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Richard Kowalewitch
Richard Kowalewitch (also known as RK) ran for election for Mayor of Virginia Beach. He lost in the general election on November 5, 2024.
Biography
Kowalewitch graduated from Norview High School and attended Old Dominion University. He is the owner of RK's Surf Shop.[1]
Elections
2024
See also: Mayoral election in Virginia Beach, Virginia (2024)
General election
General election for Mayor of Virginia Beach
Incumbent Bob Dyer defeated Sabrina Wooten, John Moss, Chris Taylor, and Richard Kowalewitch in the general election for Mayor of Virginia Beach on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Bob Dyer (Nonpartisan) | 40.9 | 88,975 |
 | Sabrina Wooten (Nonpartisan)  | 31.7 | 68,987 | |
 | John Moss (Nonpartisan) | 16.8 | 36,553 | |
 | Chris Taylor (Nonpartisan) | 7.7 | 16,767 | |
 | Richard Kowalewitch (Nonpartisan) | 2.5 | 5,369 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.3 | 685 | ||
| Total votes: 217,336 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Cheryl Turpin (Nonpartisan)
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Kowalewitch in this election.
2022
See also: City elections in Virginia Beach, Virginia (2022)
General election
General election for Virginia Beach City Council District 6
Worth Remick defeated Linwood Branch, Richard Kowalewitch, and Cathy Porterfield in the general election for Virginia Beach City Council District 6 on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Worth Remick (Nonpartisan) | 43.2 | 6,952 |
| Linwood Branch (Nonpartisan) | 41.7 | 6,725 | ||
| Richard Kowalewitch (Nonpartisan) | 8.9 | 1,431 | |
 | Cathy Porterfield (Nonpartisan) | 5.9 | 943 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.4 | 58 | ||
| Total votes: 16,109 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2020
See also: Mayoral election in Virginia Beach, Virginia (2020)
General election
General election for Mayor of Virginia Beach
Incumbent Bob Dyer defeated Jody Wagner and Richard Kowalewitch in the general election for Mayor of Virginia Beach on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Bob Dyer (Nonpartisan) | 51.6 | 113,567 |
 | Jody Wagner (Nonpartisan) | 43.8 | 96,400 | |
| Richard Kowalewitch (Nonpartisan) | 4.4 | 9,570 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.2 | 387 | ||
| Total votes: 219,924 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2019
See also: City elections in Virginia Beach, Virginia (2019)
General election
Special general election for Virginia Beach City Council District Beach
Incumbent Guy Tower defeated Rosemary Wilson and Richard Kowalewitch in the special general election for Virginia Beach City Council District Beach on November 5, 2019.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Guy Tower (Independent) | 42.3 | 49,520 |
 | Rosemary Wilson (Independent) | 39.7 | 46,513 | |
| Richard Kowalewitch (Independent) | 17.7 | 20,662 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.3 | 367 | ||
| Total votes: 117,062 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2018
General election
General election for Virginia Beach City Council District Beach
David Nygaard defeated incumbent John Uhrin, Richard Kowalewitch, and John Coker in the general election for Virginia Beach City Council District Beach on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | David Nygaard (Nonpartisan) | 33.0 | 48,042 | |
 | John Uhrin (Nonpartisan) | 32.8 | 47,879 | |
| Richard Kowalewitch (Nonpartisan) | 22.8 | 33,232 | |
| John Coker (Nonpartisan) | 10.9 | 15,877 | ||
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.5 | 722 | ||
| Total votes: 145,752 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2016
The city of Virginia Beach, Virginia, held elections for mayor and four city council seats on November 8, 2016. Candidates interested in seeking these offices had to file with the city's voter registrar by June 14, 2016.[2][3] Incumbent Will Sessoms defeated Richard Kowalewitch, Don Weeks, and George Furman III in the nonpartisan general election for Mayor of Virginia Beach.
| Mayor of Virginia Beach, General Election, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Will Sessoms Incumbent |
54.06% | 101,251 |
| Richard Kowalewitch | 19.40% | 36,329 |
| Don Weeks | 18.39% | 34,449 |
| George Furman III | 7.60% | 14,238 |
| Write-in votes | 0.56% | 1,040 |
| Total Votes | 187,307 | |
| Source: City of Virginia Beach, "Election Information & Results," accessed November 29, 2016 | ||
Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Richard Kowalewitch did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.
2022
Richard Kowalewitch did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.
2020
Richard Kowalewitch did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.
2019
Richard Kowalewitch did not complete Ballotpedia's 2019 Candidate Connection survey.
2016
Kowalewitch's campaign website included the following themes:
| “ |
Stopping Corruption Typically when a city employee or other public official is accused of or charged with a crime, the accepted practice is for that individual to step aside while the matter is investigated by authorities or is working its way through the courts as everyone is presumed innocent until proven guilty. That didn’t happen in the case against Mayor Sessoms. Even after having been charged with a crime, he continued to serve as Mayor and continued to vote on matters that affect the lives of everyday citizens. Even more incredible, even after entering a guilty plea, he asks for your vote for another term as Virginia Beach Mayor. Virginia Beach deserves a Mayor that doesn’t have a criminal conviction as a result of his actions as an elected official. I will commit to ensuring that trust in the City of Virginia Beach is upheld by requiring ethical and transparent conduct from all of its employees and officials. Virginia Beach City employees and officers are expected to carry out their duties with fairness, maintain high standards of integrity and truthfulness. I will ensure that all public servants will refrain from any impropriety in his or her role. Every city employee will avoid using their public position or power for personal gain. Stopping Light Rail In my opinion, the Tide will be a very expensive project that will serve too few riders for the financial benefit of even fewer special interests. There is a vote on the matter during this election and if elected as your Mayor, I will honor the will of the people as expressed through the ballot box. If the voters turn down the Tide, I will do everything within my power to pull the plug on this wasteful idea. If however the voters decide we should go forward with construction, I will make certain that we receive the maximum value for our tax dollars while working to assure that contracts are awarded in a fair, impartial manner. As your Mayor, I want to introduce a new era of openness by eliminating and correcting the scandals of the past to set our town on a new path toward honest, trustworthy governance. Taxation In 2015, City Council approved another tax increase to fund light rail construction, began charging a fee for our kids to use our skateboard parks and reduced eligibility for our tax relief program that was designed to help Senior Citizens remain in their homes. We have some of the highest restaurant taxes in the country and we are now requiring people who drive for Uber and Lyft or renting rooms to visitors through AirB&B to get business licenses or collect taxes on behalf of the city government. All of these stressors come at a time when household incomes are not keeping pace with the cost of living. This is to say nothing about the ever-increasing cost of healthcare coverage. As your Mayor, I will oppose higher taxes and fees on our citizens. Of course, no politician can honestly say that they will never vote to raise taxes as unforeseen circumstances may dictate our actions. But be assured that before I would even consider raising your taxes, I will look for cuts to our city budget and other cost-saving measures to keep the burden as far away from taxpayers as possible. If elected, I will do everything possible to prevent city government from raising taxes and fees due to the current economic burdens faced by all Virginia Beach citizens. City Services These amazing people provide the highest level of service to our citizens and not only deserve recognition for their service, but they also deserve to be heard when there is a problem. You will not find a more dedicated corps of public servants anywhere in the world! They deserve our gratitude, they deserve our support and they deserve to receive a fair compensation package for the services they render. That is my commitment to those who serve us all. As Mayor, I will make every effort to meet as many of our city employees as possible and listen to what challenges they face, the ideas they have and work to assure that they have the tools, knowledge and support they need to do a better job serving our citizens. When our city employees can do their job faster, better or more efficiently, each and every citizen of Virginia Beach is better served.[4][5] |
” |
| —Richard Kowalewitch (2016) | ||
Additional themes
Kowalewitch submitted the following statement of political philosophy on October 24, 2016:
| “ |
As mayor, I will ensure that all decisions made have the interest of the people first. It is time to eradicate the corruption and eliminate the funding of special interest groups that have no benefit to the average resident. I will propose term limits, installation of an Ethics committee and would like to revise the City Charter to implement ward/district elections. I am against the Light Rail. These funds must be used for the needs of the citizens- everyday needs such as repairing roads and bridges and fixing the storm water drainage management system. I am a firm believer in the Free Enterprise System - to create jobs. Small businesses create more jobs than any other business. I will focus on our seniors, finding jobs for the retired military where they can use their skill set, and ensure that our millennials are involved and part of the planning to move our city forward. The city's budget must be balanced and all funds must be allocated in the right departments and programs.[6][5] |
” |
| —Richard Kowalewitch (2016) | ||
See also
2024 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Rick Kowalewitch for Mayor,' "Bio," accessed October 28, 2016
- ↑ City of Virginia Beach Voter Registrar, "Elected Offices and Terms," accessed August 13, 2015
- ↑ The Virginian-Pilot, "Find out who's running for Virginia Beach mayor and City Council," June 14, 2016
- ↑ Rick Kowalewitch for Mayor, "Campaign Issues," accessed October 28, 2016
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Nick Katers, "Biographical submission to Ballotpedia," October 24, 2016
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