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Dear Editor,

Regarding the January 25th letter of Ms. Margaret Thomas, I was present at the referenced meeting and would like to put her comments into perspective.     

There never was a “public comment portion of the meeting” on the agenda.  In spite of this, some of those present were vocally in support of the Registrar, to the point of disrupting the meeting for both the Electoral Board and others present. 

While Ms. Thomas claims that this was the first meeting where no public comments were allowed, this is simply not true.  In checking the county website for Election Board meeting minutes (which only dates back to 2019), with the exception of the last couple of meetings, there is no mention of public comments in the minutes. 

The Registrar’s four-year term will end soon.  This position is not automatically renewed, and by Virginia law, it is an appointment made by the Electoral Board every four years. The job of the Electoral Board is to select the best candidate for that position. For the Registrar and Electoral Board, it is imperative Virginia law and procedures are followed at all times.  

It would be to the advantage of all interested residents and voters in Buckingham to allow the Electoral Board to conduct their meeting without unruly public interruption.  If they should decide to allow the public to speak at the next meeting, so be it.  But if instead, they choose to have no public comments on the agenda for the next meeting, that decision should also be respected. 

Angela Lee
Buckingham County