Inside A8 Powhatan keeps it cute and creepy for Halloween
Powhatan, Virginia B1 Powhatan headed to Region 4B Playoffs
Vol. XXXV No.. 19
November 10, 2021
Powhatan sees surprising 71.43% voter turnout By Laura McFarland Editor
P
OWHATAN – A cold and rainy Election Day didn’t dampen the drive of Powhatan County residents to have their voices heard as 71.43% of registered voters turned out to cast a ballot – an astounding number for a nonpresidential election, election officials say. Of the 22,958 registered voters in Powhatan, 16,398 cast their votes on Nov. 2 or in the 45 days leading up to it through early and absentee voting, according to Karen Alexander, director of elections. The percentage is especially impressive when compared to the last comparable election held in 2017, which saw a 55% voter turnout. While it wasn’t the roughly 85% voter turnout in the 2020 presidential election year, it was still stellar for a nonpresidential year, she said. “I was blown away. It was exciting to see so many people care about a very important race,” she said. Also impressive were the 5,709 ballots cast ahead of Election Day through early voting and the absentee voting, or 24.87% of those who
voted, she added. “It was wonderful and I am glad that they took advantage of the early voting tent. It is a lot of work to have 45 days of early voting. It would have been a shame for people not to take advantage of it, so I am so glad they did,” Alexander said. Speaking at about 4 p.m., Elisabeth Palsa, chief election official at Polling Precinct 201 – Powhatan Station, said Election Day had been awesome, with 792 votes cast at that time and people obviously passionate about exercising their right to vote. Another 184 people would vote there in the next three hours, and the 976 total for Election Day didn’t even account for early and absentee votes. “The atmosphere has been very positive. People who have come in, they have come in and they are excited about voting,” Palsa said. “They have been engaging everyone here – our election poll workers – in a friendly manner, and they seem to be just excited about the election – even telling people, ‘I need to call my neighbors and make sure they come out.’” For her part, Palsa added it is a great feeling to have a front row seat watching democracy at
PHOTO BY LAURA McFARLAND
District 2 voter Sharon Kessel, left, checks in with election official Kelli Krauss at the Powhatan Station precinct on Election Day.
Powhatan runs out of scannable ballots, switches to hand counting at some locations. See full story Page 3A
see TURNOUT, pg. 8
Vintage cheerleaders cheer for unity
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
Panelists at the Richmond Region Transportation Forum held Nov. 4 discuss transportation issues and funding. Shown are Clark Mercer, from left, the governor’s chief of staff; Cat Anthony, executive director of Virginia Capital Trail Foundation; Todd Eure, assistant director of Henrico County Public Works, and Louise Lockett Gordon, director of Bike Walk RVA.
Prsrt. Standard U.S. POSTAGE PAID Powhatan, VA Permit No.19
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
Dale Goodman, 2021 Powhatan Christmas Mother, joined the Powhatan High School cheer squad in performing a chant for Powhatan unity at the junior varsity football game on Oct. 28 in keeping with the 2021 Christmas Mother theme “The Unity of Christmas.” See more photos Page 3A.
Forum shines light on transportation issues in the region By Laura McFarland
DELIVER TO: Postal Patron Powhatan, VA 23139
Managing Editor
Olive sworn in as court therapy dog
POWHATAN – Regional leaders in transportation planning came together last week for the eighth annual Richmond Region Transportation Forum to discuss forward movement being made in the participating localities. Richmond Regional Transportation Planning Organization (RRTPO) hosted the forum, which was see FORUM, pg. 6
Commissioner of the revenue’s office earns 3rd straight accreditation status Contributed Report
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
After 10 months of training, Olive, a bull mastiff owned by Rob Cerullo, Powhatan County deputy commonwealth’s attorney, was sworn in as a fully certified therapy dog on Oct. 28 by Powhatan County Circuit Court Judge Paul Cella. Olive and Cerullo graduated from therapy dog training with REACH K9 on Oct. 15, making the pair a certified therapy dog team. Ultimately, getting Olive certified was about having her there to help witnesses and victims – young to old – who are scared or hesitant to testify. She will be there to help calm those people so their experience is not as traumatic.
Commissioner Jamie Timberlake has recently been honored at the 103rd annual Conference of the Commissioners of the Revenue Association by earning Office Accreditation for the third consecutive year. Accreditation is awarded only to offices that have met the rigorous standards set forth by the Commissioners’ Association. The 12 standards set forth by the association include
education requirements for the commissioner and staff, customer service, personnel and ethics policies as well as assessment methodology. Each office receiving accreditation has undergone an audit to ensure compliance and will be required to annually demonstrate they continue to meet these standards. “Commissioner Timberlake has demonstrated a commitment to Powhatsee COMMISSIONER, pg. 4
