~ PVN staff report
LURAY, Oct. 7 — The West Luray Rec Center will host a “Meet the Candidates” online question-and-answer session for Luray Council candidates on Facebook Live at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 8.
This summer, Page Valley News profiled each local candidate running in a contested race in the 2020 election after the filing deadline passed in June. (See links to all seven Q&As for Luray Council candidates below.)
The seven candidates for Luray Council — including two for mayor and five vying for three seats on council — who will be featured at Thursday evening’s virtual forum are as follows:
• MAYOR — Jerry Dofflemyer and Darryl Haley;
• COUNCIL — Judy Peabody, Leah Pence, Jason Pettit, Joey Sours and Ligon Webb.
In the mayor’s race, current council member and Luray native Jerry Dofflemyer will be the only candidate that will appear on the Nov. 3 ballot. However, he faces a challenge from local B&B owner and former NFL player Darryl Haley, who is launching a write-in campaign.
If Dofflemyer wins the race and becomes mayor, then the Luray Council would need to appoint someone to fill his remaining term on council. The potential vacancy would be filled by appointment through the end of 2021, and then at the polls during a special election next November to fill the remainder of the term through Dec. 31, 2022.
Voters within the town limits of Luray (in Districts 1 and 2) will be able to vote for three of the five candidates competing for a seat on the council. Pence and Sours are running for re-election to another four-year term against challengers Peabody, Pettit and Webb. Councilman Leroy Lancaster, who’s term is also up in December, did not file his candidacy to retain his seat after more than three decades on the council.
Thursday evening’s virtual forum is being live-streamed on Facebook Live beginning at 6 p.m., and it will also be recorded for later viewing. Both the live event and the recording may be accessed through the West Luray Rec Center’s Facebook page.
The Rec Center is accepting questions for the candidates from voters prior to the forum on its Facebook page.
Luray High School graduate Alex White will serve as the moderator of the virtual event. White is currently a sophomore at Harvard University and serves on the Page County Economic Development Authority. He also writes a regular column for Page Valley News titled “Small towns, big potential.”
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RELATED ARTICLES – 2020 Election in Page County
Decision 2020/Luray Mayor: Q&A with Jerry Dofflemyer
Decision 2020/Luray Mayor: Q&A with Darryl Haley
Decision 2020/Luray Council: Q&A with Judy Peabody
Decision 2020/Luray Council: Q&A with Leah Pence
Decision 2020/Luray Council: Q&A with Jason Pettit
Decision 2020/Luray Council: Q&A with Joey Sours
Decision 2020/Luray Council: Q&A with Ligon Webb
Webb.Sours.and Pettit are the most qualified to sit on Town council..