Republican Michael Hipple has defeated Democrat Bob Mandala in the race for the Powhatan seat on the James City County Board of Supervisors.
Hipple landed 2,723 votes compared to Mandala’s 1,906, sending Hipple to join Republicans Mary Jones (Berkeley) and Jim Kennedy (Stonehouse) as well as newly elected Republican Kevin Onizuk (Jamestown) in a Republican majority on the board. Supervisor John McGlennon (Roberts) is the only remaining Democrat on the board.
Multiple calls to Hipple from WYDaily were not answered. WYDaily sent each candidate for the James City County Board of Supervisors an identical questionnaire. Hipple’s answers can be seen here.
Mandala told WYDaily he called Hipple on Tuesday night to congratulate him on his win.
“I’ve met many wonderful people in James City County, and if nothing else, I’ve become a very well-informed citizen,” Mandala said. “I do think that with what I’ve learned over the last several months about James City County and some of the issues, I think that I can contribute in some other way.”
Mandala came out in early October with a civility pledge, which would require its signor to be civil toward colleagues on the board, respond in a timely manner to calls and emails from colleagues and to keep board meetings civil. Read more about the pledge here.
Hipple won the fundraising race, picking up $34,562 to Mandala’s $11,841. Those figures come from the Virginia Public Access Project, a nonprofit which tracks spending in Virginia elections.
Hipple is the president of the James City-Bruton Volunteer Fire Department, a position he has held for 10 years. He has been a member of that organization for 28 years. The 51-year-old father of seven is a Lafayette High School graduate and is the president of Michael J. Hipple Builder Inc., a general contractor that works in renovating, remodeling and building homes. He founded the business in James City County 25 years ago.
Mandala is the chairman of the United Way of Greater Williamsburg. He is retired from Bank of America, where he worked from 1971 to 2009. The 64-year-old has been married for 36 years and has a daughter.
