This article was written by Mark Spooner of the The Fairfax Times and can be found here.

Socialism has arrived in New York, but is it wanted in Fairfax County? That question is presented to voters in the county’s Braddock District as they consider the candidates for an open seat on the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors in the upcoming Dec. 9 special election.

Rachna Sizemore-Heizer, the Democrat candidate, embraces socialist teachings. She currently serves on the Fairfax County School Board. When she took her oath of office after the 2023 election, she didn’t lay her hand on the Bible, the Torah, or the Quran.  She chose as her sacred text a socialist tract, A People’s History of the United States.  Its author variously described himself as something of a “socialist,” “anarchist,” and/or “Marxist.” His text, which  Sizemore-Heizer holds so dear, claims that American history, from its founding to the present, is a story of oppression of the working class by a privileged elite. The Constitution, the two-party tradition, patriotism, and even populist reforms (occasional “gestures”) – all are portrayed as tools to keep the masses in their place. 

Sizemore-Heizer’s choice of this tome for taking her oath is unsurprising. She has consistently pushed far-left ideology in the county’s public schools. Under her watch, and with her support, the school board developed history curriculum materials based on concepts from critical race theory.  It paid an exorbitant fee to a notorious race-baiter, Ibram X. Kendi, to spread his teachings to school administrators. It has supported a bloated 56-person DEI office in which the salaries of about half the employees exceed the maximum salaries of the most qualified master teachers. It has mandated that “equity” be at the forefront of all decisions. It has maintained an LGBTQIA policy that permits the school system to support gender transitions behind the backs of parents, polices pronoun usage, and permits biological males to compete in girls’ athletics and use girls’ locker rooms. These and other policies supported by Sizemore-Heizer are documented on my website, FairfaxSchoolsMonitor.com.

Although Fairfax County tends to be a “blue” jurisdiction, the vast majority of its citizens, and certainly those in the Braddock District in which I reside, are moderate, sensible, and fiscally responsible. Sizemore-Heizer falsely portrays herself as being in the mainstream. The views of the Republican candidate, Ken Balbuena, are much more in line with the values and priorities of local citizens. The board of supervisors has 10 members, only one of whom is currently a Republican. All voters, including those who typically vote for Democratic candidates, should consider the benefits of having a board whose members bring varying views to the table.  In this election, choosing the mainstream candidate should be a clear choice for all.