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City of Chesapeake
Ella P. Ward
City Council
Democrat
RESOLUTE Citizen Score
100
/ 100
A
Raw: 2 of 2 dynamic max
· 1 of 30 answered
Local tier30 of 50 rubric questions apply at this office level — federal-only questions are marked N/A and excluded from the dynamic max. How tier grading works →
Last verified: · scorecard-level timestamp
✝ God First
2/ 70
🏛️ Local First
0/ 30
National Rank
#4,776 of 8,776 · bottom 45.6% among candidates with at least one scored answer
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Reach out directly. Your voice matters. Proverbs 29:2 — When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice.
Official Profile
Religion: Member (church greeter), Mt. Lebanon Missionary Baptist Church
Education: B.A. English (Norfolk State University, 1969, valedictorian); M.A. Mass Communications (NSU, 1977); M.S. Educational Administration (Old Dominion, 1993); CAGS + EdD Educational Administration (Virginia Tech, 1999–2000)
Background: Retired educator (Portsmouth Public Schools, 35 years — 23 yrs English/Journalism teacher Wilson HS, 12 yrs Asst Principal at Waters/Cradock Middle); 6 yrs Chesapeake School Board; 8 yrs Virginia Board of Education (5 as Vice President); CNU Board of Visitors; HRPDC Chair; HRTPO. First elected Chesapeake City Council May 2006; reelected 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022. 2012 Democratic nominee for U.S. House VA-04 (lost to Randy Forbes). Member, Chesapeake Democratic Committee. Current term ends Jan 1, 2027; running for reelection Nov 2026.
At-large. Term expires 2026.
[2026-06 RESOLUTE refinement] Roster verified: At-Large Chesapeake council member, term ends Jan 1, 2027; running for reelection Nov 2026 (campaign launched at June 5 picnic attended by Rep. Bobby Scott). Openly affiliated Democrat (Chesapeake Democratic Committee; 2012 Democratic nominee VA-04). HARD evidence: voted YES on unanimous 9-0 FY24 budget that CUT the real-estate tax rate 4 cents ($1.05 → $1.01); supported VM de Triquet's 2022 motion to cut RE tax rate 4.5 cents (motion failed 4-5); voted NO on 2023 toll-rate increase on Chesapeake Expressway/Dominion Boulevard Veterans Bridge — economic_stewardship q2 TRUE (consistently pro-taxpayer at the rate-vote level). Publicly favors changing Chesapeake from at-large to ward/borough voting structure ('The way we elect council is a barrier for poor and working class people'). Present at May 28, 2024 council meeting where Mayor West announced Chesapeake's first-ever Pride proclamation (no council vote; no recorded objection). NO EVIDENCE individually scored on sanctity_of_life, biblical_marriage (no Ward vote/statement; mayoral proclamation only), family_child_sovereignty (her 'fund schools' framing is generic public-education-establishment posture, not a parental-rights/CRT/choice statement), christian_liberty (faith identity established but no specific dated invocation), election_integrity (her early-voting expansion vote 5/28/2024 expands access, doesn't map to q0/q1/q4; ward-system support is structural-equity, not voter-ID/paper-ballot/Zuckerbucks), public_justice ('equitable public safety pay raises' is budget-level, doesn't clear the affirmative-advocacy bar), refuse_state_overreach, border_immigration, self_defense (2019 2A Constitutional City vote was unanimous and Ward was on council, but her presence at that specific meeting was not confirmed in retrieved sources — left null pending minutes review).
Category Breakdown
Candidate affirms life begins at conception and personhood from conception
Not yet verified
Candidate (if District Attorney) has committed to prosecuting illegal abortion procedures; (if mayor/council) has supported pro-life city resolutions or refused to declare 'sanctuary city for abortion'
Not yet verified
Candidate opposes embryonic stem-cell research, IVF embryo discard, and chimeric experimentation
N/A · out of tier
Candidate opposes euthanasia, physician-assisted suicide, and quality-of-life rationing
N/A · out of tier
Candidate has never accepted Planned Parenthood, NARAL, EMILY's List, or abortion-industry PAC funding
N/A · out of tier
Candidate affirms marriage as exclusively the lifelong union of one man and one woman as instituted by God
Not yet verified
Candidate opposes all forms of same-sex marriage, civil unions, and domestic partnerships in law
N/A · out of tier
Candidate opposes city/county trans-affirming policies (bathroom mandates on private businesses, Pride flag raisings at city hall, pronouns-required HR rules)
Not yet verified
Candidate supports no-fault divorce reform and policies that strengthen the marriage covenant
N/A · out of tier
Candidate opposes city/county Pride proclamations, Pride flags at city facilities, drag programming in libraries, and LGBT-affirming K-12 curriculum (school-board-relevant)
Not yet verified
Candidate (school board) opts the district into school-choice transfers + protects homeschool freedom + opposes truancy-based criminal referrals
Not yet verified
Candidate (school board) requires parental notification before any gender/sexuality counseling of minors; (mayor/council) opposes city programs facilitating minor medical procedures without parents
Not yet verified
Candidate (school board) has voted to remove CRT/SOGI/comprehensive-sex-ed/gender-ideology materials from district curriculum and library shelves
Not yet verified
Candidate (mayor/council/library board) supports local enforcement of age-verification + removes sexualized content from library children's sections
N/A · out of tier
Candidate supports faith-based adoption/foster agencies and opposes placement of children with same-sex couples
N/A · out of tier
Candidate affirms the right to publicly profess Christ in all spheres (workplace, military, public office, schools)
Not yet verified
Candidate supports conscience exemptions for Christian medical professionals, business owners, adoption agencies, and educators
N/A · out of tier
Candidate (city/county/school board) opposes mandatory pronoun policies for staff + employees + students
Not yet verified
Candidate (mayor/council) supports city/county Christian displays (Ten Commandments, Nativity scenes), invocation prayer at meetings, Sunday-closure where chosen by community
Not yet verified
Candidate opposes city-funded non-Christian religious displays/programming (Ramadan illumination, etc.) at city facilities
Not yet verified
Candidate (city/county) opposes city participation in CBDC pilot programs + supports cash-acceptance ordinances for local businesses
N/A · out of tier
Candidate supports sound-money policies including gold/silver as constitutional money and audit/abolition of the Federal Reserve
N/A · out of tier
Candidate (mayor/council) has voted against deficit-bond issuances for non-capital city expenditures + supports balanced city budgets without service cuts via tax increases on residents
Candidate supports usury limits, anti-debt-slavery protections, and tithe-friendly tax structures
N/A · out of tier
Candidate (city/county) has voted to remove city pension/treasury investment in ESG-aligned funds + opposes city participation in WEF-aligned sister-city programs
N/A · out of tier
Candidate (city clerk/county election official) supports hand-counted paper ballots at local precincts where state law permits
Not yet verified
Candidate (city clerk/election official) enforces state photo voter ID + citizenship verification at local precincts
Not yet verified
Candidate supports single-day in-person voting with absentee only for verified medical/military exceptions
N/A · out of tier
Candidate opposes mass mail-in voting, drop boxes, and ballot harvesting
N/A · out of tier
Candidate (city clerk/council) refused acceptance of private election-administration grants ('Zuckerbucks')
Not yet verified
Candidate supports completed physical border barrier and active military border presence
N/A · out of tier
Candidate (DA/sheriff) cooperates with ICE detainers + transfers; (mayor/council) supports local cooperation with ICE rather than sanctuary policies
Not yet verified
Candidate (city/county) has voted against local sanctuary-city ordinances + supports city cooperation with federal immigration enforcement
Not yet verified
Candidate supports mandatory E-Verify for all employment and benefit eligibility
N/A · out of tier
Candidate opposes birthright citizenship for children of illegal aliens, tourist births, and opposes foreign ownership of U.S. farmland
N/A · out of tier
Candidate (mayor/council) opposes local gun-registry ordinances + local gun-shop zoning restrictions
Not yet verified
Candidate (city/council) opposes local-ordinance red-flag/magazine/AWB analogs + local gun-shop zoning restrictions
Not yet verified
Candidate supports repeal of the National Firearms Act (NFA), Gun Control Act (GCA), and other federal gun regulations
N/A · out of tier
Candidate supports castle doctrine and stand-your-ground laws with full civil immunity for lawful defense
N/A · out of tier
Candidate opposes ATF overreach, citizen disarmament initiatives, and U.N. small-arms treaty participation
N/A · out of tier
Candidate has publicly backed law enforcement and opposed defunding/dismantling police
Not yet verified
Candidate opposes cashless-bail, soft-on-crime, and rogue-prosecutor (e.g. Soros-DA) policy
Not yet verified
Candidate supports victim restitution and proportional punishment of evildoers
Not yet verified
Candidate refuses to treat violent crime as a "public health" excuse to avoid punishment
Not yet verified
Candidate affirms the magistrate's God-ordained duty to bear the sword (Rom. 13:4)
Not yet verified
Official has asserted local control against unconstitutional state mandates
Not yet verified
Official has declined state strings that compel ungodly or unconstitutional local policy
Not yet verified
Official has protected local citizens from state overreach (lockdowns, mandates, ESG)
Not yet verified
Official affirms subsidiarity — decisions made at the lowest competent level
Not yet verified
Official has refused to enforce unconstitutional state directives
Not yet verified
Sources & Evidence
1 Center2 Official6 Other
voteforellaward.com/about-ella/Unclassified
Ballotpedia ProfileCenter
Bias ratings sourced from AllSides and Ad Fontes Media. Classifications for government, reference, and advocacy domains are maintained by U.S.M.C. Ministries; see source_bias.json.
References & footnotes
Every answer above with a [n] marker corresponds to one of the footnotes below. Wayback-archive links preserve the page as it read at our access date so a reader can verify the citation even if the original URL changes or disappears.
- [1]Voted YES on unanimous 9-0 FY24 budget that CUT the real-estate tax rate 4 cents ($1.05 → $1.01); supported VM de Triquet's 2022 motion to cut RE tax rate 4.5 cents (failed 4-5); voted NO on 2023 toll-rate increase on Chesapeake Expressway/Dominion Boulevard Veterans Bridge. Unclassified
Voted YES on unanimous 9-0 FY24 budget that CUT the real-estate tax rate 4 cents ($1.05 → $1.01); supported VM de Triquet's 2022 motion to cut RE tax rate 4.5 cents (failed 4-5); voted NO on 2023 toll-rate increase on Chesapeake Expressway/Dominion Boulevard Veterans Bridge.
- [2]Voted YES on unanimous 9-0 FY24 budget that CUT the real-estate tax rate 4 cents ($1.05 → $1.01); supported VM de Triquet's 2022 motion to cut RE tax rate 4.5 cents (failed 4-5); voted NO on 2023 toll-rate increase on Chesapeake Expressway/Dominion Boulevard Veterans Bridge. Unclassified
Voted YES on unanimous 9-0 FY24 budget that CUT the real-estate tax rate 4 cents ($1.05 → $1.01); supported VM de Triquet's 2022 motion to cut RE tax rate 4.5 cents (failed 4-5); voted NO on 2023 toll-rate increase on Chesapeake Expressway/Dominion Boulevard Veterans Bridge.
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