Arlington County, Virginia

Member School Board, Arlington County

2 candidates are tracked for Member School Board, Arlington County on the November 3, 2026 ballot: James Vell Rives IV and Bethany Zecher Sutton. Candidate information follows official Arlington County election filings; verify with the official election office linked below.

About this race

2 certified candidates for Member School Board, Arlington County on the November 3, 2026 ballot, per the Virginia Department of Elections' certified local candidate list (updated September 3, 2026). Virginia local offices are nonpartisan on the ballot unless a candidate was nominated by a party; the number of seats filled and the district lines come from the locality's own ballot.

What this office does

School board member. The school board is the governing body of a public school district. It hires and evaluates the superintendent, adopts the district budget, sets policies on curriculum, discipline, attendance boundaries and facilities, and approves contracts and collective bargaining agreements. Day-to-day operations belong to the superintendent; the board sets direction and holds the administration accountable.

Virginia › Arlington County › Member School Board, Arlington County

James Vell Rives IV

Independent

Top priorities

Let teachers focus on teaching
Support age-appropriate education that lets kids be kids

Per the campaign site.

Biography

Rives holds a B.A. in music and an M.D. from the University of Alabama and completed a psychiatry residency at Johns Hopkins Hospital, per the campaign site. He has practiced adolescent and adult psychiatry in Northern Virginia for more than 20 years and serves as a Clinical Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at George Washington University School of Medicine, per the campaign site.

Campaign site (opens in a new tab)

Bethany Zecher Sutton

Independent

Top priorities

Strong public education in Arlington and across Virginia
Continuing food-security work such as the Randolph Food Pantry she led as a PTA volunteer
Diversity, equity and inclusion in school policy

Per the campaign site.

Biography

Sutton is a 25-year Arlington resident and Arlington Public Schools parent who holds a master's degree in history from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a graduate certificate in leadership coaching from Georgetown University, per the campaign site. She has more than three decades of professional experience in higher education, nonprofit leadership and executive search, and was elected to the Arlington School Board in 2022, later becoming its chair, per the campaign site.

Campaign site (opens in a new tab)

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Voting info and more

Questions about this race

Who is running for Member School Board, Arlington County in 2026?

When is the Member School Board, Arlington County election in Virginia?

Election Day is Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Registration deadlines, early voting dates and mail ballot rules for Virginia are on the Virginia election hub at theballotbrief.com.

How do I see my exact Arlington County ballot?

Enter your ZIP code in the lookup at theballotbrief.com for the statewide and congressional races, or a full street address to add the county, city and district contests for that location.

Verify this race

Candidate roster from official Arlington County and state election office filings. Bios and priorities carry their attribution inline.

Cross-check with the official Virginia election office, or see the full Arlington County sample ballot and your exact ballot by address.

The rest of your Arlington County ballot

3 tracked races in Arlington County, Virginia. Landed here from another county's search? Look up your own ballot below.

Also on your ballot

Member County Board, Arlington County See all 3 Arlington County races

Candidate profiles

James Vell Rives IV, full profile Bethany Zecher Sutton, full profile Official Virginia election office