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By Alexandra Bocidanovic
Rappahannock News Staff Writer
In declaring his candidacy for governor on Tuesday, Warrenton Mayor George Fitch . acknowledged that he’ll be viewed as the dark horse. But it won’t be the first time.
“My campaign is being dismissed as irrelevant. I’m (seen as) the long shot, as the underdog,” he told a crowd at the John Barton Payne Building.
“I’m not a (typical) candidate. I’m not a lawyer, I am not beholding to special interests and I am not an entrenched political figure,” he added, alluding to the opponents he may face in the Republican primary June 14.
But Fitch, who swapped his familiar comfortable leather bomber jacket for a suit and tie, said his track record during his two terms as mayor here makes him a viable candidate.
“As a person who has already reformed one government, I think I can bring the same disciplined approach to a much larger one,” he said. A proven commodity
Fitch wasn’t supposed to win when he made his first mayoral bid, either.
“Seven years ago I was walking down the street when I saw an unfamiliar face,” Warrenton Town Councilman John “Sparky” Lewis recalled at the Tuesday press conference. “I said, ‘Hi, I’m Sparky Lewis. I’m running for mayor.’And he said, ‘Hi, I’m George Fitch and I’m running against you.’ “
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