Politics & Government

Braddock District Supervisor Candidate Chris Wade Talks to Patch

Wade talks about why he's running and what he hopes he can do with the Braddock District seat

Now that Democratic activist , businessman Chris Wade will be facing off against current Supervisor John Cook in November.

Greidinger’s decision was announced yesterday in a press release where he threw his support behind Wade’s campaign.

“After speaking with a number of people whom I respect, I have concluded that the other Democrat in this race is a smart and capable individual who will be well positioned to win in November,” Greidinger’s release said. “For the good of the party and the people of Braddock, it is important for us Democrats to be unified and give whoever the eventual nominee is the best shot at winning in November. “

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Wade describes himself as a common sense problem solver.

“I have real world experience in operations management and project management and collaboration efficiency,” Wade said. “When I look at our current Supervisor [John Cook], he has a real hard time working with the other supervisors. He’s seen as extremely partisan and that makes it tough for other people to work with him. There’s a lack of trust there – in the end, that hurts the citizens of Braddock and the citizens of Fairfax County.”

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Wade has already received the endorsement of Supervisor Jeff McKay.

“Wade is our best shot at taking back the Braddock District seat and his deep community roots along with a strong business background will serve the residents of Braddock well.” McKay said in a May 12 press release. “I’ve gotten to know Chris well over the past several months and he’s clearly the candidate best positioned to retire incumbent John Cook.”

Wade said he was “honored” to receive McKay’s endorsement.

“[McKay] recognizes that I’m the best person to represent Braddock both as a Democrat and on the board of supervisors,” Wade said. “I think that’s because he knows I’m a problem solver. I may not agree with him on every issue but I will listen and I will work with him to make sure I do what is best for all our citizens.”

Wade said that the budget, transportation issues and the community relationship with George Mason University were some of his largest concerns.

“Fairfax County’s budget is larger than seven states,” Wade said. “We need people who are experienced at finding cost savings, operating budgets, and knowing how to manage finances to make sure that citizens get the effective, efficient government that they would like.”

Both Greidinger, before he pulled out of the race, and Cook have questioned Wade’s political background due to his past votes in the 2005 and 2008 Republican primaries. In one interview with Burke Patch, Greidinger called Wade a Republican. Wade said that he voted in those primaries at a time when he was more of a “fan in the stands” for politics and an independent.

“I am a Democrat,” Wade said. “If I wasn’t, I wouldn’t be running as one; I wouldn’t be putting my family through the time commitment it takes to run a campaign. My wife’s dad was undersecretary of state for [President] Jimmy Carter. She’s a very strong Democrat. There’s no way she’d let me run as a Democrat unless she believed I was one.”

Though Wade is a newcomer to the political race field, he says that his friends in the community and in the Democratic committee have joined together to help him out. He said some of the moms from his family’s church pulled together his kick-off party. Wade also coaches a soccer team on the side.

We'll have videos of Wade talking about various topics later today.


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