Virginia county board votes against Northam’s coronavirus restrictions

A Virginia county has moved to block Gov. Ralph Northam’s coronavirus restrictions, endorsing a measure on Tuesday that would allow county authorities to not enforce the Democratic governor’s policies.

The Campbell County Board of Supervisors declared its county as a “First Amendment Sanctuary” claiming Northam’s restrictions violated constitutional rights. NPR reports that the county made a similar move last year when it declared itself a “Second Amendment Sanctuary.”

Northam laid out new restrictions earlier in November that included limiting public gatherings to 25 people and requiring people ages five and up to wear masks at indoor public spaces.

The board discouraged the sheriffs office from aiding state or federal workers in enforcing Northam’s restrictions and also stated that Campbell County funding should not go towards supporting the restrictions.

NPR reports that although the meeting was held on Zoom, many people arrived at the county administration building to voice their support for the board’s resolution.

“When Concord District Supervisor Matt Cline began to read the resolution, there was a flurry of movement as they took off their face masks in a show of support,” reports local newspaper The News & Advance. ”The same solidarity brought the crowd to its feet as residents praised the county for passing the resolution and, in turn, dismissed the few residents who took to the podium to speak in opposition.”

The newspaper noted in its report that the resolution is derived from similar ones found in other Virginia counties that have been distributed by conservative organizations.

Virginia has reported over 242,000 cases and over 4,000 deaths due to COVID-19 so far. Virginia is currently experiencing a new surge of cases, though the daily number of deaths have remained relatively low compared to the first surge of cases in the spring.