Reisinger vying for Mayor; Mendez and Taylor want a seat on Council
By Randy Arrington
SHENANDOAH, Sept. 24 — What first appeared to be a boring election with no contested races, has now transformed in a competitive field of candidates in the Town of Shenandoah. The race for mayor now has two candidates, while there are five candidates now vying for three open seats on the Shenandoah Council. There’s only one problem… with three write-in candidates emerging late, only four of the seven candidates will appear on the ballot in their respective races.
So far, Councilman Chris Reisinger has been the most public about his late write-in candidacy. Yard signs announcing his bid for Mayor of Shenandoah have appeared all across Town. According to some reports, the 57-year-old agriculture teacher was prompted by a group of citizens to make his late write-in run. Multiple efforts to get comments from Reisinger were unsuccessful.
Last fall, Reisinger won a two-way race to fill the unexpired term of Russell Comer Jr., who left the Council suddenly during the preceding summer. He defeated Brenda Haggett, who appears again on this fall’s ballot for Council. Reisinger, who moved to Shenandoah in 2009, stated last year that he was motivated to run for public office due to “dangerous sidewalks” and “unregistered vehicles parked” around Town.
“I decided it was time to bring about the change many citizens are looking for in our community. I have witnessed the deterioration of the infrastructure of our town and can not stand by any longer wondering why,” Reisinger responded to a 2023 Q&A published by PVN. “The time has come to face these and many other issues that seem to go unrecognized by our current leadership.”
Comer’s council term expires on Dec. 31, 2024. After less than nine months of filling that term on the council, Reisinger’s name will appear on the ballot to retain that seat for another four years — but it will not appear on the ballot for mayor.
This will be the sixth time that Mayor Clinton Lucas Jr. has been challenged for his seat since May 1990. Lucas will be the only name on the ballot this fall, as he seeks his 18th, two-year term as mayor. After 34-and-a-half years in office, Lucas said he’s not overly concerned about the competition.
“I’d rather been running unopposed, but there has been some conflict circulating,” Lucas told Page Valley News on Monday. “Mr. Reisinger hasn’t been on the Council that long…less than a year, but I didn’t have much experience when I started either.”
After serving on the Shenandoah Council in the ’70s, Lucas would take the gavel from Mayor Edwards more than three decades ago, and hasn’t relinquished it since.
“I’ve always wanted to be involved with things going on around me,” Lucas said. “Sometimes there has been a lack of interest…and I didn’t face any challenge.”
This time around, there have been grumblings around Town about the leadership, decisions that have been made, and a lack of progress. Lucas says he knows the Town has needs, but it also has limited resources.
“Infrastructure, I would say, is our biggest challenge…pretty much like everyone else. Some of it is really old…and needing daily repair. That’s why we can’t take on a lot of other projects,” Lucas said. “If [voters] have been satisfied with the job I’ve done… make sure they mark their ballot so they can put me back in office.”
With the decision of Councilman Richard Pierce to not run for re-election, there will be at least one new face on Council in January. Councilman Mike Lowe is running for another four-year term. Reisinger and Haggett filled out the ballot with three candidates for three open seats.
“I feel it’s time for different ideas and ways to find solutions to issues,” Haggett responded to a 2023 PVN Q&A about her reasons for running. “I want to see Shenandoah grow again with new business and events. I want to listen to our citizens about what needs to be added or improved to make it better for our citizens and to bring more tourism to the area.”
However, two late write-in candidates have now entered the conversation.
Gary Red Taylor, a volunteer firefighter in Shenandoah, has not done much publicly to announce his write-in bid for Shenandoah Council. PVN was also unable to contact Taylor, but word of his intentions has been circulating for several weeks.
On Sunday, former postal carrier Ana Maria Mendez decided that she wanted to throw her hat in the ring for Shenandoah Council. She emailed her Letter of Intent to the voter registrar on Monday, notifying of her write-in candidacy. The Puerto Rican native first moved to Shenandoah in December 2017, because she had heard it was a “booming town.”
“When I bought my house, it was because we had a train station and a train cafe, and I thought my family could visit on Amtrak…but it wasn’t like that,” Mendez said. “This Town needs some ‘umph’… I thought it was a booming Town because of the trains…and it was at one time…I want to make this a booming Town again.”
She recently spent 20 months in Australia helping her daughter care for her grandchild, a premature baby who suffers from a health condition that effects the heart and lungs. She hopes that local residents will remember her through her time as a mail carrier in Town. Mendez is also not new to running for office, launching campaigns years ago for school board, county commissioner and state representative around Orlando and Kissimmee, Florida.
“I love Shenandoah…I’m very happy to be here, but I want to see things happen,” Mendez said on Tuesday.
After first approaching the voter registrar and being told she had missed the June filing deadline, Mendez spoke with Reisinger, who informed her that a total of three seats were open on Council — not just one. So, she pursued a write-in candidacy. She’s had family in politics, including her grandfather who was mayor of a town in Puerto Rico.
“I see a lot of politicians that think the public should revere them, but I think it’s opposite… we are the servants as public officials,” Mendez said. “I want to see things change in Shenandoah, and I want to be part of that change.”
Voters may cast up to three votes for Shenandoah Council among five candidates, including two write-ins.
Early voting began Sept. 20.
For more information about the Town of Shenandoah,
visit https://www.townofshenandoah.com/
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Where were you guys at page news? When the constituents were being told “ shut up shut your mouths”, at the more recent town council meetings. How about that Resulution that still sits on the table to take the citizens of Shenandoah rights away to even speak at a town council meeting… catch up! Sure the current powers in charge aren’t running a spoiler write in for council ? How man meetings have the candidates that are running been to in the last year? Make sure when voting, your not voting for the problem not the solution!
I am not sure why you couldn’t reach me Randy. I do still teach at PCHS and have email as well as a phone number posted on the town website.
I decided to run for mayor after several incidents at town meetings that I felt could have been avoided and handled differently. I have much respect for our current mayor and him and I have no ill feelings towards each other. I want everyone to know I come at a time when I have heard over and over Shenandoah is dying. On a walking tour I listened to a longtime resident tell us how the citizens of Shenandoah do not support the town like They do in Luray, Stanley or Elkton.
It’s sad when one generation yearns for the past so much they fail to see or allow the younger generation to keep the town alive. Shenandoah is ripe to become a strong new town that is not like the past but great in its own way. Why can’t we celebrate our past and live for a future where families have a grocery store, a pharmacy a Main Street where we crowd the street with dances and car shows? We can sit by and let our town fall asleep or step up to the challenge of building it back up.
I want to give the citizens a choice this election. I am a write in for mayor and I’m on the ballot for council as well. I filled in the remainder of Mr Comers term to learn and watch leadership in action. It’s time now to fight for my town as mayor in Richmond if need be and get what we deserve as Virginians.
Lucas has had many years to make a difference so why give him 2 more. And to say there is not that many resources 🤣 maybe if they stop spending money on $40,000 trucks to ride around in and paying over $60,000 to an employee the person who runs the free town museum with a $6,000 budget to put decorations around it….. ect ect… come on wake up town of Shenandoah. Come to a town council meeting or look at what they spend the $2,000,000 budget on. They run people away that want to open businesses up on front street. And let’s not forget what mayor Lucas told citizens of this town at one council meeting “move out if you don’t like it”. Or how about how he snickered and did nothing about another town council member yelling shut up and shut your mouth at the ones that showed up at a town council meeting. Or even how he’s tried to make a resolution to take our first amendment rights away at these meetings. And before anyone jumps on this show up to more than one town council meeting and see it all for yourselves
It doesn’t make much sense to me why Chris would put so much time, money and effort into getting his name out there for mayor to not respond to this. So honestly did you even try to reach him? Because I’m shocked you were even able to reach mayor Lucas… 🤔 he wasn’t available when WHSV tried to contact him