A Green Party official is planning on running for a seat on the County Board this fall.
“I do plan to run for County Board as a Green,” said Audrey Clement, a state Green Party officer and a national Green Party committee member. “However, I have not yet set up a campaign committee and filed my paperwork with [State Board of Election]. So I am not officially a candidate [yet].”
Clement’s campaign platform focuses on spending, housing and environmental concerns. On her web site, Clement says she wants to “focus funds on essential community services” like libraries, public safety, schools and the safety net, while “halt[ing] spending on wasteful building projects that we cannot afford” like the Columbia Pike streetcar and the Long Bridge Park aquatic center. She also criticizes the use of county funds for the Artisphere.
Clement says she wants to preserve historic garden apartment complexes in the county and “create and fund a housing authority in Arlington that will help low and moderate income renters and consolidate the county’s housing programs under one umbrella.” She also supports banning non-biodegradable plastic bags in “all supermarkets and chain pharmacies” while banning Styrofoam containers in “all public facilities and fast food outlets”
In 2009, Clement filed a federal lawsuit against the widening of I-66 inside the Beltway. The suit was dismissed, but Clement says she would work to “block any further widening of I-66 highway in Arlington by suing VDOT and seeking the transfer of the $35 million in Federal highway funds to repair Arlington aging bridges and streets.”
Clement will face Democratic incumbents Walter Tejada and Mary Hynes in the fall. She may also have a shot at a third county board seat if Barbara Favola captures the Democratic nomination for the 31st District State Senate seat.