Election coverage
Meet co-founder of 381 Movement B1
Richmond Free Press © 2020 Paradigm Communications, Inc. All rights reserved.
VOL. 29 NO. 46
RICHMOND, VIRGINIA
www.richmondfreepress.com
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A2, A5 and A6
NOVEMber 5-7, 2020
Nail-biters Regina H. Boone/Richmond Free Press
Mike Segar/Reuters
Mayor Levar M. Stoney greets a voter Tuesday as she heads to cast her ballot at Precinct 701 inside Woodville Elementary School in the East End. The mayor’s re-election campaign paid off with victory in six of the city’s nine districts, including the 7th District, where the school is located.
Joe Biden expresses confidence Wednesday that he will win the presidency as the nation awaits results from a small number of battleground states. A day after the election, Mr. Biden was close to securing the 270 electoral college votes he needs to defeat President Trump.
Mayor Stoney claims victory nearly 24 hours after polls close
Joe Biden rallies for likely presidential win
By Jeremy M. Lazarus
It took an extra day, but Mayor Levar M. Stoney finally could claim victory in his bid for re-election to a second, four-year term. Based on unofficial results released Wednesday, the mayor won the most votes citywide, and in six of the nine council districts, to outdistance his four challengers. The results reflected the accuracy of the polls in the contest that the Free Press reported in July and October, which showed the mayor leading and likely
to win outright. As was the case four years ago when he won his first term, Mayor Stoney failed to win a majority of votes cast. Instead, he relied on a fractured opposition to gain victory. The city’s 39-year-old chief executive won 39,934 votes, or 38 percent, of the 104,000 cast in the race, with a major share packed into the districts he won— the 3rd, 4th, 6th, 7th, 8th and 9th. These districts have the city’s largest African-American and Latino
Democrat Joe Biden apparently will be the next president. It’s still unofficial — and recounts and legal challenges are expected to string out the process. And there is still a chance for a tie. But the 77-year-old former vice president was leading in the popular vote as of Wednesday afternoon and was ahead in at least two of the six states that were still counting votes Wednesday. And winning those two states could enable him to claim victory. The states still counting are Alaska, Arizona, Georgia, Michigan,
Please turn to A4
Please turn to A4
By Jeremy M. Lazarus
Trammell, Spinks and Lambert squeeze out victories in City Council races By Jeremy M. Lazarus
Ms. Trammell
Mr. Spinks
Ms. Lambert
Tavarris J. Spinks, a specialist in information technology for health care, appears to have eked out a 26-vote victory to claim the vacant 2nd District City Council seat, according to unofficial results released Wednesday. Unofficial election results also show that Ann-Frances Lambert, a drone business owner and daughter of the late Richmond state Sen. Benjamin J. Lambert III, won a three-way contest to replace outgoing 3rd District Councilman Chris A. Hilbert.
Pilot program to guarantee $500 monthly to families — no strings attached By Jeremy M. Lazarus
Eighteen Richmond families each will receive $12,000 over two years in a pilot program testing whether a guaranteed income would make a difference in helping them achieve financial stability.
Mayor Levar M. Stoney announced the experimental Richmond Resilience Initiative on Oct. 29 that involves paying a $500 a month stipend for 24 months to the selected working families. The city is joining with the Robins Foundation to cover the two-year cost of
Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press
No bones about it Members of the Diamonds of Essence Dancers have fun as they perform on Halloween during the Black Coalition of Change Justice Rally to Unify and Empower the Black Community. The event, held in Church Hill and sponsored by a coalition of groups, had a festival atmosphere with music, dancing, food and vendors. Please see more photos, B2.
$216,000. The city’s share is being drawn from federal CARES Act dollars. While unidentified, the chosen families were randomly selected from clients of the city’s Office of Community Wealth Building, the mayor said. All are working or seeking work, have children in the household and currently earn too much to qualify for federal income benefits, but not enough to cover all household expenses. The mayor called the initiative a potential “first step toward state and national policy that will help qualified, working families in need to close the gap between the social safety net and sustainable employment.” The Richmond test is modeled after a larger pilot involving 125 families in Stockton, Calif., launched in 2018 by Mayor Michael Tubbs. The program has since expanded to a few other cities, including Compton, Calif. The money is given to the families with no strings attached and no requirements. “The pandemic has proven that for many families, $500 can be the difference between staying sheltered or losing a home, buying groceries or going hungry,” Mayor Stoney said. Based on the Stockton experience, those chosen to participate are expected to spend the majority of money on food, rent, utilities, child care and basic necessities. Mayor Stoney said research from Stockton shows positive impacts on recipients’ health and education with virtually no impact on the willingness to work. Please turn to A4
If the results become official, the two apparent winners would join seven council incumbents who won re-election, although there is still controversy over the results in the 8th District that veteran Councilwoman Reva M. Trammell appears to have won. Amy C. Wentz, one of two challengers in the 8th District Please turn to A4
Free COVID-19 testing Free community testing for COVID-19 continues. The Richmond and Henrico County health districts are offering testing at the following locations:
Date
Location
Monday, Nov. 9, 10 a.m. to noon
Eastern Henrico Health Department 1400 N. Laburnum Ave., Eastern Henrico
Thursday, Nov. 12, 9 to 11 a.m.
Stonewall RRHA Senior Building 1920 Stonewall Place, South Side
Friday, Nov. 13, 1 to 3 p.m.
Eastern Henrico Health Department 1400 N. Laburnum Ave., Eastern Henrico
Drive-thru testing only for those pre-registered.
Drive-thru testing only for those pre-registered.
Appointments are encouraged by calling the Richmond and Henrico COVID-19 Hotline at (804) 205-3501 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Testing will be offered while test supplies last. The Chesterfield County Health Department also is offering free COVID-19 testing at the following locations: •Faith and Family Center, 7900 Walmsley Blvd., 4 to 5 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 5, Nov. 12 and Nov. 19. • Chesterfield Fairgrounds at Vietnam Veterans Building, 10300 Courthouse Road, noon to 1 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 5, and Friday, Nov. 6. • Walmsley Boulevard United Methodist Church, 2950 Walmsley Blvd., 4 to 5 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 11; and 4 to 5 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 17 and Nov. 24. • St. Augustine Catholic Church, 4400 Beulah Road, 11 a.m. to noon Wednesday, Nov. 11 and Nov. 18. Testing is encouraged for those who have COVID-19 symptoms. The testing is free, and no reservations are necessary. Details: Chesterfield County Health Department at (804) 318-8207. The Virginia Department of Health reported on Wednesday a total of 185,836 positive cases of COVID-19 statewide, along with 12,797 hospitalizations and 3,677 deaths. The number of new coronavirus cases has exceeded 1,000 daily for the last week, leading to a rise in the state’s seven-day positivity rate to 6.7 percent, officials said. Similarly large numbers have been reported daily across the nation, with the United States becoming the first country to report 100,000 new coronavirus cases in a single day. The United States also saw a new record of 61,000 children testing positive for COVID-19 last week, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics. According to Virginia data, African-Americans comprised 24.1 percent of cases and 27.4 percent of deaths for which ethnic and racial data is available, while Latinos made up 27 percent of the cases and 9.2 percent of deaths. Locally, as of Wednesday, 5,542 cases and 78 deaths were reported in Richmond; 6,655 cases and 240 deaths were reported in Henrico; and 7,407 cases and 120 deaths were reported in Chesterfield.