Culpeper's Chase faces two in bid for 8th term
Culpeper Supervisor Bill Chase faces two opponents in bid for record eighth term
Date published: 10/13/2009
BY DONNIE JOHNSTON
Bill Chase will be trying to establish a record in the Nov. 3 election. Not since the beginning of Reconstruction in 1872 has any person been elected to the Culpeper County Board of Supervisors for more than seven terms.
Next month, Chase, 72, will be seeking his eighth. Only Abe White (Cedar Mountain District, 1920-48) served as long as the present supervisors chairman, who was first elected in 1982.
An eighth term, however, will not come easy because the retired Army officer and West Point graduate has plenty of competition this time around.
Gardiner Mulford, a 48-year-old Realtor, and Dewayne Payne, a 28-year-old farmer, are both challenging Chase for the Stevensburg District seat.
Both are considered formidable opponents.
Mulford has long been an outspoken critic of Chase and last year the two engaged in a heated verbal exchange during a Board of Supervisors meeting.
But Mulford insists that it is patriotism and not his dislike for Chase that is the motivating force in his run for supervisor.
"I want to serve on the BOS because it is my duty and responsibility to serve my community, as it was for me to serve my country," he says.
Mulford was an Army Ranger and an officer. Besides being the owner of a real estate company, Mulford is also a farmer and an avid horseman. He is president of the Culpeper Horse Owners Association and has pushed for a series of public riding trails in the county for several years.
He is a past member of the Brandy Station Foundation board of directors and graduated from the University of Alaska-Fairbanks.
Although he considers himself "a Reagan Republican," Mulford is running as an independent. He had sought the local Republican Party's nomination, but was not considered because of deadline issues.
Mulford, who has never held public office, considers growth, education and transportation the three major issues facing Culpeper County in the near future.
Payne, the Republican nominee from Stevensburg District, was less than 2 years old when Chase was first elected to the Board of Supervisors.
The James Madison University graduate, together with his father, operate the largest commercial hay-making operation in Culpeper County.
| WILLIAM C. 'BILL' CHASE
Address: Mountain View Farm, Stevensburg
Political party: Independent
Political experience: Seven terms as supervisor
Age: 72
Family: Wife, Judy; four grown children
Occupation: President, Potts Run Coal Co. in Pennsylvania; farmer; retired military
Education: Graduate, U.S. Military Academy; Masters in planning, University of Virginia
Community activities: Elder and past trustee at Mitchells Presbyterian Church; past board member American Red Cross and American Heart Association, past president and current member Lignum Ruritan Club, member AARP, VFW, American Legion, Vietnam Veterans of America, Military Order of the Purple Heart, Elks Club, Moose Club, Stevensburg Bears Limited; past member Virginia Disability Council
Military: Retired airborne, ranger, infantry officer; four Bronze Stars, nine air medals, Purple Heart, Army Commendation Medal, Vietnamese Honor Medal, two Vietnamese Crosses of Gallantry with Palm and Silver Star
Three most-important issues: Control residential growth while encouraging proper amount of commercial and industrial growth; keep taxes low while maintaining good school system and police protection; work with the town on finding a solution to water and sewer authority problem
GARDINER S. MULFORD
Address 22367 Maddens Tavern Road, Stevensburg
Party: Republican
Political Experience: None
Age: 48
Family: Wife, Tatiana
Occupation: Real estate broker, Mulford Realty, homes, farms and land. Member VAR, NAR and GPAAR
Education: Bachelor's degree, University of Alaska-Fairbanks
Community activities: Polo player. Mulford Realty Polo Team, owner. Culpeper Horse Owner's Association, president. Farmer; pigs, cattle, chickens, bees, horses.
Awards: Past board member, Brandy Station Foundation, Bronze Star
Three most-important issues: Growth, education, transportation
F. DEWAYNE PAYNE JR.
Address: 18301 Greens Corner Road
Political party: Republican
Political experience: None
Age: 29
Family: Wife, Meredith
Occupation: Full-time farmer
Education: Graduate of Culpeper County High School; bachelor's degree in business, James Madison University; master's degree in business, Strayer University
Community activities: Currently serving a fifth year on the Culpeper County Planning Commission and Architectural Review Board. Member of Town Comprehensive Plan Steering Committee.
Honors: 2008 Culpeper Chamber of Commerce Outstanding Agribusiness Award
Three most-important issues: Support education and improve infrastructure without creating a burden for the taxpayer; use planning to preserve prime farm land, protect historical sites and provide for the transportation needs of residents and businesses; encourage working relationship between town and county
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Date published: 10/13/2009
Most recent reader comments:
mr. mulford.......
(posted by
meanasasnake
, Oct. 14, 2009 10:51 am)  
Gotta love the internet! Where your words and misdeeds are saved forever!!
Mulford's record
(posted by
lisakb
, Oct. 14, 2009 7:20 am)  
Between 2004 and this past August in Orange and Culpeper counties, Mulford's convictions:
6 speeding tickets
Expired state (vehicle) inspection
Defective (vehicle) equipment
2 times caught driving w/out valid driver's license
Suspended driver's license
Failure to obey highway sign
Trespass
Unlawful detainer
Warrant in deb
Mr. Mulford's alter ego
(posted by
lisakb
, Oct. 14, 2009 7:17 am)  
This article does the citizens of Culpeper County no justice as it does not portray Mr. Mulford's views on animal neglect and abuse and women.
Here's some other articles
http://www2.starexponent.com/cse/news/local/article/mulford_in_a_war_of_words_with_former_horse_owners/43684/
http://www2.starexponent.com/cse/news/opinion/op_ed/article/our_view_mulfords_combative_style_does_him_no_good/44090/
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