Michael Sutphin won the race for Blacksburg mayor by 18 votes, according to results on the state’s election website.
Sutphin, who has been on the Blacksburg Town Council since 2012, got 5,573 votes, or 49.35%, while opponent Peter Macedo, a small-business owner, got 5,555 votes, or 49.19%. The race was too close to call on Election Day, with just 45 votes separating the candidates and several thousand absentee and provisional ballots still left to be counted.
The vote totals remain unofficial until approved by the Virginia Department of Elections.
Sutphin said it was a hard-fought campaign that highlighted differing perspectives on how to move the town forward.
“I think it’s very important that we all as a community listen to each other’s opinions as we move forward, and that’s something that I’ll be doing as mayor,” he said Wednesday afternoon.
Because the margin was less than 1% of the votes cast, Virginia law allows Macedo to request a recount within 10 days of the final results. Since the margin was less than a half-percent, the county would pay for the recount. As of Wednesday afternoon, Macedo said he was still mulling it over.
“I’m OK with not winning,” Macedo said. “But what I think is most important is that, since this is such a close decision, that it’s important to all the people who did vote that we just confirm that it is the way it is.”
The Montgomery County registrar’s office verified and reported the last of the provisional ballots on Wednesday, finalizing the results. Last week, the registrar’s office reported having just over 2,000 provisional ballots to verify, most of which were cast by voters in precincts heavily populated by Virginia Tech students. Both candidates are Virginia Tech graduates.
“I’ve been involved in Blacksburg town issues for almost my entire adult life,” said Sutphin. “So, it feels like it’s come full circle and I’m very grateful for the support that I’ve had — not just from students — but from every member of the community who voted for me in last week’s election.”
The tight race highlighted tension over recent decisions by town council members, most of whom have served multiple terms. Sutphin, the town’s vice mayor, said Blacksburg’s biggest challenge is managing town growth effectively. Macedo is a political newcomer who said town governance needed more data-driven decision-making and transparency. They both ran to replace Leslie Hager-Smith, who was on the town council for three terms starting in 2008 and has been mayor since 2018, but did not seek reelection.