CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) – Democrat Fred Missel appears to have defeated Republican Scott Smith for the Samuel Miller district’s seat on the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors.

With all six precincts in the district reporting, Missel has won 59.1% of the Election Day vote to Smith’s 40.2%, according to the Virginia Department of Elections website. Early voting, mail-in and provisional ballots have not yet been counted, according to the DOE.

Missel received 2,725 votes to Smith’s 1,852.

This was Missel’s first foray into running for political office, a process he said “humbled” him. What did voters respond to about his campaign?

“I’m hopeful that it’s my reputation of integrity and collaboration with folks over the years,” Missel told Cville Right Now on Tuesday night. “I’ve got 15 years of public service and everybody’s tired of hearing me say that, but I very much have enjoyed that time and hopefully have reflected a record that is, as I said, very collaborative and forthright, very willing to work together to try to find solutions that are the best for both parties.”

In Tuesday’s voting, Missel won five of six of the district’s precincts, with only Yellow Mountain narrowly voting for Smith, who did not return a phone call from Cville Right Now.

Speaking from a Democratic watch party at Random Row Brewing Company in Charlottesville, Missel said his priorities will be affordable housing in the county and working on the comprehensive plan to prepare Albemarle for future growth and development in the comprehensive plan.

“I think, No. 1 for me, is to continue to focus on housing,” Missel said. “I think that’s a key issue, obviously, for the county and trying to find solutions on how to get to a way that we can afford to build affordable housing in Albemarle County. That’s gonna take collaboration, of course, from many different parties, including private sector and public sector. … The second one is just to continue to work on the next steps with the comprehensive plan. I think it’s critical for us to focus on the rural area master plan, to focus on the zoning ordinance and modernization plan and keep ourselves moving forward, so that we don’t just set that plan on the shelf, but we continue to look for ways to make progress.”

Missel said when he entered the race, he did not expect to have an opponent. Smith entered the race and Missel said that ended up having a positive impact on him.

“It was different than what I initially expected,” Missel said. “I didn’t honestly initially expect to have an opponent. When my opponent showed up, I knew that I had my work cut out for me. And, as I’ve mentioned to my opponent on several occasions, I’m grateful for his involvement because I think it has made me a better candidate and I believe will make me a better supervisor.”