Fresh from her primary win on June 18, Alexandria’s presumptive mayor says she is starting to form a transition team and will continue campaigning until the Nov. 5 election to get the Democratic slate of six candidates elected to Alexandria’s City Council.
City Council Member Alyia Gaskins took a few days off after defeating Vice Mayor Amy Jackson and retired real estate developer Steven Peterson on June 18. She and her husband and two kids went back home to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, for four days.
Gaskins faces no opposition in November and wants to form a transition team by August.
“I’d like to put together a diverse group of perspectives to help me think through what this transition time looks like,” Gaskins said. “But also to determine what do the first 180 days of my administration look like?”
Gaskins continued, “I want people who are aligned in the same values I’ve had as it relates to integrity, accountability, possibilities and innovation. I’d say from there, then the experience and the expertise that they bring, that might be both in just their experiences living on this city, either as a new resident or someone who’s lived here a long time or somebody who’s been dependent on city services. I’m looking at some past city employees so I can understand kind of internally the dynamics of the organization what worked for them what didn’t work. I’m looking at folks with an expertise in some of the critical issues we face from climate to public safety.”
Gaskins was elected to City Council in 2021, and moved to the city with her family from Fairfax County in 2016. She’s a senior program officer at Melville Charitable Trust, and her professional credits include stints as a a public health strategist with the Center for Community Investment and the National League of Cities.
ALXnow: Looking back, can you describe what it felt like to win the nomination on June 18?
Gaskins: The emotions that I felt most intensely were immense joy, excitement, hope, but also just a deep gratitude. We held our watch party at La Casa (4551 Duke Street) in the West End… I felt like I was surrounded by a room of people who had become like family. To me it didn’t feel like exhaustion, it felt more just like a celebration and a chance to be glad in that moment, but also excited and hopeful for the work ahead.
ALXnow: You face no opposition in November. What are you going to be doing between now and then?
Gaskins: I don’t take anything for granted, and there’s still work to be done. There’s still people I haven’t met, there are still conversations to be had. One part of the campaign we’re thinking about continuing with is the meet-and-greets, continuing to do roundtables and policy discussions and to cultivate different spaces where people can interact with me, they can hear more about my vision, but they can also begin to help me co-create that transition and next path forward. So, you won’t see us just sitting around doing nothing.
But this is not just about me. The voters have selected a Democratic team of six that they want to see move forward, so it’s meeting with the party to think about what is the coordinated campaign look like moving forward and how I can be helpful to my future colleagues in making sure that they’re supported in the work that they need to do over the next several months.
ALXnow: The current mayor is very much a 21st century communicator as far as being on social media, in his newsletter and as well as his occasional town halls. How are you going to communicate with constituents?
Gaskins: The current mayor and I communicate differently, but we’re also considered as the most responsive members of council. I would hope that people recognize I will continue to be responsive, I will continue to proactively respond, but also proactively reach out.
One of the things I know I will continue to do are a monthly video. It’s a short recap of some of the highlights that we’ve done on council. Also, anytime there’s a contentious vote where we’ve had some difficult conversations I send out to my newsletter and detail why I took the position I took, who did I speak to what were the things I read. I want to be as transparent and visible in my thinking and my approach, and I will continue to do that as well…
I’ve also thought about conducting monthly civics chats with our civic associations or tenant unions, where we have a standard time to come together. The other thing I really enjoy doing is having meetings in the community. I’ve gone and held dinners with women, for Afghan women, things like that, where they’re not formal town halls or formal meetings, but they’re spaces where I am sitting with you, and it is my space to listen and share. I want to find ways to do to do more of that.
ALXnow: Have you met with the city manager about the change in leadership structure?
Gaskins: I am meeting with the city manager. I think we have something scheduled in two weeks. That’ll be our first one-on-one since the election.
My hope is to have a conversation around, from his perspective, what does he view as the current state of the organization? What are the things that keep him up at night? I have ideas, but I also want to hear it directly from him. Where are some of the greatest opportunities he sees? I also want to spend more time diving into what has worked or not worked about the way we currently communicate.
What are my expectations for how I think about the next phase, what am I thinking about in terms of a transition, but just begin to open a conversation about who I am as a leader and how I see myself in this next leadership role, because while there are months before the official transition takes place, I think it’s important to begin these conversations now. Because that’s going to be one of the most important relationships in my success.
ALXnow: Putting Council aside, many people are worried about what will happen in and around Alexandria after the presidential election. Alexandria is next door to the nation’s capital, and a lot of what happens there has immediate repercussions.
Gaskins: Whatever the uncertain times are that we face, what you can always expect from me is a leader who is going to be engaging with you, who is going to be asking the difficult questions — How did we get here? What else is possible? And what are the options we have to move forward? A leader who thinks comprehensively. I’ve never been somebody who just sees things in black and white or binary choices, but really tries to figure out what is beneath the surface.
What comes through in your question is a recognition that our city sits within the context of what is happening in our region, what is happening in our state, what is happening in our country, our world. All of those things have implications for our people, so you’re also going to get a leader who has that awareness and is going to be working to determine the right path forward.
I can’t predict the future, but I’m also an eternal optimist and I constantly believe in the power of possibility. But I believe that when you have that grounding in terms of your approach, it doesn’t matter what the situation is, there’s a way that you can leverage that, and you can leverage the people around you to figure out how to keep on moving.
