Virginia: Brambleton resident Ram Venkatachalam is vying to become the first Indian American supervisor of the county’s newly formed Little River District district supervisor on the Republican ticket.
A card-carrying member of the Loudoun County Republican Committee, Venkatachalam announced Nov. 30 that he will seek his party’s nomination to run against two Democratic candidates: Lissa Savaglio, who is stepping down from her position as the chair of the Loudoun County Democratic Committee, and Laura TeKrony, who serves as the legislative aide to Board Chair Phyllis Randall.
The Little River District was created this summer following redistricting based on the 2020 census results. It is mainly comprised of the eastern portion of what was Blue Ridge District – including the communities of Aldie, Brambleton, Willowsford, and greater Middleburg, and is home to the largest concentration of Asian Americans in the county.
If nominated, the 42-year-old Venkatachalam would be the first Indian American to run on the GOP ticket for a supervisor seat. Until now, Indian Americans have mostly chosen to run as Democrats in the county. Like other Indian Americans who have announced their plans to contest local seats in Loudoun, Venkatachalam also emphasized in his Nov. 30 announcement that “the first Supervisor from Little River should be representative not only of the district, but also of the growing diversity of Loudoun County itself, and I am that candidate.”
Hailing from India, Venkatachalam said his values align with the conservative principles espoused by the Republican party, such as low taxes, economic opportunity, education, public safety and family. He wants to focus on local issues, such as lower taxes, and quality public education for all children including his 7-year-old son and 9-year-old daughter who attend a public elementary school. As the chair of the county’s Transit Board, Venkatachalam supports widespread transit use and plans to enable residents to move from one point to another.
“Common sense solutions should be the focus of our local Board,” Venkatachalam wrote in a Nov. 30 announcement, “not getting wrapped up in divisive social issues and national agendas.”
This is not Venkatachalam’s first run for local elected office. In 2019, he lost by 13.2 percentage points to current School Board Vice Chair Ian Serotkin, who had the backing of Progress Virginia. (Source: loudountimes.com)
