The blue wave that swept through Northern Virginia on Election Day produced a striking result in Stafford County: The Board of Supervisors will have a Democratic majority that includes four Black women.
In 2019, Tinesha Allen became the first Black woman elected to the Board. At the time, she was the only Black supervisor on the Board and the only Democrat.
It wasn’t easy, Allen told News4.
“The worst was when I first got on the Board,” she said. “There was actual vitriol, like name-calling, calling terrible things. Now, it’s more of, I’ve proven myself for six years.”
A second Black woman, Dr. Pamela Yeung, joined the Board in 2022. In Tuesday’s election, voters added two more African American women: Kecia Evans and Maya Guy. The four Black women will be the majority of the seven-person Stafford Board.
Guy said the prospect of an historic moment wasn’t really on her radar as she campaigned.
“It did come up,” she said. “I think I was at a rally or something where someone mentioned it, and I was like, OK, alright. But I gotta run my race.”
Allen said her relationship with Board members has changed in her six years.
“In talking to people from the other side, I have earned their respect,” she said. “So, they no longer see me as, Oh, can the Black person step up? It’s more of, Tinesha will step up. So, it’s gone from seeing my skin color to just seeing me for all the individual qualities that I bring and the work I’ve done.”
That work opened the door to Evans and Guy, both of whom are already deeply involved in the community — Evans on the planning commission and Guy with the school board.
“One of the reasons why I ran for school board, originally … it wasn’t because I was a Black woman and I didn’t see enough Black women. But it’s because Maya Guy as a person never felt seen, heard or respected by any of her elected officials,” Guy said.
“And so, I knew if I ran, not only would Black women feel respected and heard and valued, but so would everyone else around me,” she said.
Allen and Guy say their shared priorities for the Board are guided not only by their experience as Black women but also as mothers of public school children.
They say they will be proponents of economic development that can lead to more school funding and job opportunities for residents.
“We’ve got a lot of work cut out for us, but we are also focused similarly, so I think it’s gonna be really good,” Guy said.
Allen’s eager for the work ahead with a dramatically transformed Board.
“I just look forward to the next at least two-plus years with these amazing women, and hopefully, we can get Stafford where it needs to be and keep making progress,” she said.
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