By James Cullum Published in AlxNow May 20, 2024

Can Republican Celianna Gunderson shake up the Alexandria City Council with a win this November?

While she’s still learning the issues, Gunderson says that she would not have voted to approve a recent 2.5-cent tax increase.

“”Yes, I am a Republican and have conservative views,” Gunderson said. “This tax increase, I know I would not have voted for it.”

While she’s not calling for intervention from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Gunderson said that neighborhoods in Arlandria and the West End are full of undocumented immigrants living in unsafe, unregulated and overcrowded homes. She said that the city is sweeping the issue under the rug, and supports asking City Manager Jim Parajon to create a study determining the extent of overcrowding, as well as other safety issues.

It’s been more than a decade since Alexandria last had Republicans on City Council, and Gunderson says she wants lower taxes, as well as more dialogue between lawmakers on land use, crime and other issues. Her campaign website lists education, public safety and housing as her top priorities.

Despite being a political newcomer, Gunderson’s interview with ALXnow was briefly interrupted when she was approached by an admirer. The interview was conducted in a coffee shop near City Hall in Old Town.

“I understand you’re running for Council, on the good side,” the admirer said.

Gunderson’s name will appear alone on a ballot for the Republican primary for City Council on June 18. Meanwhile, 11 Democrat candidates are battling it out for the six available spots on the Democrat ticket. Gunderson will then face six Democrats in the general election on Nov. 5.

Gunderson also thinks Mayor Justin Wilson is close-minded.

“I’ve been in his presence a few times in some community meetings,” she said. “My impression is that he doesn’t want to hear what others have to say or be critiqued or challenged.”

A single mom to two teenagers, Gunderson is a senior paralegal at a small firm in Old Town focusing on international intellectual property law. Her father was in the U.S. Air Force, and she was born in Germany and speaks fluent German. She moved to the city 10 years ago and said that she started getting involved with the city’s Republican party last year. She lives in an apartment in Warwick Village.

Gunderson said that she’s familiarizing herself with the city budget and has been watching Council meetings, some of which can run for up to eight hours and longer. She said local lawmakers haven’t adequately responded to the city’s crime surge over the last several years, and supports returning City Council to a ward system of representation, as opposed to current model with at-large representation for the mayor and six-member body.

“There’s a ward system everywhere, except for City Council,” Gunderson said. “They have it for the School Board, for Congress, Senate, president — they’re all voted for by district.”

Gunderson started work at the law firm earlier this year, and before that spent nearly four years as an instructional assistant with Alexandria City Public Schools. She got the job in 2020 during the pandemic while working at the Aldi grocery store in Del Ray. Then-Alexandria City High School principal Peter Balas would go into the store to shop, and Gunderson says that they eventually struck up a conversation about working for the school and soon after she was hired to assist special education students online.

On zoning issues, Gunderson says that she wants to reduce regulations and restrictions to allow for more construction of housing units, “thereby increasing supply and driving down costs,” she said on her website.

When asked whether she’s supports former Republican President Trump, Gunderson said that it was a loaded question.

“That’s a loaded question,” she said. “Unfortunately, people only want to hear the yes or no. Did I have another favorite? Yes. Would I ever vote for Biden? No.”

Gunderson continued, “For me it comes down to if you care about your feelings after a mean tweet more than your love of our country, there is a problem.  Our country was in better shape on multiple fronts when Trump was in office. My family life under Trump was better. I am a Republican and an America first person. So, one may deduce what one will with that.”