This fall, Stafford’s voters will also choose their representatives for the Board of Supervisors and School Board for Garrisonville, Hartwood, Falmouth, and Aquia. George Washington, Rockhill, and Griffis-Widewater are up for election in 2027.
To help local voters learn more about their candidates, Potomac Local News invited all Board of Supervisors candidates to a virtual interview with the same five questions; their answers have been condensed into a series of articles.
The videos are available here.
The remaining candidates either declined a virtual interview, had scheduling conflicts, or didn’t respond.
Michael Catell (R), Falmouth: A father of six, he and his wife have been in the Stafford area for 22 years. Catell has worked in non-profit organizations for over 30 years, with experience in marketing, communications, and revenue development. He has one opponent.
Kecia Evans (D), Falmouth: A mother of four, Evans has lived in Stafford for over 10 years. She has a Bachelor’s in Criminal Justice and a Master’s degree in Cybersecurity and National Security Law. Evans has served on Stafford’s Department of Parks and Recreation, Special Education Advisory Committees, Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA), and is currently a planning comissioner. Evans ran for House of Delegates in 2019 and 2020.
Kelly Robertson (I), Hartwood: A Brooke Point High School graduate, Robertson has family ties that reach back to 1859 and returned to Stafford to raise her own family. Robertson works in the federal government, overseeing different boards. Robertson said while this is her first election campaign, she’s been working on the other side of the table and is familiar with the process.
Marcus Oats (I), Hartwood: A retired Air Force Chief Master Sergeant, Oates has worked in the Pentagon and on Capitol Hill. His military work experiences focused on contracting, business development, and acquisition. There are 3 total candidates for Hartwood.
Bart Randall (I), Garrisonville: A retired Master Chief, Randall worked in the United States Navy’s nuclear community and now serves as an Acquisition Manager for the Coast Guard. A 20-year Stafford resident, he’s a board member for S.E.R.V.E. and a member of the Stafford schools’ Capital Improvement Plan committee. Randall has previously run for the Board of Supervisors and for the school board. The Stafford G.O.P endorsed Randall.
Hank Scharpenberg (R), Aquia: Scharpenberg retired from the Army and earned a degree in Project Management from George Washington University before working for the federal government. He’s lived in Stafford for over 25 years and has served with several local advisory boards for the Stafford Regional Airport, Citizens Transportation Committee, and Embrey Mill Development Authority.
Projects like Buc-ee’s and proposed data centers have stirred strong reactions. How would you balance economic development with concerns about the environment, traffic, and overall quality of life?
Catell (Falmouth): 
We need to understand that [growth] is a reality…the question is to what extent do we, the county, need to welcome that growth and manage it accordingly. Whether it’s data centers, commercial development, or single-family housing units. We need to look at the whole of the package when it comes to development – the economic side, taxes, our priorities, and how we prioritize. We need to be prepared to understand, accept, and manage growth – for the good of the citizens and the good of this county.
Evans (Falmouth): 
One of the things I want to see as a supervisor is innovative and sustainable growth in Stafford. We need to welcome commercial businesses here, but we need to make sure that our residents are in line with it as well. We want to make sure that not only the commercial businesses are happy, but also Stafford residents are happy with what we are approving.
Robertson (Hartwood): 
We need to look at our comprehensive plan. If something’s outside of the plan, that means we are not prepared to take on that project, and we need to increase our infrastructure to support it. We need to look at what that would cost the taxpayers. I don’t have anything against Buc-ee’s or data centers in general, but I have concerns about the Buc-ee’s location and the impact that’s going to have on families in North Stafford. Data centers, it depends on where we’re putting them. In an industrial area, it’s one thing; it’s another thing when we’re putting them in a residential area. We have to do our homework before we’re making those decisions, because they impact our families every day.
Oates (Hartwood): 
No one believes [the county] is all pro-Buc-ee’s or all anti-Buc-ee’s. What the community wants is a common-sense approach to doing things that make sense. Buc-ee’s and data centers are symptoms of a much larger issue. The larger issue is what we are doing economically. What kind of planning do we have in place to address these concerns? Complex issues like balancing the financial opportunity from the businesses with the complications for residents like traffic need to be addressed strategically.
Randall (Garrisonville): 
I’m torn. We need the revenue, but I’m concerned about the performance standards the board offered data centers. While I think data centers could add some revenue that’s desperately needed, let’s get them out of the way. Let’s do common-sense things; while we could use the revenue, we don’t want it to negatively impact the residents, and I’m not sure that’s been taken into consideration. Our revenue is about 70% on residents – that’s not sustainable. I will commit to making Stafford County more business-friendly, doing all we can to remove roadblocks, red tape, and cumbersome practices to ensure businesses have an easier path to come in, build, and operate in Stafford.
Scharpenberg (Aquia): 
Buc-ee’s would bring tax revenue, but given the location and traffic implications, it may be more of a negative for the county than a positive. If you’ve driven down Courthouse Road during normal hours, you can imagine what an additional 24,000 cars a day would do. I’m hopeful they can come up with a different solution for traffic, but if they can’t, I don’t think it’s a good fit for the county. Data centers are a complex issue: the county has already approved 30 buildings for the four approved projects. I think the revenue for those has been grossly overstated with the tax breaks the county has offered. It’s not going to be as beneficial as we think. How many should the county have? I would look very hard at what the negative impact of each individual request is, and what they bring to the county.
In Stafford County, early voting will be held Monday through Friday at the Registrar’s Office at 124 Old Potomac Church Road, Ste. 205, from Friday, Sept. 19, through Friday, Nov. 1, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
The only Saturday voting days will be Oct. 25 and Nov. 1 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 4, from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m.
The deadline to register for voting or request an absentee ballot is October 24.
👉 Next in our series: How should Stafford County manage its $1 billion budget and ensure taxpayer dollars are spent wisely? Candidates respond in tomorrow’s installment.
