JCC Supervisor Michael J. Hipple Says He Won't Run for Re-Election
surprises fellow supervisors at work session Tuesday
James City County Supervisor Michael J. Hipple surprised his fellow supervisors Tuesday afternoon by announcing he would not run for re-election in November.
“I’ve had a great run, but I just want to do some other things,” said Hipple, who has represented the Powhatan District since 2013. He made the announcement at the end of Tuesday’s board of supervisors work session.
Hipple said he was making his announcement now because “I just want to open it up for whoever may want to run… I want to give them enough time to get in there and do their run.”
Hipple’s announcement came on the same day that the only other Supervisor up for re-election this year, Jim Icenhour, announced he would run again to represent the Jamestown District.
We reported Tuesday that Hipple would face at least one challenger, Democrat Ti’Juana Gholson, a local businesswoman and community volunteer. As of this writing, she is unopposed, but there nine months left until the election.
The 81-year-old Icenhour, a former Air Force and airline pilot, is on his 16th year on the Board of Supervisors.
“We are in a critical time in James City County,” he said in his announcement. “It’s now or never when it comes to managing the growth of our community.”
Icenhour, a Democrat, said he wanted to bring good paying jobs to the county; stop developers from the type of projects that increase taxes, and protect the county’s natural resources while being fiscally prudent.