Stought, Reed vie for open council seat in Purcellville

The ballots are now set for elections in some incorporated towns in Loudoun County. The filing deadline was Aug. 18.

Caleb Stought

The most hotly contested race is a special election for a town council seat in Purcellville. Stanley Milan vacated the seat when he was elected mayor last year. Caleb Stought and Chris Reed are vying to fill the seat for the remainder of the term, which runs through 2026.

Ron Rise Jr., whom the council appointed in January to fill the seat, decided not to run. Several town council members hoped that Rise could serve out the entire term without a special election, but state law requires a special election this year.

Chris Reed

Stought was one of six candidates who ran for Purcellville Town Council last year, finishing fifth with 1,658 votes. He moved to Purcellville in 2019 after 10 years in the military, where he served as a linguist. He lives with his wife, Erica, who grew up in Loudoun County, and his two daughters. He has served on the town’s Community Policing Advisory Committee and works from home as a software engineer.

Reed, who has lived in Northern Virginia since 2005, works as an environmental scientist for Jacobs Engineering. He develops clean-up and monitoring strategies for various types of environmental contamination. He and his wife, Anu, purchased a home in Purcellville in 2012.

Stought has said that he is interested in working to help place Purcellville on solid financial footing by maintaining appropriate revenue streams and paying down the town’s debt. He said he would like the town government to support businesses in town and maintain Purcellville’s “small town charm.”

Reed said he wants the town government to slow new development, reduce its debt and control expenditures. He said he supports the council’s current majority and will consider “varying perspectives” from the community if elected.

MiddleburgIn Middleburg, there are three candidates on the ballot for three town council seats.

Newcomer Pamela Curran will be on the ballot along with incumbents Chris Bernard and J. Kevin Daly. Councilmember Philip Miller, whose term ends in December, decided not to run again.

Mayor Bridge Littleton is running unopposed for another two-year term.

Round HillIn Round Hill, there are four open seats on the Town Council and four candidates on the ballot.

Vice Mayor Mary Anne Graham is running for reelection along with councilmembers Isaac Pacheco. Jim Maulfair is also on the ballot. Councilmember Mike Hummel decided not to run for reelection this year.

The fourth candidate on the ballot is Dan Brzezynski, who was appointed to the council earlier this year and is now running in a special election to serve out the remainder of the term.

Mayor Scott Ramsey running unopposed for another two-year term.

LovettsvilleTom Budnar, appointed to the Lovettsville Town Council earlier this year, is the only candidate on the ballot to fill out the term of the seat vacated by Buchanan Smith, who stepped down earlier this year.

HamiltonIn Hamilton, there are two names on the ballot with Councilmember Heather Beardsley running for reelection and Chris Shumaker who is running in a special election after he was appointed to the seat this year.

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