MMPCDC’s dear friend and long-time co-chair, Cheryl Macias, passed away on October 5, after battling stage 4 lung cancer for almost a year. Cheryl was indeed the best of us–tireless, conscientious, loving and dedicated to the max. She opened her home and her heart to so many of us and worked tirelessly as a canvasser, advocate, poll greeter, supporter, adviser, teacher, listener, researcher, and more than our grieving brains can express. Cheryl was ever present–to staff an event, prepare food for a crowd, welcome dignitaries, assemble candidate literature, pick up litter, stuff envelopes, assemble food care packages during Covid, dress up for fundraisers, even sing karaoke.
Besides serving as our co-chair for nearly eight years, Cheryl was a long-time active volunteer leader with other organizations, including the Manassas Rotary Club and Scouting America’s National Capital Area Council.
The Manassas & Manassas Park Cities Democratic Committee (MMPCDC) membership typically meets on the third Wednesday of each month, from 7-8:30 pm at the “Social Soiree” event center, 8270 Shoppers Square, Manassas, VA 20111. All Democrats are welcome at all of our meetings, and we now offer a remote attendance option via Zoom.
Our scheduled meeting dates in 2025 are as follows: January 15, February 19, March 19, April 16 (online only), May 21, June 18 (one day after the June 17 primary), July 16, August 20, September 17, October 15, and November 19.
For December, we usually have a potluck holiday party in lieu of a business meeting. This year’s holiday party will be held on Friday, December 12, from 6:30 to 9 pm.
Any changes to these scheduled meetings will be announced in the scrolling banner above.
Manassas & Manassas Park Democrats Reorganized for 2024-2025
The in-person attendees at our January 17, 2024 reorganization meeting
The Manassas & Manassas Park Cities Democratic Committee held its biennial reorganization meeting on Wednesday, January 17, 2024. The hybrid-format meeting allowed participation either in person or remotely via the Zoom platform. Sixty-three members were elected to the Committee at that initial meeting.
Congratulations to the following individuals who were elected as Committee officers for the 2024-2025 biennium:
Co-Chairs: Cheryl Macias and Gretchen Almstead
Vice Chair: Yesy Amaya
Secretary: Vacant
Treasurer: Patt Fields
We extend our sincere appreciation to Donald Shuemaker, our outgoing vice chair who has served us in that capacity for more than a decade, and to Michael Laverty, who has served as our secretary for more than four years.
* * *
Virginia Supreme Court Approves New State and Federal Legislative Districts
On December 28, 2021, the Supreme Court of Virginia unanimously approved three sets of final legislative district maps in the aftermath of the 2020 US Census.
The new district maps apply for legislative elections through the year 2031, starting in 2022 with elections for the entire US House of Representatives. The entire Virginia General Assembly was elected under the new districts in 2023.
The Cities of Manassas and Manassas Park are now united within the new 20th House of Delegates District, the new 30th Virginia Senate District, and a reconfigured 10th Congressional District.
The new legislative district maps for Manassas and Manassas Park are displayed below.
Read the full court order and view all three sets of district maps here.
The new 20th House of Delegates District
The new 30th Virginia Senate District
Virginia’s new 10th Congressional District
New Voting Precinct, Precinct Boundary Changes, and Optical Scanner Voting Machines for City of Manassas in Effect, Beginning in 2017
Beginning in 2017, the City of Manassas has a sixth voting precinct, with its polling place at George C Round Elementary School at 10100 Hastings Drive. At the same time, the boundaries of the City’s five other voting precincts have been adjusted, to better balance the number of registered voters within each precinct. These changes were prompted by continued residential development and population growth within the City and the requirement under the Code of Virginia that no precinct have more than 5,000 registered voters or 4,000 votes cast in a presidential election.
On February 13, 2017, the Manassas City Council adopted a new City of Manassas voting precinct ordinance that sets the boundaries and designates the polling places for all voting precincts (including the central absentee voting precinct in the Old Town Hall building at 9025 Center St).
Below is a map of the new voting precinct boundaries. In Spring 2017, the Manassas Voter Registrar’s Office mailed a voter registration letter to all voters registered in the City to inform them of their polling location.
New City of Manassas Voting Precincts, Starting in 2017 (click to enlarge)
Also in 2017, the City of Manassas has begun using the OpenElect Voting System from Unisyn Voting Solutions to scan and record votes made on paper ballots. Voters now mark their votes on a paper ballot and then insert the ballot into an optical scanner that reads the selections and takes a digital image of the ballot. After the polls close, poll workers run a tally report on the scanner to obtain the precinct results.
Has Your Voter Registration Been Purged?
Every two years, the Virginia Department of Elections removes inactive voters from the voter registration rolls of every Virginia locality.
Reportedly, a voter’s registration is purged only after an inactive voter fails to respond to repeated mailers from the Virginia Department of Elections requesting an address verification and then fails to vote at all during two Federal Election Cycles following the initial mailer.
These lists of purged voters are organized by numbered voting precincts. The precinct codes for each city are as follows:
PCT Manassas Polling Location 0001 Dean Elementary School 0002 Weems Elementary School 0003 Metz Middle School 0004 Haydon Elementary School 0005 Baldwin Elementary School 0006 Round Elementary School
PCT Manassas Park Polling Location 0001 Manassas Park High School 0002 Costello Park Community Center 0003 Manassas Park City Hall
The best and easiest way to verify that your voter registration is still valid is to review your voter record at the Virginia Department of Elections voter portal, after entering your name, date of birth, locality, and last four digits of your social security number.
Paul J. Reid, April 13, 1951 – February 23, 2017
Paul Reid, a stalwart member of our Committee and a good friend to many of us, passed away on Thursday, February 23, following a bout with cancer. He died at home in his wife’s arms.
Paul was born April 13, 1951 in Brooklyn, New York, the son of the late William F. and Marcella M. Reid. He retired from the Central Intelligence Agency, then worked for General Dynamics and Geospatial Solution Inc., finally retiring in 2015.
After leaving federal service, Paul became an active volunteer for the Manassas & Manassas Park Cities Democratic Committee.
EJ Scott, MMPCDC’s Immediate Past Chair, summarizes Paul’s service to our Democratic community as follows:
Paul Reid was the true embodiment of Democratic values. He believed in equality and justice and was dedicated to making this country live up to its ideals. He was a quiet man, except when talking about the craziness exhibited by the other side. No one worked harder and longer than Paul. He knocked doors, made phone calls, worked the polls and was always the first one onsite to help set up for events. He was given MMPCDC’s second Blue Victory Chair’s Award for his service and commitment to getting Democrats elected.
Paul spoke fluent Spanish and loved to dance the salsa with his wife Betsy. At our festival booths, it was reassuring to have him there to converse with our Spanish-speaking visitors.
After the House of Delegate Districts were redrawn, and we could not find anyone to run against Jackson Miller, Paul even agreed to be our write-in candidate for the 50th District Delegate. We called and handed out write-in ballots, and he received a good vote showing.
Paul was generous. He often offered to assist with financing events, and he sponsored tickets to our events, so the less fortunate could attend. He gave to Democratic candidates and then continued to give his time and energy to getting them elected.
Paul Reid was a participant. Paul was a soldier in the fight to turn Virginia Blue. And recent past elections have shown the rewards of that battle.
When his widow was asked what can we do, she responded simply, “Take back Congress.” Nothing would please him more.
Paul also volunteered as the Vice President of in-line hockey for the Prince William Hockey Club from 1998 to 2006, where he also coached two of his sons, Andrew and John. In 2006, he purchased a second home in Capon Bridge, West Virginia, where he spent the weekends experimenting with home brewing recipes, reading, kayaking, fishing, biking.
Survivors include his wife of 42 years, Elizabeth F. (Betsy) Reid, three sons, Peter Reid of Falls Church, VA, Andrew Reid of Manassas, VA, and John Reid of Austin, Texas; one granddaughter, Mia A. Reid, and one grandson Luke M. Reid; daughter in-laws Alix Reid and Elizabeth Gonzales.
