One year into Trump’s second regime, we face an escalating fascist threat: raids on our communities, troops occupying our cities, attacks on immigrants, families torn apart, mass surveillance, and terror used to keep us silent. It is time for our communities to escalate as well.
2025 was a year of marches that showed our collective strength. And as the threats grow, our movement must evolve and escalate. Trump and his allies have already made clear that a second term would bring a deeper wave of misogyny, racism, xenophobia, and violence than the first.
On January 20, we call on our communities to organize teams, call your neighbors and classmates, and turn your back and walk out on fascism. Host mutual aid planning meetings, organize public service, but walk out to block the normal routines of power, and make the stakes real. This is a protest and a promise. In the face of fascism, we will be ungovernable.
★ We walk away from fascism. ★
★ We walk towards a Free America.★
★ We fight for a future that belongs to us all. ★
★ Everybody in, nobody out. ★
★ Welcome to the Free America Walkout ★
This local event is being organized by volunteers with the Manassas & Manassas Park Cities Democratic Committee for TUESDAY, JANUARY 20, from 2-4 PM, on the plaza outside Manassas Park City Hall (Manassas Dr at Park Center Ct) and along the NORTH sidewalk of Manassas Drive between Bank St and the railroad tracks.
We will stand along that Manassas Drive sidewalk with protest signs and small American flags to be seen and heard by those in passing vehicles.
Ample free parking will be available in the surface parking lots on either side of the City Hall/public library building, in the nearby VRE parking garage, and in the VRE parking lot on the other side of the railroad tracks. Public restrooms will be open inside the City Hall/library building.
Our event headquarters will be beneath a blue popup canopy tent on the City Hall plaza. Visit our headquarters to learn about various local political activities and to create a handmade protest sign if you need one.
If you have one, please bring a small handheld American flag and a protest sign that speaks to your issue(s). Patriotic attire is welcome but optional. In addition, bring a water bottle, dress for the weather, and reach out if you have any questions. And please spread the word!
IMPORTANT: We have received a public gathering permit to conduct this event from the City of Manassas Park. Participants must obey all pedestrian and traffic laws and may not interfere with the movements of vehicles or pedestrians. Our event marshals, wearing orange vests, will act to de-escalate any potential incidents of harassment, vandalism, or violence. If you see something, say something. If the City requires us to modify our plans, we will notify event registrants in advance via email.
Manassas & Manassas Park Democrats to Reorganize on January 21
All registered voters who live in the City of Manassas or the City of Manassas Park and who identify as Democrats are invited to participate, whether as a candidate for MMPCDC membership (either as a regular [voting] or associate [non-voting] member and a caucus voter) or as simply a caucus voter. The Democratic Party of Virginia requires all city and county Democratic committees to completely reorganize every two years, between mid-December in each odd-numbered year and mid-January in each even-numbered year.
To join the local Democratic Committee, local Democrats must file in advance with the MMPCDC by 11:59 pm on Sunday, January 18, 2026. Prospective members must also pay their first-year membership dues of $30 by that deadline, unless their dues payment is waived for financial hardship. Those unable to attend the meeting in person or via Zoom may still stand for election as a member or an officer of the MMPCDC if they file for election in advance and submit their dues payment by the January 18th deadline.
To become a regular [voting] member of the Manassas & Manassas Park Cities Democratic Committee, interested persons must file a membership application certifying that are registered to vote in either city; consider themselves to be a Democrat and support the principles of the Democratic Party; will not support any candidate opposing a Democratic nominee in any 2026 or 2027 election; and intend to regularly participate in the activities of the MMPCDC. The annual dues payment of $30 will be waived for applicants who certify in writing that the payment would be a financial hardship. Democrats who live outside the two cities or who wish to support the MMPCDC without any requirement to attend meetings or participate in volunteer activities are welcome to join the MMPCDC as an associate [non-voting] member.
To simply vote in the reorganization caucus to elect the regular MMPCDC members, registered voters who live in either the City of Manassas or the City of Manassas Park must sign a declaration form that includes several of the certifications contained in the membership application. This caucus voter declaration form may be filed in person between 6:30 pm and 7:15 pm on January 21.
Complete details–including the Call for the Reorganization Meeting, the membership application and filing form, and the proposed Rules for conducting the elections of MMPCDC members and officers–are posted on the MMPCDC website, www.manassascitydemocrats.org.
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 greater Manassas community honored Cheryl’s legacy with a Celebration of Life on November 15, 2025. View the photos of Cheryl projected at that event and the photos of participants captured by photographer extraordinaire, Mike Beaty, on flickr.
MMPCDCMonthly Meetings in 2026
The Manassas & Manassas Park Cities Democratic Committee (MMPCDC) typically holds membership meetings 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 offer a remote attendance option via Zoom.
Our scheduled meeting dates in 2026 are as follows: January 21 (biennial reorganization), February 18, March 18, April 15, May 20, June 17, July 15, August 19, September 16, October 21, and November 18.
For December, we usually have a potluck holiday party in lieu of a business meeting.
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.
