are struggling already from inflation.”

Satterwhite represented the Gainesville District on the Prince William County School Board from 2012 until 2018. She advocated for new infrastructure to relieve overcrowded schools, more teachers to reduce class sizes, and more counselors to offer mental health services. 

She ran twice for School Board Chair against current Chair Babur Lateef, first in a special election, and again in a regular election in 2018, coming in a close second in both races. 

Pete Candland-R is the current supervisor of the Gainesville District. Once a strong defender of the Rural Crescent, Candland joined his neighbors on Pageland Land in selling his property to data center developers. A faction of citizens is gathering signatures for a petition to recall him from office, believing he cannot fairly represent the district. 

Satterwhite aims to defend the Rural Crescent,  but that will be an uphill battle. The Planning Commission recommended the Prince William Digital Gateway be added to the 2040 Comp Plan, and also approved the land-use section of the Comp Plan.

The 2040 Comp envisions opening sections of the Rural Crescent (many before 2040), but  Satterwhite believes that is taking the county in the wrong direction. Her stance mirrors that of the Prince William County Republican Party. 

“Industrial zoning is being forced on the Rural Crescent. This will ruin our community, and they are also threatening to bring back the BiCounty Parkway," she said.

Satterwhite said she stood shoulder to shoulder with her neighbors in defending the Rural Crescent from the BiCounty Parkway some years ago. Now, once again, the Rural Crescent is at risk. 

“In times like these, Gainesville District needs a representative on the board of supervisors who listens to you, who advocates for you. As your supervisor, I will talk to you. I will listen. And I will work for you. I will fight with every fiber of my being to protect this community," Satterwhite said. 

The Gainesville District is the most Republican of all the magisterial districts in the county and the least diverse in the county (although it becomes increasingly more diverse every year.) Like the Brentsville District, it includes both rural and suburban areas. Prince William County has become a  minority-majority county, and Democrats now hold five of the eight seats on the board. 

Protecting the Rural Crescent has become a bipartisan issue on the western end of the county. Democrats on the board instead advocate for slowly opening the crescent to increase tax revenue. They recommend taking a "smart growth" approach of building first near existing infrastructure. 

In the highly politicized times, Satterwhite will also need to wade carefully into social issues. Gov. Glenn Youngkin reversed many of the Northam administration's more progressive policies, dividing residents. 

Satterwhite did not advocate for LGBTQ+ students to be added to the school division's nondiscrimination policy in 2017 but instead recommended the school board wait to hear from the Federal Government. Now the school division is facing these fights once again. 

According to Satterwhite's campaign website, she is focused on protecting the Rural Crescent and reducing the tax burden, as well as "protecting your family, your property" and offering sound responsive leadership. 

Alyson Satterwhite is a mom of four children who graduated from Battlefield High School, a grandmother, and a spouse of a retired military officer. Their family made Gainesville their permeant home in 2005 after previously living in the area during her husband's military career. Satterwhite began as a parent advocate before running for the school board. She is a graduate of George Mason University.

This story may be updated with more information.

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