November 4, 2020
To the Fairfax County Community,

Another Election Day has come and gone. This election year was unlike any other we have ever seen. Our turnout throughout the process was truly encouraging and spoke to our residents' faith in the democratic process. Our turnout is currently measured at 77.5% and the Supervisor district with the highest turnout was Hunter Mill with 79.9%. You can see the overall data from this year's election in the chart below.

That said, I want to take a moment to thank the Electoral Board, our staff in the Office of Elections, and the many volunteers who devoted their time this year to making this election a success and enabled hundreds of thousands of voters to cast their ballots safely.

In Fairfax County, we are committed to counting every single ballot. The results online provide a fairly good picture of the count, however this is currently an unofficial report. This is because absentee ballots may be accepted until noon Friday.

See below for the full November 4 edition of my newsletter. For COVID-19 resources mentioned in past newsletters, visit my website. If you have a friend who would like to sign up for this newsletter, they can do so here.
Election
Key Data

  • Results for this year's election can be found here (this is where the data from the charts throughout can be found as well). Historical data can be found here.
  • As you can see in the graph above, the percentage of voters who cast their ballots early was significantly higher than the percentage of votes cast on Election Day. This was largely due to the pandemic, but in addition, this year the General Assembly allowed no-excuse early voting for the first time.
  • Voter turnout was slightly down this year in comparison to years past. The change can be seen below.
Bond Questions

  • Fairfax County voters overwhelmingly passed four bonds, which allows the Board of Supervisors to finance public facilities and infrastructure projects. In the charts below, you can see that every bond passed with support between 66-72%.
  • Transportation Bond:
  • This authorizes Fairfax County to issue bonds totaling $160 million.
  • It will be used to finance Fairfax County's share of costs to support WMATA. Funds will be used for WMATA construction, facility improvements, and equipment.
  • Read more here.
  • Parks Bond:
  • This authorizes Fairfax County to issue bonds totaling $112 million.
  • Funds will be utilized towards land acquisition for park expansion, conservation of natural resources, the development of new parks, and supporting the Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority.
  • Read more here.
  • Library Bond:
  • This authorizes Fairfax County to issue bonds totaling $90 million.
  • Funds will renovate and upgrade Patrick Henry Community Library, Sherwood Regional Library, and George Mason Regional Library. Kingstowne Regional Library will be relocated.
  • Read more here.
  • Community Health and Human Services Board Bond
  • This authorizes Fairfax County to issue bonds totaling $79 million.
  • The funds will be used to relocate and renovate the Joseph Willard Health Center, allowing the Fairfax County Health Department to provide essential services during emergencies and operation interruptions. In addition, the Crossroads facility, which provides substance abuse support, will be renovated.
  • Read more here.
Other News
Rebuild VA

  • Rebuild VA, the state's grant program to help small businesses and nonprofit organizations affected by COVID-19, is expanding its eligibility criteria to allow more small businesses to apply.  
  • Now organizations with less than $10 million in gross revenue or fewer than 250 employees will be eligible, and the maximum grant award will increase from $10,000 to $100,000. 
  • The program is open to all types of businesses and nonprofits that meet the new eligibility requirements.
  • Learn more about the program here.

Virginia Railway Express COVID-19 Safety

  • VRE has taken a variety of precautions to protect the health and safety of its passengers.
  • These measures include an enhanced cleaning regimen, installation of social-distancing decals and hand-sanitizer dispensers on rail cars and platforms, and a facial covering requirement.
  • Only 45 of 130 seats in any rail car are available to passengers. Currently, no more than 50% of those available seats are in use. 
  • VRE’s train utilization web page helps riders find the train that best matches their social-distance comfort level. The rail system monitors ridership and adds and lengthens trains to allow for proper social distancing. 
  • VRE is operating on a reduced schedule. 
Health
Common Health Questions:

  • People with COVID-19 have a wide range of symptoms reported - ranging from mild symptoms to severe illness. Symptoms may appear 2-14 days after exposure. You might experience:
  • Fever or chills
  • Cough
  • Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
  • Fatigue
  • Muscle or body aches
  • Headache
  • New loss of taste or smell
  • Sore throat
  • Congestion or runny nose
  • Nausea or vomiting
  • Diarrhea
  • Continue to follow the health guidelines:
  • Wash your hands or use hand sanitizer if that isn't an option (especially when in public places)
  • Cough and sneeze into your sleeve
  • Don't touch your face
  • Social distance
  • What it means to social distance, self-isolate, and quarantine.
  • The CDC recommends wearing non-medical masks to slow the spread of COVID-19. It is now required in Virginia.
  • The New York Times (access to COVID-19 content is free) speaks with infectious disease experts, aerosol scientists, and microbiologists to find out if COVID-19 can land on your clothing, hair, shoes, and mail.

Resources:

  • Fairfax County Health Department
  • To view the number of cases in Fairfax County this page is updated at noon daily.
  • Visit the County site on COVID-19, Health Department Website, and see their FAQs.
  • To view multilingual health materials visit the County's Language Portal.
  • Sign up for text message alerts: text FFXCOVID to 888777. Para inscribirse, textear FFXCOVIDESP a 888777.
  • Call the Health Department from 9am-7pm weekdays and 9:30am-5pm on weekends: 703-267-3511
  • Email: ffxcovid@fairfaxcounty.gov. This account will be staffed Monday through Friday, 8am-8pm.
  • Inova has a helpful FAQ.
We recognize that we are in very trying times, but I hope you see in these newsletters that positive change has occurred over the last several months.

As I often say, we are truly lucky to live in Fairfax County where we have the resources to overcome challenges and a community who rises to the occasion.

Jeffrey C. McKay
Contact the Office

chairman@fairfaxcounty.gov | 703.324.2321 |