Macdonald Resigns from the Alexandria Democratic Committee

Former Vice Mayor Andrew Macdonald said Tuesday that he is resigning from the Alexandria Democratic Committee.

"I have decided to resign as a member the ADC rather then engage in a divisive debate over the merits of the complaints made against me. I have simply decided that I am politically more of an independent, especially when it comes to local public policy issues here in Alexandria,” he told Patch. “I think that Alexandria needs to elect a City Council that is thoughtful, honest and committed to listening to citizens. If I decide to run for elected office in November I will therefore do so as an Independent, not as a member of any party."

ADC Chairman Dak Hardwick questioned Macdonald’s choice to that if he runs for mayor, it would likely be as an Independent. Macdonald ran for City Council and won twice as a Democrat, in 2003 and 2006. He ran unsuccessfully as an Independent in 2000. He recently renewed his ADC membership.

“He’s a sitting member of the ADC,” Hardwick said. “He made his choice to go to a Republican meeting and ask for their support. I find that to be quite suspicious. It’s disappointing to put political expediency ahead of supporting your core values.”

He added: “When people join the ADC, they connect to the organization. They commit to a certain value set that is held by those of us in the Democratic Party. If Macdonald does not feel that he is able to take that value-set forward, it’s appropriate for him to resign.”

Hardwick also reiterated to Patch that the ADC did not ask him explicitly to resign.

“We did not ask him to resign,” Hardwick said. “We asked him to declare his intentions to the ADC... Are you going to remain a member of the party or are you going to remain part of our caucus?”