Back in November, I attended a meeting of the Henry County Democratic Committee. At that meeting, the County Dems voted unanimously to adopt a resolution merging with the Martinsville committee. I just got back from the first meeting of the Martinsville-Henry County Democratic Committee, where the merger became official and officers took their seats.
This is an encouraging sign, and one that has lessons for localities all over Virginia--dividing committees might have made sense back in the 70s and 80s, when population growth and differing electoral climates made the city and county more distinct. Now that times have changed, that redundancy simply doesn't make sense, and it causes all sorts of headaches for unsuspecting field organizers who come into our area to campaign. I suspect a lot of money, time and headaches could be saved if Virginia became a state of cooperative regions instead of fiefdoms. A Southside regional authority could coordinate landfills and recycling much more efficiently, and might even save money on education and law enforcement. Not to mention the potential benefits of a Southside economic development alliance that could brand and recruit for the whole region.
Here's to a united front in Martinsville and Henry County, and here's to getting back on our feet. Let's start by re-electing Tom!
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