I hear that Mary Ann Hovis is running, so far unopposed, to replace Scott Surovell as chair of the Fairfax County Democratic Committee (FCDC). Surovell, of course, is running for Kris Amundson's House of Delegates seat, which she is vacating for personal reasons. I just want to take a moment to strongly endorse Mary Ann for FCDC chair. Both Mary Ann and her husband Bob Hovis are superb Democrats, having given tremendously of their time and resources to Democratic candidates for many years now. I will always appreciate the tremendous support the Hovises gave to Jim Webb, including this event at their house, which I had the privilege of attending. Another excellent event at the Hovis' house was on March 31, 2008, with Jim Webb in support of Leslie Byrne. Yet another event held by the Hovises was for Sen. Donald McEachin with special guest Jim Webb on May 14, 2007. Overall, the Hovises have donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to Democrats over the years.In addition to her tremendous financial support of the Democratic Party and its candidates, Mary Ann Hovis has served as the FCDC Vice Chair for Finance, working closely with great Democrats like Sue Langley, Chris Ambrose, Bruce Nielson, and many others, not the least of whom has been outgoing chair Scott Surovell, whose excellent approach and effective/cohesive team Hovis will continue. Other than that, people I've spoken with about Mary Ann Hovis say that she is an "excellent manager," "inspirational," a "great leader" and a "hard worker."
Last but not least, it's worth mentioning that the Hovises have been strong supporters of - and close friends with - Creigh Deeds for many years now. Given that Creigh is the Democratic nominee for governor, it seems to me that we could do a lot worse than having someone who is close to Creigh heading up the largest Democratic committee in Virginia. Go Mary Ann!
