Not a happy resolution for Hollis Tharpe at Republican mayor’s forum

Arriving Republicans found flanking Tharpe for Mayor signs at the Villa Community Center entrance. However, on departure it was apparent that the severe rainstorm that passed during the meeting had, perhaps presciently, toppled one of them. Royal Examiner Photos/Roger Bianchini. Video by Mark Williams, Royal Examiner.

Former Mayor Hollis Tharpe was looking for a boost Thursday evening (August 22) in his effort to regain the Front Royal Mayoral seat he voluntarily resigned effective May 2 due to a pending criminal misdemeanor charge of solicitation of prostitution at a local massage parlor. That charge was dropped at the request of Special Prosecutor Heather Hovermale on July 15.
However, that boost did not come as Councilman and former Mayor (2008-10) Eugene Tewalt won a Warren County Republican Committee endorsement by a 26-16 margin of 42 committee member votes cast following a Mayors Forum showdown between Tharpe and Tewalt at the Villa Avenue Community Center.

In fact it was almost no contest following Tharpe and Tewalt fielding six questions submitted to Committee Chairman Steve Kurtz by those present. When Kurtz asked for motions on nominations for the mayoral endorsement, Councilman Jacob Meza rose to nominate Tewalt.

Meza launched into an explanation of his nomination of Tewalt, whom he observed he often did not see eye-to-eye with on items before council, but whom he called transparent and open, adding, “He’s never gone back on what he says he’s going to do and he’s never worked against council with backroom deals or anything along those lines … So he’s someone I personally trust.”
Following that endorsement speech heavy with unstated implications, Meza’s motion to endorse Tewalt was seconded by fellow Councilman Gary Gillespie.

Councilman Jacob Meza made the motion to nominate Tewalt for the committee endorsement with some pointed remarks – but in how many directions did they point?

Kurtz’s call for any other motions to nominate for the committee’s endorsement was met by initial silence. That silence was finally broken by Tim Ratigan’s question to the chair as to whether non-Town residents could offer motions on a Town Election endorsement. Kurtz’s reply that yes, any committee member regardless of where in the county they lived, could offer motions led to Ratigan’s nomination of Tharpe.

Ratigan lauded Tharpe’s decision to step down from office despite denying the criminal charge against him, so as not to distract the town council from the business of town government. Ratigan called that “an ethical decision”. With that charge now dropped, Ratigan said he believe Tharpe deserved the chance to serve out the remainder of the term he was elected to by the citizens of Front Royal.

However, a 10-vote majority of his fellow committee members did not agree. As Tharpe noted in our forum preview, he remains a Republican Committee member. Tewalt noted that he has not been a committee member since 2010.

Eugene Tewalt, left, and Hollis Tharpe prepare for questions at Thursday’s Republican Mayoral Forum.

While Tharpe vigorously denied the criminal allegation against him, he announced his pending resignation on April 19, four days after being indicted by a grand jury ironically chaired by the man who would eventually be appointed by a 4-2 council majority – Meza, Gillespie, Holloway, Sealock for, Tewalt and Thompson opposed – to replace him as interim mayor.

During Tharpe’s absence and prior to the charge being dropped against Tharpe, Councilman Tewalt announced he would run in the November Special Election to fill out the final year of Tharpe’s two-year term. Interim Mayor Tederick has said he will not seek to extend his interim tenure past November.

So it was just Tewalt, who served as mayor from 2008 to 2010, who was present to face off against Tharpe Thursday night at the Warren County Republican Committee Meeting Mayor’s Forum. Both were seeking only a Republican Committee endorsement since by Town Charter and Code Town Elections are non-partisan. So candidates for Town office do not carry a party designation by their names on election ballots.

Other candidates receiving committee endorsements Thursday were Arnold Williams, North River District School Board seat; Ralph Rinaldi, Shenandoah District School Board seat; and Kristen Pence Bowie for South River District School Board seat. Kurtz noted that there are no candidates whose names will appear on the ballot for the South River School Board seat.

Consequently, all votes cast will have to be write-ins.

Williams and Rinaldi were endorsed without opposition. Bowie won the South River endorsement over Ratigan.

See the forum questions and answers of the two candidates, the nominations and announcement of the vote results in this Royal Examiner video: