Republicans have nominated incumbent Tammy Shepherd for the Vinton Magisterial District’s seat on the Roanoke County Board of Supervisors in November.
Shepherd eked out a win over opponent Tim Greenway with 50.4% of the 2,119 votes cast, to 49.6% for Greenway, according to unofficial numbers from the Virginia Department of Elections. Shepherd has 1,068 votes to 1,051 for Greenway.
Under state law, a candidate can request a recount if the margin is 1% or less after the election results have been certified. That can take several weeks.
Democrats did not field a candidate in the race, making Tuesday’s primary tantamount to election, barring the entry of any independent candidates. The filing deadline for independents was Tuesday night; as of 5 p.m., none had filed, according to the county registrar’s office.
November’s winner will serve through the end of 2025 in the seat left open by last fall’s election of former supervisor Jason Peters as the county’s commissioner of the revenue. In January, the board of supervisors appointed Shepherd to temporarily fill his seat.
During her campaign, Shepherd said she hopes to address infrastructure concerns in the coming years, as many school and county buildings are due for repairs and updates. Shepherd, a Realtor from Vinton, said she feels a sense of duty to her neighbors and a need to give back to her community.
She’s a conservative who would not raise taxes, she said, but would support the county’s vital services: education, law enforcement and first responders.
The two candidates said they agreed that the county’s top priority must be economic development to in turn reduce taxes.
Greenway, also Realtor from Vinton, promised during his campaign that he would increase transparency in local government, something he believes is lacking from the Roanoke County School Board.
He also said it’s time for a fresh voice on the school board, which he was elected to in 2015.
He called himself a strong conservative, which he said he’s shown during the past nine years on the school board.
