Voters in Mathews County handed decisive victories on Tuesday night to two board of supervisors challengers—Patrick Beattie, who garnered 31.6 percent of the vote, and David Walsh, who came in right behind him, with 30.3 percent.
Incumbents Mike Walls and Dave Jones split the remaining third of the vote, pulling in 20.34 percent and 16.7 percent, respectively.
Much of the race centered on decisions and actions Walls and Jones had made during their four-year term regarding the county’s relationship with the Hole in the Wall Waterfront Grill, a county-owned property that is leased to the restaurant. The two incumbents had a rocky, sometimes adversarial, relationship with the restaurant owners that resulted in multiple lawsuits and the expenditure of county funds on legal fees. Both of the winning candidates promised a fresh start and a commitment to resolving the issues.
But on Wednesday morning, none of the candidates were focused on that central issue. The victors were all about moving...