One day after his announcement that he would run as a Republican for the 33rd district Senate seat (despite having lived in the 13th senate district for 32 years) Joe May changes course and will now run as an Independent. From the Loudoun Times,
“Yesterday I announced my candidacy for the Republican nomination for the 33rd State Senate district. I did so in good faith,” May said in a statement Tuesday morning. “Late last night, just hours after I had announced my intention to run in a firehouse primary, that good faith was rewarded by an attempt to deprive the voters of the 33rd district the opportunity to vote in a fair and open process. In an unannounced meeting, that was hidden from the press, the public and even other Republican Party committee members, five people made a decision which excluded all but a handful of voters form (sic) the selection process.”
Joe May is incorrect on several points. There was never a firehouse primary scheduled to choose the nominee in the 33rd district. (I have no idea where May got that idea.) The method of nominating a republican candidate was not chosen until last night. If he was familiar with the Loudoun County Republican Committee and Republican party plan, he would know that there were not five people involved in the decision to have the candidate nominated at a Mass Meeting open to every voter in the 33rd district. There are only two people on the Republican 33rd district legislative committee, one representing Loudoun county and one representing Fairfax county, exactly as dictated by the party plan. Those two people were solely responsible for deciding the nominating process, per the party plan. Since 14 people attended the meeting last night, including Mr. May’s campaign manager, and the other two candidates running for the nomination, John Whitbeck and Ron Meyer, the meeting was hardly a secret. Nothing was hidden from Mr. May. Mr. May went on to say,
“I have been a Republican and a conservative all my life,” said May. “But today, I join Sen. Byrd as an independent … I ask for the support of every Virginian in the 33rd district – Republican, Independent and Democrat alike. We must ensure every voter has the opportunity to participate and to be heard. We must reject Washington style politics in our great Commonwealth.”
While claiming to be a conservative Mr. May makes reference to a democrat turned independent who last served in office over 30 years ago! Voters are not likely to be impressed with that reference. How many of today’s voters remember Harry Byrd Jr, or care what he did back in 1970 when he abandoned the democrat party to run as an independent?
Joe May is the height of Washington Style politics having spent 20 years in office with very close ties to the political establishment in Richmond. He loves tax increases, tries to hide his voting record from constituents, expects his vast wealth to buy him seats without the hard work of connecting with the voters, and switches parties on a whim because he lacks core beliefs. He is a typical career politician, and the last thing we need in the state Senate.
