Reston Association board appoints Paul Thomas to elections committee after interview and executive-session discussion

The Reston Association Board of Directors appointed Paul Thomas to the association’s elections committee during a special virtual meeting Feb. 9, 2026, after a short volunteer interview and an executive-session discussion of personnel matters.

Paul Thomas, who told the board he had served on the RA board for about four years and has lived in Reston most of the time since 1968, introduced himself as willing to help with elections work. “I am happy and willing to jump in and help out,” Thomas said, noting he had spoken with Richard Chu and Margaret Perry before the interview.

Why it matters: The elections committee handles procedural details that affect candidate qualification and voting processes within the association. Directors pressed Thomas about potential perceptions of bias stemming from prior relationships and public-office activity and sought assurances about transparency.

During questioning, directors asked about Thomas’s prior runs for public office and whether that history would affect his impartiality. Thomas said he had been a candidate for school board and has experience running campaigns, but framed those experiences as a basis for “empathy for the challenges” candidates face. He also said he is currently on the RTC board of governors and that he would disclose any relationships that could create a perception of bias and, if appropriate, recuse himself from specific duties: “I would have to disclose those very carefully and make sure…if there comes a time when there’s an election going and I have a relationship with someone who was running that precludes the perception of impartiality, I’ll disclose that and let the board decide,” he said.

Before the vote, Dr. Perry (identified in the record as a director and a candidate for another office) stated she was running for an apartment-owners representative seat and declared that she intended to vote on the appointment. Director Frell also said he intended to vote in favor. The transcript records several verbal “I” votes; Director Mullenex is explicitly noted as not voting in the record. The meeting transcript does not include a clear, named roll-call tally for every vote.

The board first convened in executive session to discuss personnel matters and afterward certified that only matters appropriate to executive session were discussed. The president then moved to appoint Thomas, the motion was seconded, and the appointment motion was carried as recorded in the meeting log.

Members and staff thanked Thomas for volunteering. The president adjourned what they described as the briefest meeting they had chaired.

What the record does and does not show: The transcript documents the motions, the appointment motion, and multiple verbal votes, and includes several directors’ stated intentions to vote yes and one director’s statement that they did not vote. The transcript does not provide a clear, named tally of every board member’s recorded vote in the minutes provided here.

Next steps: The transcript indicates the board will notify Thomas when the process is complete; the record does not specify any further procedural steps or an effective start date for his service on the elections committee.