Election Results: Foster Top Vote-Getter, Pons Second

By Desiree Parker Tuesday, May 04, 2010

For the first time in city history, a William and Mary student will sit on Williamsburg’s city council and help make decisions that help shape the future for both the city and the college.

Senior Scott Foster, a 22 year-old who will graduate in less than two weeks, won Tuesday’s election by a landslide, with Planning Commission Chairman Doug Pons taking the second available council seat and incumbent Bobby Braxton falling to fourth place out of five candidates.

In a statement after the election, William and Mary President Taylor Reveley said, “This is a significant moment in our life together in Williamsburg. The College is a vibrant and vital part of the City. In my view, it's important to have a graduating W&M senior join the Council, especially one with the civility and good sense that Scott Foster brings to the table.  I offer my hearty congratulations to Scott as well to Doug Pons. I look forward to working with both of them.”

Foster, a native of Highland County, Virginia, credited his win to his systematic, multi-pronged campaign, energized students and knocking on doors, along with the endorsement of the Daily Press.

“We used several Facebook groups, emails, and phone calls,” Foster said. Also, “the student vote effort was huge.” At election time, his campaign primary Facebook page had 1,421 people signed on as “liking” his page.

All day at 15-minute intervals, vans courtesy of the student assembly ran from campus to the polling area to help encourage student voting. This is a method that helped get many students out to vote during the historic presidential election in 2008.

Foster campaign aides were also offering rides door-to-door for students to help get them to the polls, though they said that the vans were much busier during the day.

Though he guessed his total votes reflected a high number of student votes cast – based on his campaign’s survey count outside the polling areas, roughly 1,000 students voted in the election – Foster managed to grab a total of 1,559 votes, which means he had significant non-student support, too.

Knocking on doors and meeting non-student city residents also really helped his efforts, Foster said.

His first priority when he begins his term will be to “come up with a resolution on the coal plant.” All the candidates save Braxton agreed at one of the council debates that they would support signing a resolution against the coal plant planned in Surry.

Foster has many other ideas, he said, but he will work on prioritizing them and talking with people in the city before moving forward. He still plans to attend William and Mary law school in fall 2011 if he’s accepted.

Foster’s parents, sister, a cousin and an uncle are in town celebrating with him. “They’re just very excited,” he said.

"This is not just a victory for me," Foster said in a statement released Tuesday night. "This is a victory for Williamsburg, a victory for the William and Mary community, and a triumph for town-gown relations. I look forward to being a strong voice for the entire community over the next four years."

Doug Pons, who bested his fellow planning commissioner Sean Driscoll by just 17 votes, said he realizes that the race was tight between the candidates trailing Foster.

“It’s good to see the democratic system at work,” Pons said, “and Sean came in a close second. They all ran a good race.”

Pons said he was very proud to come in second in such a tough race, and credits all the people who supported him during the campaign process. “I am very excited, this is quite an honor. It’s amazing, all the people who made this happen.”

Pons said his priority will be to “make sure all discussions happen in the public eye. People want transparency, and on the council I’ll work to give it to them.”

Braxton, who came in at number four with 756 votes, agrees that all the candidates ran “very good campaigns.”

Braxton said he and his campaign staff were at the polling areas and watched the students coming to vote all day long, and he also notes that it seemed like “a lot of [non-student] people didn’t come out.”

Though he is disappointed, “today the citizens spoke,” Braxton said. Right now, he added, he has no plans to seek other city office.